Sanjay Dutt Wanted Me To Convince My Father & Uncle To Make Sadak 2 Unveils Pooja Bhatt

After much speculation, the release date for Sadak 2, a sequel to the 1991 romantic thriller, has finally been announced. Starring Pooja Bhatt and Sanjay Dutt in the lead roles, the original film was directed by Mahesh Bhatt. And the sequel would see Pooja returning to acting after 15 years. Is she nervous? “I am frightened as hell,” she tells us, and continues, “But I think the day you stop being nervous, you’re finished.”

Asked if her father [Mahesh Bhatt] had to convince her to be a part of Sadak 2, which will release in November 2019, Pooja reveals it was actually Sanjay who was keen to get the film made. “It was the other way round, I had to convince him to make the film. I met Sanju [Sanjay Dutt] in Delhi in March 2016 at a conclave where I was interviewing him, and that’s when we got talking. He said, ‘why don’t we revisit Sadak?’ I told him that it’s (producer) Mukesh Bhatt’s product, not mine. And he said, ‘you’re the only one who can push him to make it’. So, I came back to Mumbai and told my father and uncle [Mukesh Bhatt] that Sanju is really keen, so why can’t we think about Sadak 2,” recalls Pooja, adding that she was instrumental in “getting them all together in the same room”.

On whether Mahesh would turn director this time too, Pooja says that he’s the driving force for everyone around. “Right now, the script is being written. Anyway, it’s irrelevant who is directing it. Mahesh Bhatt is the creative backbone of Sadak 2. We’ll make sure that his vision doesn’t get watered down. Also, I’ve told him that whether he directs or not, he has to be at the helm of things because there’s nobody else who can understand the emotions of that character. Now, whether he’d actually say start, sound or cut or not, that’s something we’ll decide later,” shares Pooja, who, besides acting, would also be the associate director on the film.

I’m kind of keeping things together because Mukesh uncle can’t physically be on the set all the time. And I feel I’ve learned from them. Mukesh uncle has taught me how to balance my books and my father has taught me how to use my heart and deal with people. So, I have the best of both worlds and today, if I can be of any assistance to them, it’s really living up to my legacy in the real sense of the word.”

Not divulging much about the cast, Pooja says, “Besides Sanju and I, there is going to be a younger couple and I will let Mukesh uncle have the privilege of making the announcement because he’s the producer and this project is his baby in that sense.”

Mahesh Bhatt shares the character sketch

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt says, “Sadak 2 won’t be a remake of the original film. It’ll have the same character, the 25-year-old Ravi (played by Sanjay Dutt), that is now ageing and approaching his wisdom years. A grief stricken, completely directionless, angst ridden character, and his journey is the space, which we’re beginning the film from.” Refuting rumours that Siddharth Malhotra was ever considered for Sadak 2, he adds, “I don’t think we came anyway close to even discussing a star cast because we were not even ready with what would the final script be. Right now, the script is under progress but we would be able to really do the casting after everything is locked.”

Interact with Monika Rawal Kukreja at Twitter/@monikarawal