‘Paresh Rawal woke up late’: Oh My God 2 director Amit Rai breaks silence on story credit row | Exclusive
New Delhi: After sparking conversations with Oh My God 2, filmmaker Amit Rai returns with Oh My Dog, an emotional tale celebrating the unconditional bond between humans and dogs. Shot across the real landscapes of Bihar and Assam, the film stars Pankaj Tripathi, Pawan Malhotra and a host of familiar faces.
In an exclusive conversation with News9 Digital, Rai talks about the inspiration behind the film, working with Pankaj Tripathi, why he chose authentic locations, his response to Paresh Rawal’s claims over Oh My God 2, his changing experience with the CBFC, and why he believes Oh My Dog is a film for the entire family.
Q. What do you have to say about Paresh Rawal alleging that he didn’t get credit for the story of Oh My God 2? And is it true he took the film to Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn?
Amit Rai: I think he has woken up late. I respect him a lot. But this story originated from me and I’ve developed and nurtured it. I’ve written, directed, produced and released it myself. He’s also the producer of the film. So, I don’t understand why he’s saying that he hasn’t got the credit for the film. As far as I remember, he said no for doing this film because he didn’t like the story. He has given a statement in the press a week before the release. I don’t why he’s saying this. Is it because the film became successful? I remember when this film went to these two actors, they felt that the film looks like a sequel to Oh My God and if Akshay Kumar is not doing the film then we’ll do the film. The rights of the franchise are with Akshay Kumar and Paresh Bhai wouldn’t have been able to make the film as Oh My God 2. So, I think to maintain credibility and not encroach into other actor’s franchise, both actors preferred to stay away from the film. They were ready to do the film if Akshay Kumar was not doing the film or agreed to met someone else do it. I think the matter is between him and the producers and I think producer Ashvin Varde has addressed the matter. It’s in the public domain and the matter is closed.
Q. Oh My Dog rhymes with Oh My God. Was the pun intended?
Amit Rai: I don’t know about rhyming. But while making this film I’ve realised that God is with you always protecting you. He gives you unconditional love which the relationship between god and his devotee, like my relationship with Krishna. Whoever made this glossary, God and Dog, must have thought it through. Where God can’t reach it sends a dog to protect you.
Q. Oh My God 2 was given an A certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), depriving the film’s main target audience from watching it. Now sex education is being introduced in schools. Your thoughts?
Amit Rai: I was fighting with the CBFC that this film was meant for children and they deprived them from watching the film. The whole battle was lost. Now, the point of contention was that, I was trying to explain to them that you’d stop children from watching the film in theatres. But what about the internet and mobile? The child is watching anything there. It’s good that schools and we as a society start teaching children at an early age. Why are we shying away from this fact? Let’s be open. We are the culture who invented Kama Sutra and we have God of sex and we have temples built dedicated to him. Anyway, bygones are bygones. I’ve moved on.
Q. What was your experience with the CBFC this time for Oh My Dog?
Amit Rai: I was so scared about dealing with the CBFC, as we had a huge debate. We almost spent a month coming to a conclusion and on a decision about hiw we’re going to present the film with the modifications they asked for. But on the contrary, this time I met these people in Delhi. I got the certification from Delhi. It was such a wonderful experience. They appreciated the film. They talked about the nuances of the film. Arvind Jain and the executive committee sat with me for half an hour and started explaining to me how much they’ve liked the film. The enthusiasm and encouragement I’ve received from the CBFC for Oh My Dog, I was expecting that for Oh My God 2. I thank them for passing the film with no cuts and UA certificate. Oh My God 2 was meant for kids. Oh My Dog is meant for kids and the family. I’m extremely happy with the UA certificate.
Q. What prompted you to tell this story?
Amit Rai: The story prompted me to tell the story. It’s a pure, emotional love story between a human and a dog. I wanted to convey this unconditional love. And to whom I wanted to convey this to can’t speak. So, it was interesting to me to show how dogs perform their duty towards humans. So, empathy and unconditional love made me want to tell this story.
Q. Tell us about casting Pankaj Tripathi and Pawan Malhotra. Is it true that Pankaj stayed longer than he was needed to?
Amit Rai: The film’s casting was interesting. I’ve worked with Pawan Malhotra before in two films. He’s a good friend of mine. The same goes with Shreedhar, Vijay Mishra, Geeta Agrawal and Pankaj Tripathi. The same team was in Oh My God 2. I think the story attracted them. Pankaj ji has two dogs and loves them. The film was going to be shot in Bihar. Pankaj ji comes from Bihar but he hasn’t shot in Bihar. So, that could have also been a reason for him to do this film. He plays a very important role that of a teacher. It took us eight days to complete shooting his portion. He stayed there for ten days and spent some time in Chhapra, Patna.
Q. The film has been shot on real locations in Bihar and Assam. Why did you choose these two states for filming?
Amit Rai: I shot on real locations because the story demanded that. The story is set in Bihar and Assam and both are different landscapes. One is beautiful and the other one is noisy. The story is like finding a niddle in a haystack. I’m frok Bihar so my attention first went to my state. Film shooting doesn’t happen here because of the image that Bihar has. So, I thought let’s shoot in Bihar. Assam is also an undiscovered location. I met Sulakshana Barua who plays a teacher in the film. I met her at IFFI. She introduced me to Assam. I met Simanta Shekhar and people from the Assam government and film development. They helped me while shooting. I’m highly thankful to both of them. Real locations make the film immersive.
Q. What is your promotion strategy for Oh My Dog?
Amit Rai: If you have a dog you should watch this film and if you don’t have a dog then you must watch this film. The film doesn’t have a movie star. The dogs are the star of this film. The story is about the relationship between a human and a dog. So, we thought why not show the film to dog parents first and then they should start talking about the film. So, our promotion strategy was to associate NGOs and dog feeders with the film. If we manage to reach out to these people then reaching out to others would become relatively easier.