Sangeeth Sivan speaks out his heart
By:
Joginder
Tuteja,
IndiaFM
Tuesday,
November
21,
2006
Apna
Sapna
Money
Money
has
been
declared
as
a
success
and
none
other
than
Sangeeth
Sivan
is
at
the
top
of
the
world.
And
why
not?
After
all
for
the
second
time
in
succession
[after
Kya
Kool
Hain
Hum],
he
has
waded
away
all
the
criticism
and
delivered
back
to
back
money
spinners.
Over
to
the
film
maker
who
made
a
shaky
debut
with
Sunny
Deol-Sushmita
Sen
starrer
Zor
around
a
decade
back
but
has
now
firmly
found
himself
accepted
in
the
film
world
over
the
years.
You
must
be
gladdened
to
see
a
heartening
response
to
ASMM.
Of
course
yes
and
what
takes
the
cake
is
that
the
film
is
doing
well
in
not
just
the
single
screens
but
even
the
multiplexes.
Thankfully
critics
were
tolerant
this
time
around
and
gave
the
film
better
rating
than
compared
to
your
last
Kyaa
Kool
Hain
Hum.
If
you
ask
me,
I
would
honestly
say
that
I
wished
critics
wouldn't
have
given
any
rating
at
all
to
the
film.
Does
it
matter
at
all?
I
would
say
no.
What
matters
in
the
end
is
public
response
to
the
film
which
in
case
of
ASMM
has
been
simply
too
good.
I
am
least
apologetic
about
the
film
I
have
made.
See,
critics
are
far
removed
from
the
reality
and
sit
in
their
A/C
rooms
while
coming
up
with
their
reviews.
They
put
in
their
own
sensibilities
without
trying
to
get
into
a
film
maker's
mind
and
then
judge
what
he/she
is
trying
to
tell!
So
has
ASMM
been
made
differently
than
KKKH?
Obviously
it
is
much
toned
down
when
it
comes
to
sex
jokes
since
it
was
made
while
keeping
family
audience
in
mind.
And
again,
I
don't
have
any
qualms
whatsoever
to
admit
that
it
is
a
straightforward
fun
film
which
is
more
time-pass
than
being
path
breaking
by
any
means.
We
avoided
double
meaning
dialogues
and
incorporated
elements
like
a
dog
and
a
'tabela' that
would
get
the
kids
excited.
And
again
I
am
amused
by
the
fact
when
critics
say
that
the
film
was
merely
time
pass.
Arrey
baba,
wahi
toh
main
bhi
chahta
tha...aao,
film
dekho,
time
pass
karo
aur
ghar
jaao!
Simple!
So
Sangeeth
is
certainly
having
the
last
laugh
now,
isn't
that
so?
Well,
I
can
say
that.
If
you
look
at
some
of
the
films
that
have
released
in
recent
weeks,
there
have
been
cases
when
even
big
stars
haven't
been
able
to
pull
them
off.
In
comparison
my
film
with
a
medium
budget
and
an
ordinary
starcast
has
still
recovered
its
entire
cost
in
the
first
week
and
is
now
into
profit
making
mode.
When
a
film
like
this
opens
to
an
80%
opening
weekend,
I
can
only
say
that
somewhere
I
have
done
things
right;
there
is
some
segment
of
audience
which
is
liking
my
film!
If
my
film
would
have
been
vulgar,
it
wouldn't
have
been
accepted
the
way
it
has
been.
Still
fact
cannot
be
denied
that
the
film
does
have
its
dose
of
double
entendres.
See,
if
you
walk
down
the
road
you
would
see
that
it
is
a
similar
lingo
spoken
by
folks
there.
Also
when
I
made
ASMM,
I
wanted
my
children
to
appreciate
it
because
they
are
the
ones
who
would
give
a
frank
opinion
and
tell
me
on
my
face
what
is
wrong
and
what
is
right.
They
seemed
to
have
thoroughly
enjoyed
it
and
we
all
agree
that
the
film
wanted
people
to
just
laugh
along
and
go
home.
Period!
If
I
recollect
the
cat
scene
from
KKKH
that
got
so
much
of
flak!
It
was
just
meant
to
evoke
laughter
but
just
look
at
the
way
that
solitary
sequence
was
picked
up
to
thrash
the
film.
I
am
100%
sure
that
the
audience
knew
what
Tushar
Kapoor
was
up
to
in
that
scene
and
wasn't
doing
anything
wrong.
You
must
have
seen
Meet
The
Fockers.
It
is
entertaining,
no
doubts
about
that
but
did
these
very
critics
raise
their
finger
on
it?
No,
instead
they
called
it
great
and
what
not!
Why?
Because
it
came
from
Hollywood.
But
anything
Indian
and
the
daggers
are
out.
A
delay
in
release
by
a
couple
of
months
seems
to
have
worked
perfectly
to
the
plan.
Thank
goodness
for
that!
Initially
even
I
was
upset
when
I
was
informed
about
the
postponement.
After
all
every
director
wants
his
film
to
be
out
there
on
screens
once
it
is
ready
and
moreover
I
couldn't
start
any
new
film
before
ASMM
released.
But
yes,
in
the
hindsight
it
all
fit
in
well
to
the
plan.
The
film
had
a
strategic
release
and
was
promoted
very
well
with
number
of
tie
ups
only
helping
the
visibility
factor.
Riteish
factor
is
another
major
contributor
to
the
film's
success.
Isn't
that
so?
And
to
think
of
it,
while
writing
the
script
he
was
never
meant
to
be
a
woman
anywhere
in
the
plot.
What
we
were
looking
for
was
a
turning
point
in
the
film
that
would
bring
in
a
major
confusion.
This
is
when
the
woman
angle
came
in
and
Ritesih
was
named
Sania
to
make
situations
further
complex.
Anupam
Kher
was
at
his
freakiest
best.
Do
you
know
that
he
was
the
one
who
brought
in
the
element
of
blindness
in
the
film?
Since
we
hadn't
thought
about
this
and
this
wasn't
detailed
out
in
the
script,
we
were
undoubtedly
quite
paranoid
and
scary
about
what
would
be
the
final
result.
But
then
it
is
there
for
everyone
to
be
seen!
Sangeeth,
you
started
off
round
a
decade
back
with
Zor.
Why
are
you
seen
just
on
and
off?
Let
me
explain
that.
When
I
made
Zor,
it
took
a
year
to
be
completed.
Now
in
Malayalam,
I
was
used
to
making
films
in
3
months
but
here
after
a
year
I
was
quite
lost.
So
after
finishing
'Zor',
I
just
packed
off
my
bags
and
returned
to
Kerala
hoping
that
offers
would
come
my
way
even
though
I
was
miles
away.
But
then
I
soon
learnt
my
lessons.
I
realized
that
if
your
film
doesn't
work
well
at
the
box
office,
no
one
cares
a
damn
about
technical
finesses
you
have
as
a
film
maker.
What
matters
most
is
only
money!
I
didn't
get
any
calls
and
in
the
meanwhile
I
made
some
Malayalam
films.
So
was
it
a
point
of
no
return?
Na
na,
thankfully
I
was
back
in
Bollywood
business
with
Sandhya.
It
was
a
well
made
experimental
film
that
was
completed
and
ready
for
release.
But
then
Jackie
Shroff
came
up
with
his
magnum
opus
'Boom'
which
boomed
and
along
with
that
went
my
dreams
of
seeing
Sandhya
on
the
big
screen.
So
what
happened
next?
While
the
promos
of
'Sandhya'
were
on
air,
Ekta
Kapoor
called
me
and
asked
me
if
I
could
get
started
with
a
horror
film
for
her
production
house.
I
asked
her
that
why
couldn't
we
make
a
comedy
instead?
After
'Chura
Liya
Hai
Tumne'
didn't
work
well,
which
had
released
some
time
back,
I
thought
of
doing
something
for
the
audience
I
wanted
to
cater
to.
This
is
how
'Kya
Kool
Hain
Hum'
was
born.
Also,
I
shifted
my
residence
to
Mumbai
and
got
my
family
along
because
over
the
years
I
realized
that
it
was
always
better
to
be
in
contact
with
the
people
here
at
Bollywood.
So
what
else
is
in
the
anvil?
Come
December
10
and
I
would
be
beginning
my
next
with
Nana
Patekar
and
Bobby
Deol.
I
would
term
it
as
a
Die
Hard
meets
Yash
Chopra
kind
of
cinema.
We
are
still
waiting
for
the
right
title
of
the
film
but
what
I
can
tell
you
is
that
this
will
be
a
hardcore
action
film.
Starting
with
an
action
film
[Zor],
hitting
jackpot
with
two
comedies
[KKKH
and
ASMM]
and
now
back
to
action!
Any
special
reasons?
See,
in
India
any
film
can
work
irrespective
of
the
genre.
Ours
is
such
a
huge
country
and
there
is
a
market
for
every
film.
Now
I
hear
'Vivah'
is
doing
quite
well
too.
So
great!
It
is
nice
since
it
only
helps
the
industry
grow.
You
have
family
movies,
comedies,
thrillers
all
doing
well
hence
we
all
know
that
all
subjects
are
finding
acceptance
in
the
market.
It's
all
about
packaging
yaar!
Get
your
target
audience
in
place
and
you
have
a
success
in
hand!
What
more
beyond
the
Nana-Bobby
film?
Soon
after
I
will
be
through
the
Nana-Bobby
film,
I
will
have
another
thriller
with
Nana
titled
'Network'.
The
film
is
about
a
relationship
between
a
man
and
his
cell
phone.
It
should
require
just
a
30
days
shooting
schedule.
Any
traces
of
'Phone
Booth'
here?
No,
not
at
all!
'Network'
is
an
absolutely
original
film
and
is
a
complete
drift
from
the
kind
of
work
I
have
done.
The
film
actually
deals
with
how
eventually
a
cell
phone
becomes
the
cause
of
this
character's
death.
After
these
two
films,
I
would
prove
to
people
that
if
I
am
called
the
'sultan
of
sex
comedy'
then
I
can
even
give
you
hardcore
action
and
thrillers.