Hide & Seek shows how friendship can go wrong: Shawn Arranha
Features
oi-Raymond Ronamai
By Raymond Ronamai
Shawn
Arranha
talks
about
his
upcoming
release
Hide
&
Seek.
He
revealed
that
he
is
reading
scripts
and
trying
to
shift
genres,
because
he
wants
to
be
known
as
a
versatile
director.
How
did
Hide
&
Seek
materialise?
Apoorva
Lakhia
narrated
to
me
the
subject
of
Hide
&
Seek.
I
told
him
that
I
liked
it
and
asked
him
when
he
was
going
to
direct
the
film.
He
surprised
as
well
as
shocked
me
by
telling
me
that
he
wanted
me
to
make
my
debut
as
a
director
with
the
film,
after
having
assisted
him
in
the
making
of
his
films
like
Mumbai
Se
Aaya
Mera
Dost,
Ek
Ajnabi,
Shootout
At
Lokhandwala
and
Mission
Istanbul.
How
would
you
describe
your
film
Hide
&
Seek?
Hide
&
Seek
is
a
suspense
thriller.
The
film
is
the
story
of
six
best
friends
-Om,
Abhi,
Jaideep,
Imran,
Gunita
and
Jyotika
and
one
night
when
something
so
terrible
happens
to
them
that
its
impact
resonates
through
their
beings
for
the
next
twelve
years.
Now,
twelve
years
later,
having
lost
all
contact
with
each
other,
they
find
themselves
face
to
face
once
more.
Haunted
by
the
past,
trapped
in
a
shopping
mall,
the
six
best
friends
turn
into
worst
enemies
as
they
play
a
game
of
Hide
&
Seek
for
their
survival,
with
their
past
coming
back
to
haunt
them.
What
have
you
set
out
to
show
through
Hide
&
Seek?
I
show
how
friendship
can
go
wrong
and
a
little
anger
can
trigger
off
a
bigger
event.
What
I
liked
about
the
subject
of
Hide
&
Seek
is
that
each
and
every
character
in
the
film
is
well
defined.
It
is
not
the
story
of
the
heroes
but
the
actors
who
have
equal
space.
Is
it
a
conscious
effort
not
to
cast
stars
in
Hide
&
Seek?
Yes.
It
was
a
very
conscious
effort
on
the
part
of
Appu
and
me
not
to
cast
well
known
faces
with
set
images
in
Hide
&
Seek.
I
wanted
people
to
come
and
watch
my
film
as
such
and
not
the
stars.
It
is
a
suspense
thriller
and
it
is
also
a
fact
that
with
the
kind
of
budget
at
our
disposal
we
just
could
not
have
cast
stars.
I
wanted
to
cast
six
faces,
with
one
hit
each.
Amruta
Patki
is
Miss
India.
Arjan
Bajwa
has
a
hit
in
Fashion.
Sameer
Kochchar
is
known
for
his
performance
in
Jannat
while
Ayaz
Khan
is
known
after
Jaane
Tu
Ya
Na
Jaane
Na.
Purab
Kohli
is
a
known
face
after
My
Brother
Nikhil,
while
Mrinalini
Sharma
is
known
for
her
films
like
Aawarapan
and
Apaharan
In
what
way
is
your
style
different
from
that
of
Apurva
Lakhia?
I
know
I
will
be
compared
to
Appu.
I
do
not
mind,
because
after
all,
he
is
my
guru.
I
like
directors
like
Anurag
Kashyap,
Karan
Johar,
Rakesh
Roshan,
Aamkir
Khan,
Farhan
Akhtar
etc.
I
learnt
from
Appu
how
to
make
films
in
a
very
organized
way.
Appu
likes
to
show
all
his
heroes
as
larger
than
life
characters,
on
a
wider
canvass.
I
held
a
workshop
for
all
my
actors
with
proper
script
readings
to
make
each
of
them
familiar
with
the
other
so
that
they
can
shed
their
inhibitions
and
work
together
as
a
team.
I
wanted
all
my
actors
to
look
tired
in
a
mall.
I
put
in
more
khichdi,
twisting
the
plot
more
because
I
like
thrillers.
I
have
used
a
lot
of
lensing
and
lighting
to
make
it
claustrophobic.
My
intention
is
to
make
people
too
play
a
game
while
watching
my
film.
How
has
the
experience
of
directing
Hide
&
Seek?
They
say
being
a
director
is
a
privilege
and
if
such
is
the
case
then
I
am
indeed
privileged.
In
retrospect,
right
from
the
time
that
I
embarked
on
my
journey
as
an
assistant
with
Kaizad
Gustad
with
his
film
Boom,
it
has
been
an
amazing
journey
for
me.
When
Appu
had
taken
a
break,
I
had
also
worked
with
Bharat
Bala
in
Hari
Om,
Reema
Kagti
in
Honey
Moon
Travels
and
Farhan
Akhtar
in
Lakshya.
I
am
glad
that
Appu,
Laxmi
and
Moserbaer
had
enough
belief
and
conviction
in
me
to
give
me
my
first
film,
Hide
&
Seek.
I
must
mention
in
particular
my
wonderful
cast
who
made
life
for
me
on
the
sets
as
uncomplicated
as
they
did.
Most
debutant
directors
crave
stars
but
I
chose
to
tread
the
other
way
and
cast
an
ensemble
of
6
very
talented
actors.
What
do
you
have
to
say
now
that
Hide
&
Seek
is
ready
for
release?
Hide
&
Seek
started
off
as
a
small
thought
which
over
time
grew
into
a
serious
idea
and
before
I
knew
it,
this
small
thought
had
become
my
reality.
Time
for
me
seems
to
have
passed
in
a
flurry
of
activity
since
then.
It
feels
like
yesterday
when
we
finished
scripting,
casting,
started
shooting,
got
into
post
production.
And
here
I
stand
today
at
the
threshold
of
judgment.
Is
it
true
that
you
had
shot
your
film
in
a
mall
in
Ahmedabad?
Yes.
We
shot
the
film
over
a
span
of
twenty
seven
days
in
Ahmedabad.
Twenty
one
of
those
shooting
dates
were
used
in
a
mall
by
night.
It
was
just
us
and
a
dark
eerie
mall
that
actually
added
to
the
mood.
I
must
applaud
my
cast
and
crew
for
never
once
complaining
about
the
odd
hours.
We
would
be
on
location
by
7pm
and
would
shoot
straight
till
10
am.
It
would
not
have
been
possible
to
finish
this
film
in
this
short
time
span
had
I
not
had
full
co
operation
from
every
department
involved.
What
have
you
taken
away
from
Hide
&
Seek?
have
learnt
to
say
less,
think
more
and
remain
grateful
for
each
moment
that
I"m
allowed
to
spend
making
movies
that
I
believe
in.
I
have
tried
to
add
my
own
stamp
to
it
by
bringing
into
play
certain
unique
techniques
that
I
hope
shall
have
the
audience
sitting
at
the
edge
of
their
seat,
wondering
what
comes
next.
What
does
the
future
hold
for
me?
I
don"t
know
but
the
possibilities
seem
infinite.
It
is
my
hope
that
you,
the
audience
like
my
first
film
and
give
me
the
opportunity
to
entertain
you
time
and
again
with
different
films
of
different
genres,
bringing
something
new
to
the
silver
screen
each
time.
What
next,
after
Hide
&
Seek?
I
am
reading
scripts
and
trying
to
shift
genres.
From
thrillers
to
romantic
comedies,
I
want
to
be
known
as
a
versatile
director.
As
a
director,
I
can
only
give
an
idea.
Not
every
director
can
write
a
story.
I
feel
that
it
is
the
writer
alone
who
can
take
a
story
to
another
level
in
a
film
format.
I
want
to
be
like
Michael
Bay.
Right
now,
my
biggest
award
will
be
if
I
am
accepted
as
a
good
director.