Vashu Bhagnani takes F.A.L.T.U the digital way
Vashu Bhagnani is someone who lives, breathes and eats Bollywood. Well, that's Vashu for you, simple and unassuming. And as a dutiful father, he is leaving no stone unturned to promote his forthcoming film F.A.L.T.U which stars an array of Gen-Next stars, including his son Jackky. And in order to make this film more unique, Vashu is now all set to revolutionize the way people look at music, by introducing 'Digital Downloads', a first of its kind in Bollywood.
Our correspondent caught up with this master producer for an all-exclusive interview, wherein Vashu spoke in detail about the digital revolution that he has started, with which he is all set to take the world of music by storm...err...whirlpool! Over to you, Vashu...
To
start
with,
what's
the
film
all
about?
The
film,
F.A.L.T.U
is
directed
by
Remo
D'souza,
stars
an
array
of
actors,
namely,
Arshad
Warsi,
Riteish
Deshmukh,
Jackky
Bhagnani,
ex-Miss
India
Pooja
Gupta,
Angad
Bedi
and
Chandan
Sanyal.
The
film
is
all
about
youth.
Can
you
tell
us
something
about
the
film's
music?
Music
is
the
best
thing
that
has
happened
to
this
film.
We
have
released
the
film's
music
this
week
which
includes
songs
like
Atif
Aslam's
'Le
Jaa
Le
Jaa'
and
Hard
Kaur's
'Chaar
Baj
Gaye
Party
Abhi
Baaki
Hai'.
They
are
two
different
types
of
songs
that
had
a
digital
release,
making
this
a
first
time
in
India.
What
does
the
term
'Digital
Release'
mean?
'Digital
Release'
means
that
the
songs
are
released
digitally
and
not
on
the
stereotyped
method.
Each
song
of
this
album
is
available
at
Rs.
10
only.
Who
came
up
with
this
digital
download's
idea?
It's
me
who
had
come
up
with
this
unique
idea.
And
there
is
a
reason
behind
the
same.
And
the
reason
is
that
my
career
began
with
audio
cassette
manufacturing.
I
used
to
manufacture
300,000
audio
cassettes
in
a
single
day!
According
to
me,
I
was
the
largest
manufacturer
in
the
country,
after
T-Series.
That's
how
I
know
the
in
and
out
of
the
industry.
And
what
I
saw
was
that
the
industry
is
getting
money,
through
the
form
of
digital
media.
But
the
problem
here
was
that
the
general
public
was
not
able
to
get
connected
with
this.
But,
in
my
case,
what
will
happen
is
that
since
we
are
offering
25,000
prizes,
which
also
means
that
we
are
getting
connected
with
25,000
people
at
one
go,
which
is
practically
impossible
in
the
coming
100
years
for
any
music
company.
I
have
seen
people
saying
that
I
stay
as
far
as
Udaipur,
Muzaffarpur
and
other
far
off
place,
but
I
am
not
able
to
connect.
That's
where
my
digital
download
will
come
in
the
picture.
Through
this,
they
will
not
just
get
connected,
but
also
will
be
showered
with
gifts,
just
for
getting
connected!
Even
in
a
reality
show,
one
can
have
a
maximum
of
100
people,
whereas
here,
I
can
have
a
whopping
25,000
people!
Post this; I am also starting off with a mega grooming classes for the masses, which again will be an initiative to get connected with the masses! These classes will happen post June.
What
is
it
that
you
are
planning
to
achieve
by
having
a
'Digital
Release'?
The
basic
reason
for
us
to
get
into
a
'Digital
Release'
is
because;
we
wanted
to
curb
the
piracy
in
the
industry.
And
there
are
incentives
for
the
listeners
who
download
the
songs.
There
are
a
whopping
25,000
prizes
worth
a
staggering
Rs.
5
crores!
The
best
part
of
this
process
is
that,
besides
the
money,
Remo
will
also
teach
dancing
to
around
15-20
students.
This
aside,
some
lucky
winners
will
also
get
a
chance
to
have
breakfast,
lunch,
coffee
and
dinner
with
the
vibrant
star
cast
of
the
film.
Wait...
there's
more!
Lucky
winners
will
also
get
to
star
in
a
film
that's
produced
by
Puja
Films.
Besides
the
fact
that,
each
winner
is
entitled
to
a
gift
of
Rs.
250
each,
we
have
decided
to
contribute
around
5-7%
of
the
money
to
'Smile
Foundation'.
For
me,
this
is
a
platform
not
just
for
merely
money,
but
I
want
to
develop
the
market
in
a
big
way.
You
said
that
the
listeners
will
have
to
download
the
songs
in
order
to
be
able
to
participate
in
the
lucky
draw.
In
that
case,
can
a
listener
download
the
songs
many
times
in
order
to
increase
his/
her
chance
of
winning?
Absolutely!
The
listener
can
download
the
same
song
as
many
times
as
he/she
wants!
And
guess
what.
Even
though
it's
too
early
to
say
this,
but,
we
have
decided
to
release
another
two
songs
in
the
Bryan
Adams
show.
Not
just
that,
if
the
response
to
this
download
is
huge,
as
in
we
get
many
hits
before
the
show,
we
may
just
land
up
announcing
a
few
names
on
the
show
as
well!
What's
the
cost
of
a
single
song
as
well
as
that
of
the
album?
The
cost
to
download
a
single
song
is
Rs.
10,
whereas
the
whole
album
can
be
downloaded
at
Rs.
40
for
8
songs,
but
the
label's
delivery
will
be
done
only
after
one
month.
But
the
listener
has
to
book
the
label
now,
so
as
to
gain
an
entry
in
the
lucky
draw.
Besides
the
Bryan
Adams
concert,
what
are
the
other
marketing
strategies
that
you
are
planning
to
adopt
in
order
to
promote
this
unique
proposition?
That's
a
good
question.
The
first
step
was
our
grand
music
launch,
which
will
be
followed
by
the
Bryan
Adams
concert.
Thereafter,
it
will
be
the
'Jhalak
Dikhla
Jaa'
dance
show,
in
which
Remo
himself
is
one
of
the
eminent
judges!
After
that
it
will
be
the
Global
Awards.
Since
it's
an
internet
thing
happening,
we
are
planning
to
go
all
out
to
catch
hold
of
the
youth
through
the
medium
of
Youtube,
Facebook
and
other
youth
sites.
Since
it's
an
online
(digital)
format
that
you
have
ventured
into,
does
that
mean
that
there
won't
be
any
advertising
adopted
for
the
print
medium
(newspapers)?
As
I
said
earlier
that,
we
will
be
going
all
out
to
promote
this
unique
thing,
we
have
just
started
off
with
the
internet
promotions.
Later
on,
we
will
be
all
over
the
place
in
terms
of
magazines,
newspapers,
television
etc
What's
the
procedure
to
download
the
songs?
The
procedure
is
very
simple.
One
has
to
simply
log
onto
the
URL
www.iamfaltu.com,
and
then,
pay
the
money,
through
the
form
of
credit
cards
or
easy
cards
and
bank
transactions.
Since
it's
a
new
venture,
there
could
be
minor
loopholes
in
the
same,
which
I
am
sure
will
be
rectified
in
a
week's
time.
I
guarantee
you
that
in
a
week's
time;
the
said
site
will
have
an
international
look.
The
above
thing
sounds
fine
for
those
who
have
access
to
the
internet.
But,
don't
you
feel
that,
with
that,
you
will
be
restricting
your
audiences
to
the
net-savvy
ones,
thus
resulting
in
masses
who
don't
use
internet
being
left
out.
How
can
I
forget
them
yaar!
As
I
have
told
you
before,
my
strategy
is
to
reach
as
many
people
as
possible.
That's
why
the
provision
that
we
have
made
for
those
who
are
not
net
savvy
or
inaccessible
to
the
internet,
we
will
be
shortly
starting
a
SMS
short
code
service.
You
have
tied
up
with
Hungama
for
the
same.
What
was
the
reason
for
you
to
choose
Bollywood
Hungama?
Bollywoodhungama.com,
its
totally
needless
to
say,
that,
according
to
me,
is
one
of
the
best
sites
for
music,
films
and
entertainment.
I
won't
be
wrong
if
I
say
that
Bollywood
Hungama
was
the
first
company
to
have
started
'Entertainment'
in
a
big
way.
In
other
words,
it's
Bollywood
Hungama
which
has
made
entertainment
to
enjoy
the
position
that
it
is
in
now.
I
know
them
since
the
last
10
years,
and
I
also
happen
to
be
one
of
the
firsts
in
the
company.
And
to
the
best
of
my
knowledge,
I
feel
that
all
of
the
Bollywood
fraternity
mostly
first
logs
onto
Bollywoodhungama.com
for
any
kind
of
information
or
downloads.
and
I
want
to
do
the
same
thing
with
music.
Talking
about
music
companies,
one
hears
that
you
are
planning
to
revive
Puja
Music
in
a
big
way,
is
this
true?
Yes.
The
news
is
very
much
true.
Plans
are
being
worked
out
to
revive
Puja
Music
in
a
big
way,
which
will
be
open
for
all
the
filmmakers
also.
And
with
Puja
Music
re-entering
the
music
industry,
will
its
music
be
available
in
the
same
CD
format
or
will
it
revolutionize
the
music
industry
by
sticking
strictly
to
the
digital
format?
As
you
rightly
said,
Puja
Music
will
be
revolutionizing
the
music
industry
by
sticking
strictly
to
the
digital
format.
I
am
open
for
all
the
filmmakers
to
release
their
music
through
Puja
Music,
but
the
format
will
be
only
digital.
I
am
also
starting
an
'F.A.L.T.U.'
channel
as
well
as
an
'F.A.L.T.U.'
Radio
Generally
what
happens
is
that,
we
give
out
CDs
to
the
distributors.
But,
in
our
office,
what
we
have
told
our
staff
is
that,
they
can
use
our
credit
cards
and
download
the
music.
And
the
response
to
this
has
been
so
humongous
that
we
are
so
very
happy
with
the
same.
Lastly,
is
F.A.L.T.U.
a
mere
name
of
a
film,
or
does
it
stands
for
more
than
that?
Well,
to
tell
you
the
fact,
F.A.L.T.U.
is
indeed
an
abbreviation
for
something
that
will
be
revealed
over
a
period
of
time.
The
general
trend
these
days
is
that
the
very
moment
one
utters
the
letter
'F',
all
that
a
person
thinks
is
the
unmentionable
word,
but,
I
am
sure
that,
once
people
get
to
know
the
real
meaning
and
full
form
of
F.A.L.T.U.,
they
will
take
the
word
as
a
matter
of
pride.
If
one
can
recall,
the
similar
thing
happened
a
few
months
back
with
3
Idiots.
Till
the
release
of
the
film,
the
word
'Idiot'
was
an
abuse
or
remark.
But,
once
the
film
released
it
became
so
cool
to
be
addressed
as
an
'Idiot'.
I
am
sure
that
the
same
will
happen
even
with
'F.A.L.T.U.'
if
that
isn't
enough,
then
wait
for
this...
I
am
also
starting
an
'F.A.L.T.U.'
channel
as
well
as
an
'F.A.L.T.U.'
Radio!
Mark
my
words;
it
will
take
the
'interactiveness'
to
a
different
level
altogether!