Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn has a simple theory about franchises: audiences may return for a sequel, but they stay for the character. For the actor, that is what makes Drishyam different. Vijay Salgaonkar is not a character who can simply be tweaked to fit a new story. The story has to move forward, but Vijay has to remain Vijay.
“Sequels don’t work, characters work. If you pick up any sequel, I mean, you can take a Golmaal or a Singham, it’s Vijay Sargaonkar or a Gopal, you know, or a Singham,” said during a chat at FICCI Frames.
Devgn believes a successful first film is not enough reason to automatically make another one. The audience has to be emotionally invested in the person they are coming back to watch.
“So when the audiences start investing in the character, then you can make sequels. You can’t just make a sequel because you made a great film, and, you know, it has worked, so let’s make another one. They have to love the character,” he said.
Finding the right story for
however, was not as straightforward as deciding to extend a successful franchise. Devgn said the team had to first find a story that could genuinely take Vijay’s world forward. Talking about whether there were any disagreement over the ending, he said that it’s a very difficult story to write, and they all believed that it had to conclude.
“Like I said, the story has to move forward from where it ended. You’re limited — the writers and the director are limited. You can’t suddenly get into a new murder mystery or have them get stuck in a completely new situation. It doesn’t work like that, so it’s not very easy to write.
When you get an idea, a concept, you start thinking, ‘This can become very interesting. This can become Drishyam.’ And that’s where you start working,” he said.
Why the makers chose to end Drishyam at its peak?
Ajay Devgn said the makers had gone through around four different scripts before arriving at the one they felt was right. He explained that every new chapter had to retain the twists, turns and shock value that define Drishyam, while ensuring Vijay Salgaonkar’s next move remained impossible for the audience to predict.
He said the makers wanted to end the franchise at its highest point, once they had a script with the twists, turns and shock value
“When you get a script that really works, with the twists, turns, shock value and Vijay Salgaonkar doing something unexpected, you know you’ve got it right. If the audience knows what’s going to happen next, then it’s not Drishyam. So, when you reach the highest point, you decide not to go beyond it.
“It’s always better to leave it on a higher note. If we make one more, maybe we won’t be able to match the audience’s expectations. With the way the film has shaped up, I don’t think it can go beyond this. So, we all decided to end the franchise,” he added.