Kanika Dhillon exclusive interview: She’s truly a force to reckon with. Be it Manmarziyaan, Judgementall Hai Kya or Haseen Dillruba, her writing style has always resonated well with the audience.
Talking with her is always a delight as she gives you insight into her world of characters. She has given memorable characters to Taapsee Pannu, Kangana Ranaut and Kriti Sanon that they will cherish for lifetime.
As she celebrates the success of her first film as a producer, Filmibeat interacted with the talented Kanika Dhillon. In an exclusive TÊte-À-tÊte with us, Kanika opened up about crafting HATKE female characters, Do Patii’s immense success and the possibility of a sequel in the near future.
Here are excerpts from the fun-filled conversation
1- I have to congratulate you for the immense success of Do Patti. It would be an understatement to say that nobody writes female ‘HATKE’ characters better than you in Bollywood. Be it Do Patti, Haseen Dillruba or Judgemental, the characters that you pen are bold and don’t confide to the orthodox norms of the society. What is the driving force behind creating such characters?
The driving force behind these characters are primarily the women that I see around me. I generally feel that I am lucky to be surrounded by headstrong, opinionated, ambitious, kind, gracious women, who aren’t confined to one box. In fact, you cannot put them in a box or write them off. I see them excelling in different fields. Be it my family or the women I work with, I have learned things from them. This also includes my house help. Women coming from different strata of society teach me resilience. I am glad the audience like the women that I write.
It’s like a note of gratitude to all these strong women that inspire me every day.
2- You don’t shy away from addressing social issues like dowry, domestic violence in your projects. Do you think it comes with a risk as there’s a line between showcasing something and being preachy? Like, you beautifully addressed domestic violence in Do Patti without being preachy. Asking this as it is difficult to retain the audience’s attention on OTT platforms in current times.
As a producer, one is aware that making a film for OTT is different from making for the theatre. In case of theatres, you have a captive audience; which is not the case for streaming platforms.
It’s difficult to hold the attention as it is easy to press the switch off or pause button and go to something else. You have to work harder to keep the audience engaged. Only when they are invested, they will be willing to understand the message of the story.
I always believe in delivering an audience-first story. Be it the music, screenplay, writing or casting, everything is dictated by the path that I have chosen- ‘it should be an audience-driven film’. It should send across a message that they receive as part of the story that they can get emotional about rather their being spoken to in a preachy manner.
Do Patti has been consciously crafted keeping in mind the pulse of the audience. The film is getting love from all corners. We trended in 30-plus countries, so it’s the love and outpour that humbles us. We are grateful that the audience has given us a chance to tell the story. It empowers us to create more such stories that give an empowering message and is entertaining as well.
3- Considering the success of Do Patti, can we expect a sequel where Dhruv comes back for revenge or VJ (Vidya) finds herself embroiled into a case surrounding the twins?
When Haseen Dillruba premiered on Netflix, we received an amazing response for our work. This is the reason, I picked up the pen and decided to write Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba. My answer would be ‘never say never.’ You never know there might ‘Dusri Do Patii’.
4- You donned multiple hats for Do Patti, making your debut as a producer. Was there additional pressure on you as you entered a different territory?
I have always been a producer in some way or the other. I was the creative producer for Manmarziyaan and co-producer for Haseen Dillruba. It was important to keep the pulp and world of Haseen alive as it was risky thing to create a new language altogether. During Haseen, I found that being a producer gives me a lot more opportunities than being a writer.
There was pressure but we are thrilled that I and Kriti Sanon, chose this topic as our first-time project. The film has earned adulation from the audience and this keeps us motivated. To sustain the viewership for a long time, you need to keep the audience engrossed. We wanted to tell the story- ‘Silence is not an option. Silence needs to be broken’.
My greed as a producer was to ensure that the story reaches to a wider audience.
Do Patti is available for streaming on Netflix. The mystery thriller marked the Bollywood debut of Shaheer Sheikh, who is a known name in the Indian television industry.
