I am sorry to say that I’ve become a victim of my own image: Tigmanshu Dhulia

Tigmanshu Dhulia’s Bullett Raja has opened to mixed responses. For those who feel this avant-garde director should not have swerved away from his trademark style Tigmanshu has more of the same unexpected cinema coming up. Says the director, “I am sorry to say I’ve become a victim of my own image. People expect me to make the same kind of cinema over and over again. I’d die of boredom if I keep making dacoit films and Paan Singh Tomar throughout my career. I need to expand my horizon. And the audience needs to appreciate that effort to grow.” Tigmanshu says he was initially disappointed by the collections. “I don’t know why Saif Ali Khan’s fans didn’t turn up for the film when it opened. He has proven himself recently in a solo-hero film Cocktail. Maybe his fans like to see him play the urbane cool dude. But if you ask me, both Saif and Jimmy Sheirgill were very cool in Bullett Raja.” So would his next film take Tigmanshu to the zone and tone that audiences expect from him? “Not necessarily,” reveals Tigmanshu. “My Milan Talkies is very much within the space that audiences want to see me in. But for that I’ll have to wait till the end of next year, as my leading man Varun Dhawan is busy until then.” The filmmaker who is about to take a holiday with his wife and daughter pooh poohs reports that Varun is not doing Milan Talkies. “Who says Varun is not doing my film? Bahot hi pyara script hai. And Varun bahot likeable actor hai. We are both very happy about working together. But it will take some time. Varun has to first complete his father David Dhawan’s film. Then he goes into Sriram Raghavan’s thriller and then he has a comedy produced by Karan Johar. After this we start work on Milan Talkies at the end of 2014.” A new leading lady would be cast with Varun. “There is time for that. In the meanwhile I am not sitting idle. I am starting another film while I wait for Varun’s dates,” declares Tigmanshu. “I don’t know what it would be. I’ve a couple of ideas. After I return from my holiday I’ll make up my mind.”