Highway has brought me the greatest acclaim in my career yet - Imtiaz Ali

Imtiaz Ali is clearly the man of the moment. Ever since Highway opened at cinema halls last Friday, his phone hasn’t stopped ringing. Congratulatory calls have been pouring in from all and sundry. However, Imtiaz is clearly not taking it easy. He has been vigorously touring theaters all over Mumbai to check on the much anticipated public response. We spotted the ace filmmaker at Andheri’s PVR cinemas yesterday evening where he arrived with his teenage daughter in tow to gauge the box-office response. Even as fans and other celebrities (we spotted actress Neetu Chandra animatedly expressing her happiness to Imtiaz) converged around Imtiaz complimenting him, we couldn’t let the master director leave without having a quick chat about Highway. Beaming with some little pride, the soft spoken Imtiaz sounded ebullient while discussing Highway with Tellychakkar. “To be honest, I have never received this kind of a response in my career till date. Highway has brought me the greatest acclaim. People have been reacting positively.” Highway among other things has also been lauded for portraying the sensitive topic of child sexual abuse through Alia Bhatt’s character. Speaking about the same Imtiaz said, “This central theme of the film has been much appreciated by cinema goers. Female audience has reacted positively which is a good thing. Many have identified with the subject. However, having said that some people have even told me that Highway would have still worked in the absence of this central theme as well. My friend Sunidhi Chauhan, for instance, said that Highway would have clicked even without the child sexual abuse topic.” It’s quite well-known that Imtiaz had held on to Highway as a subject for the last 15 years before finally deciding to co-produce it himself. When asked what Highway’s success meant to him today, Imtiaz said, “I made this film just for myself. It was my dream to make Highway which as a subject was very close to my heart. That is why I never wanted to trade the subject with any one and decided to co produce it myself. Its success has reinstated the belief of that you should make movies that you strongly believe in. I have made Highway with a lot of honesty and sincerity.” One actress whose life has changed post Highway happens to be Alia Bhatt. Admitting that the Bhatt family has showered him with multiple compliments for directing Alia brilliantly, a modest Imtiaz revealed that it was a telling compliment from Pooja Bhatt that he holds in great regard. “The best compliment I received was from Pooja Bhatt who said Imtiaz, you have discovered the actor inside Alia Bhatt." Imtiaz, meanwhile looked quite satisfied with the general audience response till date. “I have been told by the managers of cinema halls that people have been watching the film in pin drop silence,” said a happy Imtiaz before rushing off to another theater.