Ashutosh Gowariker on collaboration rumours with Rishab Shetty: ‘It would fit if we work together’

Rishab Shetty

In January this year, rumours were rife that Kantara (2022) star Rishab Shetty was teaming up with filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker on a period drama centred on a ruler of south India. The buzz gained further credence when the Kannada star was spotted leaving the filmmaker's office. As we catch up with Gowariker, who completes 20 years as a producer this month, we ask him the obvious question: Is a collaboration on the cards? "Not yet. It was a meet-and-greet because we like each other's movies. It would fit if we work together. Let's see," he smiles, his reply leaving ample room for interpretation.

Ashutosh Gowariker

For now, Gowariker is prepping for his next, which will mark his return to direction six years after his last offering, Panipat (2019). Though he doesn't divulge whether it will be a big-scale period drama, a genre that he has made a mark in, the filmmaker is aware that spectacles are the flavour of the season. "We always made big films. Making a successful film is on everyone's mind. When a trend comes in, it makes it easier. I have nothing against trends and people making several movies of the same genre. [But] my thought was never to create a trend. It was more about the theme I wanted to tackle. In Swades [2004], I tackled nationalism; in Jodhaa Akbar, it was religious tolerance. I'm not necessarily thinking big when I'm thinking of world-building. I don't make an effort to make it larger than life, but perhaps that's in my filmmaking process."

The stardom of his leading actors - from Shah Rukh Khan to Hrithik Roshan - was a prominent aspect of Gowariker's films. But he believes the younger actors today have a disadvantage. "The second [rung of] actors today aren't able to choose the right films because they don't know which one will open in cinemas and which will go to OTT. Hence, the chaos," he reasons.