Danish Aslam on upcoming project with Imran Khan: 'It’s still a work-in-progress'

Imran Khan Pic/AFP

Danish Aslam, who made his directorial debut with the rom-com, Break Ke Baad (2010), is surprised that Bollywood has steered away from the genre in the past decade. As an ardent fan of the genre, the director has attempted to tell a story of modern love with his latest release, Khwabon Ka Jhamela. "The [rom-com] genre that we had in the early 2000s, went away in the last 10 to 12 years. We left that zone of Hum Tum [2004], Salaam Namaste [2005], and went into heartland stories," he reflects.

Danish Aslam

Aslam believes the JioCinema offering, starring Prateik Babbar and Sayani Gupta, has the potential to fill that void. "I feel Khwabon Ka Jhamela is one of the films that fills that gap," he says optimistically, before adding that filmmakers will always have something new to say with love stories. "Earlier, there were trunk calls, then phones, mobile phones, Internet, and now Tinder. The language of love changes every few years. Which is why the older rom-coms get dated and we need to update the genre every few years."

With Khwabon Ka Jhamela having reached the audience, the director is now focusing on his next that sees him reunite with his Break Ke Baad actor Imran Khan. But Aslam is guarded when asked about the project, only saying, "It's still a work-in-progress. When things are finalised, I'll be happy to talk about it."