"Gangs of Wasseypur" may be credited for making the catchphrase "Tum Se Na Ho Payega" popular, but writer-director Nitesh Tiwari, whose new film draws its title from the line, believes it was already a part of the audience's conscience.
Spoken by Tigmanshu Dhulia's character Ramadhir Singh in Anurag Kashyap's 2012 cult classic, the phrase has come to reflect loss of faith in someone's ability and competence.
Written by Tiwari and directed by Abhishek Sinha, "Tum Se Na Ho Payega" is a "light-hearted take on the modern-day challenges faced by today's youth, and their dilemma in standing up to these rules laid by the society".
Asked if the title of his film is a hat-tip to "Gangs of Wasseypur", Tiwari said that wasn't the case.
"'Tum Se Na Ho Payega' has become a popular phrase because of 'Gangs of Wasseypur'. But I like to believe that 'Tum Se Na Ho Payega' existed in our conscience before 'Wasseypur'. 'Wasseypur' also used something that already existed. This (the title of our film) probably exists in the lingo of the youth and what better than something that, (which) not only encapsulates the flavour of the film and feel of the youth," the writer-director told PTI in a virtual interview.
"Tum Se Na Ho Payega" was previously named on its source material: Varun Agarwal's novel "How I Braved Anu Aunty and Co-Founded a Million Dollar Company", he added.
Tiwari, best known for directing "Chillar Party", "Dangal" and "Chhichhore", said they decided to change the title as they had "fundamentally deviated" from certain aspects of the 2012 book.
"There were many more elements in the film than just 'the aunty bit'. We went back to this and asked if this was the best way to summarise the film as 'Bas Karo Aunty'. The answer came back 'no'.
"The best way to explain the film was through the philosophy of the film -- the voices of the film which constantly keep telling us that the moment you try to do something different. At the same time, the flavour of the film is fun and about banter between friends. It has a lot to do with the life of youngsters," he added.
The director, an engineering graduate from IIT-B by educational qualification, describes himself as someone who doesn't have many dreams and takes life as it comes. Before foraying in films, Tiwari was in the field of advertising, where he also crossed paths with his wife and filmmaker Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari.
"I take life as it comes. I don't plan too much. That's why you see my movies come once every three years. Never following a set pattern but everybody says I should," said Tiwari, whose latest film as a director was 2023's "Bawaal".
He, however, has a dream for EarthSky Pictures, a production house he co-founded with his wife. Tiwari said they aim to tell diverse stories and nurture younger talent through their banner.
"We were fortunate that somebody believed in us and gave us a break. This is our way of paying back. If at all, you can call it a dream, which is not so much at a personal level, but what kind of stuff I'll be doing going forward. That will happen as it has to happen. The dream as of now is to be able to tell many more stories with the help of a lot of fantastic young talent, whether it's technicians, writers or directors," he added.
"Tum Se Na Ho Payega" stars an ensemble cast of Ishwak Singh, Mahima Makwana, Gaurav Pandey, Amala Akkineni, Gurpreet Saini, Parmeet Sethi and Meghna Malik. The film is an Earthsky Pictures Production along with Star Studios, RSVP and Roy Kapur Films.
It will be available for streaming on Disney+Hotstar from September 29.
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