RX 100 is not a typical candy-floss romance: Milan Luthria

Milan Luthria is working on the Hindi remake of the Telugu hit, RX 100, which will mark the debut of Suniel Shetty's son, Ahan. The filmmaker says it will be an 'edgy modern-day love story'.

"I am very excited to make this film. It is something different for me and that is what I have always looked out for. When people try to put me in a box and say that I make a particular kind of movies, I like challenging that notion and doing something else," he says, adding, "They have called me a women's director, an underworld director, a two-hero filmmaker. I keep changing. Anything new is exciting for me."

The Telugu version of RX 100 starred Kartikeya Gummakonda and Payal Rajput in the lead. "It is the kind of film you watch once and then want to watch again. It has a very haunting quality to it," Milan says.

The Hindi version is being bankrolled by Sajid Nadiadwala. "The reason to do a film is that you have good people to work with, you have a good story to tell. Sajid is amongst the finest producers in the country today. And Ahan is a wonderful young man, very much from our business and very well brought up," the director adds.

Milan feels this is not a typical candy-floss romance. "We keep saying that we need to try and make different films. When we say different, it doesn't have to be something absurd. It just has to be different from what is happening in the movies."

He believes the remake should be approached with a mixture of respect for the original and a little bit of an open mind. "When you are paying money and acquiring the product, there is no point in trying to be super smart and just changing things for the sake of changing them. I believe one must respect the thought process of the original filmmakers and their instincts because they have been proved right. Don't fiddle with the foundation, but every filmmaker does bring in a certain interpretation," adds the director of  films such as The Dirty Picture, Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, Kachche Dhaage, and Baadshaho. 

"Many things are different between Hindi and Telugu cinema, and one has to keep that in mind. Music has a different flavour, the costumes are different. That is the challenge of a remake."

Talking about Ahan, he says, "We were looking for something which would suit him. This came and seemed right. That is how it is done. We thought we should try and find something unusual rather than the conventional Hindi launch film, something which is edgy, a little different, a new take on young romance with a little bit of action."

And what about the female lead? "We are looking for her. We haven't zeroed in on anyone yet. At the moment, a lot of writing work is going on. We are just busy planning the film out."