 "'Saiyaara is actually a win for the industry' : Mohit Suri & YRF CEO Akshaye Widhani share their thoughts on Ahaan Panday-Aneet Padda's film")
Saiyaara is one of the biggest stories in the history of Indian film industry as a film starring two debutants, Ahaan Panday & Aneet Padda, became a global box office juggernaut earning 580 crore at the worldwide box office. The Mohit Suri directorial, produced by YRF’s Akshaye CEO Akshaye Widhani, became the all-time highest grossing love story in of Indian cinema and Ahaan and Aneet became Gen Z stars that this generation has been waiting to cheer for!
Such is the pop culture impact of Saiyaara that industry and trade have likened the film to be a modern day Kaho Na Pyaar Hai that saw debutants Hrithik Roshan and Ameesha Patel into overnight superstars of their generation 25 years back! Both Mohit & Akshaye feel that Saiyaara’s success is a win for the industry that was looking to find bankable stars from Gen Z.
Akshaye says, “Saiyaara was actually an industry win. That’s how people looked at it. Because the number of calls and messages that we got, we realised that everyone felt personal about this one and that this film was theirs. This was the most beautiful feeling. People were genuinely happy that there are two new actors who are now a part of this industry.”
He adds, “All of us are so keen to have more talent come in and it’s so important for the ecosystem to grow. That the more actors that join the industry, the better it is for all of us. So, when a win like Saiyaara happens and audiences worldwide have embraced two newcomers, the industry feels like that’s their win and I think that’s what Saiyaara was.”
Mohit Suri says, “I remember when we had screenings on the day of release and Ahaan’s family was seeing it and my family had seen it that day and I remember the opening day box office numbers started coming in. The amount of love coming our way, I knew this was rare. Trust me, I’ve celebrated more for a villain Rs 16 and a half Cr than a Rs 23 Cr of Saiyaara. Because, this love was humbling. I remember telling my wife this for the whole week after that, or month I think, that every evening don’t disturb me, everyone’s calling because they watched the film from all over the world.”
He further reveals, “This is all filmmakers, I mean, competitors, people who didn’t believe in me, other producers. Surprisingly they all felt it’s their win and I’ve never seen love like this for a film in the 20 years that I’ve been making films. I’ve been the underdog praised, I’ve been the top dog pulled down. I’ve got everything, yeah it’s expected. I think it became everyone’s liberated move to love this film. Because I think quintessentially nothing was planned by design while making or promoting this film. We just went with total honestly and purity while making and while promoting we stuck to basics and took the film to the audience. And that worked.”