Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Nov 25: Vishal Bhardwaj, Director of film Haider, that is being shot in Kashmir these days said that the film is being done for emotional and not commercial reasons and announced to premiere his film in University of Kashmir auditorium, the campus that witnessed a protests against shooting in the varsity.
Bhardwaj told journalist here: “I am doing this film for emotional reasons and not commercial reasons. The film is an effort to share the pain that Kashmir has endured in all these years. It is about how one could have been brought up in Kashmir in last 25 years.”
“I agree that Bollywood has not done justice with Kashmir which has been the biggest tragedy of modern times,” Bhardwaj said, adding “truth should have been told somehow without taking sides.”
Haider, a mid-budget film, staring Shahid Kapoor and Shradha as the lead characters with Tabu, Irfan Pathan and K K Menon in other supplementary roles, is the story of a middle class student pursuing his M Phil that a tragedy struck him. Menon is playing Uncle Claudius of Haider.
“Not a single character in the film is non-Kashmiri and we have 15 local artists playing different roles,” Bhardwaj said identifying some of them as Aamir Bashir, Bashir Bhawani, Muzamil and child artist Aasim. “We are using a lot of folk including the famous number Roush-e-Wala Posh-e-Dilbarou and we are using the folk dance band pather as well.”
Bhardwaj said that entire film is being shot in Kashmir and not a single shot is being recorded in any studio in Mumbai. “We have seen Kashmir from outside and this film is aimed at seeing it from inside”, he added.
The film is being shot in Kashmir for last 19 days but it landed in a sort of problem in the University of Kashmir lawns on Sunday when students took exception to a group of artists performing in a particular scene.
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