Needs to be made and U the that character has to be played by so and so and we really have to make the film about these two people and uh as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember Prashant telling me that I always knew
It was going to be a story of two people but to get this together what is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a lot more about the bonding about these
Two apps abolute friends who can kill and die for each other true and then what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you’re talking about I mean U I also heard somewhere that you know you actually
Passed on the role of Ibrahim in kurui to Ros and Matthew you know this is something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and prabas sir you know having this sense of security um tell me something has this stemmed over time or were you always you
Know this sense of security was always there does for the lack of a better word selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it
Doesn’t matter people are going to forget the film and you but if you have a role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who’s intelligent enough you will always know that you have to put the film first right uh you could
Have a mindblowing character and if the film does not work people will not remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like prabas they know this better than anyone you know Pras knows that for salar to work the
Bond between daa and V will have to work yeah so he knows that I know for Salah to work that daa will have to work the most discussions the most suggestions I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to Prashant and told him listen I think there’s another way
To do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about prasa scenes Pras will tell you this pan will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the film should be your second priority because ultimately your
Aim as an actor should be to build towards the vision of the director and to make sure you’re part of a film that works right uh so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part of a film that works no matter what that you then start
Thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know pravas is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the right person to answer this but but do you also feel the same about
Yourself me no I’m not as nice a guy as Pras is I why do you say that no because he is just incredible like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t know 7500 days every day every day I have seen him and not just
To me to everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is there anything you want this guy does not sit down with this another person without a chair standing and he is just that guy day in day out all through right I’m not that
Nice I know I’m I have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is himself and he’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be uncomfortable with with him yeah if you ever meet him
And if you get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh okay so uh salar we’re going to talk about it your next big release um I read that you know Mr SS Raja MO is the first one who
Actually bought the ticket uh yes you know tell me a little bit about you know what does that support that you know sense of Brotherhood you know from people of the same fraternity mean to you no it’s amazing at least you know U he is probably the biggest filmmaker the
Country has at the moment uh probably one of the biggest International Brands India has is SS rajoli sir and for him to come out and extend that support to us not just about buying the first ticket he actually interviewed uh Prashant prabas and myself and we had a
Long 2 and a half hour long conversation about salar about Cinema about his kind of film making for him to be taking that time off and coming and supporting a film with which he’s not necessarily involved within any capacity is just amazing it’s a humbling experience that
Uh somebody with that kind of clout and influence uh can go out there and help uh a friend’s film or another film from his own industry and to make sure that you know we get that visibility Raj Moi sir interviewing us gives us more visibility you know he
Doesn’t need to do it uh so it was wonderful it was amazing and I’ve I’ve known Raj moisa for a while now he’s that kind of a person he is just a really really nice person yeah will we see you working with him any I I sure
Hope so I pray I get to work with him someday like probably every actor in the country I am I’m also hoping and praying that someday I get to be directed by him yeah yes yes um okay so you know this is one thing that I think really connects
You and prabas Sir uh which I really admired you stated in an interview recently that uh you know you had a role on paper but you know it was because of prabas s to certain extent that you know it probably got extended a little bit while you were shooting so more than
Yeah I did actually but more than my role getting extended which it did what we really sort of discovered and fleshed out from the script even more so is the bond between these two characters uh it was always a film about two friends from the ideation stage the story was about
These two people about daa and V uh which was a surprise I know I after um so I listened to the first narration of salar much much before the general public got to know about such a project right I mean this was during the shoot of kgf2 right that Prashant the first
Time over a zoom told me the idea of salar and I was very surprised because when you think of the director of the kg franchise making a film with prabas who’s one of the country’s biggest stars you don’t anticipate it being a story about two friends you don’t anticipate
It being a story about the bonding between two men and that really surprised me and full credit to prabas for being secure enough for being confident enough for being magnanimous enough to say that no this is a film that needs to be made and uh the that
Character has to be played by so and so and we really have to make the film about these two people and as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember prant telling me that I always knew it was going to be a story of two
People but to get this together what is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a lot more about the bonding about these two absolute friends who can kill and
Die for each other true and then what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you’re talking about I mean U I also heard somewhere that you know you actually passed on the role of Ibrahim in Kuru to
Ros and Matthew you know this is something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and Pras you know having this sense of security U tell me something has this stemmed over time or were you always you know this sense of security was always there does
For the lack of a better word selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it doesn’t matter people are going to
Forget the film and you but if you have a role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who’s intelligent enough you will always know that you have to put the film first right uh you could
Have a mind-blowing character and if the film does not work people will not remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like prabas they know this better than anyone you know prabas knows that for salar to work the
Bond between daa and V will have to work yeah so he knows that I know for salar to work that daa will have to work the most discussions the most suggestions I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to Prashant and told him listen I think
There’s another way to do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about Pras scenes Pras will tell you this pan will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the film should be your second priority
Because ultimately your aim as an actor should be to build towards the vision of the director and to make sure you’re part of a film that works right uh so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part of a film that works no matter
What that you then start thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know pravas is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the right person to answer this but do you
Also feel the same about yourself me no I’m not as nice a guy as Pras is why do you say that no because he is just incredible like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t know 7500 days every day every day I
Have seen him and not just to me to everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is there anything you want this guy does not sit down of there another person without a chair standing and he is just that guy day in day out
All through right I’m not that nice I know I’m I have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is himself and he’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be uncomfortable with
With him yeah if you ever meet him and if you get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh salar has received an a certificate um you have compared it to you know something like Game of Thrones yeah uh would would you
Say that you know the fact that it has received an aeric ific will perhaps you know cut down a certain chunk of the audience from watching it well I I assume that something that’s I assume children will not be allowed in theaters which is understandable because there’s
A film certified a but I also know that without the violence Salah will not be what salar is because the violence in the film is very much a character of the plot of the premise and it’s a screenplay instrument to further the drama I keep comparing it to Game of
Thrones because salar is very much a drama uh you know in spite of all the spectacular action the violence the huge production design the massive sets everything salar is essentially about relationships about what happens between these two people right not just about these two people there are a host of
Characters and it’s very intricate character Dynamics and it’s a drama beautifully written drama which is why the comparison to Game of Thrones and uh and I I completely understand why Prashant decided that rather than make a few cuts and get a UA I’d rather keep
The violence as it is and get an A because if you if he had made those cuts I think the film would have been incomplete but are you a Game of Thrones fan yeah I I love the it’s easily one of the best written streaming service
Materials ever so I mean of course after a point you felt like the makers are pressured into sort of going on with it which which happens across networks across series you know it always happens but on on a base level it’s just a Wonder written series absolutely very true you know
Since you’re talking about violence in a film and you rightfully said that you know perhaps the violence here in salar is is a character in itself uh you know we recently saw animal it’s it’s creating you know ripples at the box office also you know grabbed a lot of
Attention for its violence quotient U do you think that has also somewhere cemented your confidence in you know salar being a violent film so I haven’t watched animal yet so I can’t comment on animal but I of the because I’m a filmmaker also I’m of the opinion that
As a filmmaker if you think you need to shoot graphic violence to be able to say the story the way you want to say it you should have the Liberty to do it because ultimately after having made the film you are submitting it to a regulatory Authority called the sensor board to and
Then they tell you that listen your film is going to be certified such and such which means only such and such sections of the audience can watch your film right so our responsibility as a filmmakers to make sure that we submit it to this board how we make the film
Should be left to us because the audience has already been told this is certified such and such because it has violence because it has nudity or whatever you know it has already been said so censorship should happen at the exhibition sector make sure that you know who goes into the theater and who
Gets to see the film other than that the filmmaker I because I’m an artist I I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to but of course who sees the material should be regulated as it is absolutely right yeah
Uh you know pan Indian films is like the order of the day today um so you are now you know directing Lucifer too so you know when especially when you take over the director’s chair and you make a film uh does that pressure of giving it a pan
Indian multilingual release come to your mind ever so the first thing to understand here is that you cannot make a pan Indian film the film becomes pan Indian you don’t set out thinking let me make a pan Indian film this is a discussion I’ve had with multiple corporates across you know discussion
Tables like these where I’ve told them no we are thinking wrong you know when you start asking me can that character be done by someone from Hindi can that character be done when someone from Telugu you are essentially doing this I understand to make sure that the film has relatability across languages
Because actors from various languages are in it absolutely but then you look at all the pan Indian successes they didn’t make the film a success because of who’s in it let’s assume a bahubali the beginning of the whole movement it was essentially completely you know made
From telu Stars let’s look at kgf let’s look at canara in even more you know probably gratifying example so you don’t make a pan Indian film you choose a script I mean you choose a story that you want to say you write a script and then you stay honest to what’s on paper
And try and make the best version of that script of course you want your film to be viewed by people across the country where a normal small scale industry specific film and a pan Indian film will differ is at the other end of the spectrum how you release it how you
Market it how you go around you know like say today salar is I don’t know an aist release in every language in India right right it was an A-list release in Hindi in Telugu in Canada in Malayalam in Tamil everywhere there it differs as you’re making the film you’re making an
Honest film you’re not making a pan Indian film yeah so that is I think something that we need to come to terms with because everybody is after the pan Indian pie that is right yeah okay so tell me something honestly U let’s say tomorrow you get a script okay from a
It’s a canado Canada film and uh so what happens is sometimes your charact your you as an actor perfectly fit into the shoes of the character and sometimes you as an actor can figure it out that okay I might be cast in this film for this
Character so so that the makers at large can perhaps capture the Malayalam Market do you sometimes figure that out why you are being cast yeah so classic case in example is salar right when home Bal films in fact salar was first pitched to me by home Bal films at the end of a
Discussion where we were discussing the possibility of me directing something for homebar and they told me Prashant would like to pitch a character because we are doing this big film that Prashant is directing and Pras is staring in and my immediate reaction Within Myself is to say no right I’m getting prepared to
Say no because this is exactly what I thought I’m thinking oh okay this must be like some 4 500 CR film that they’re making and they’re going to try and get stars from various Industries to sort of cushion each market and all that all that thinking flew out of the
Window at the first narration because I realized that Prashant is not thinking that way for Prashant it was not about this guy from that industry this guy from this industry at least for Prashant because I know him personally know I kind of know how he works it was purely
Based on who he thinks is the best bet for his character and uh I’m I know this for a for a fact because at one particular point in time owing to the pandemic and various different other things there was a point where I thought
I will not be able to do salar and I met Prashant and I told him I would have loved to do this film but unfortunately it looks like I’m not going to be able to do it Prashant and prabas stopped the shoot and they rework the entire
Schedule around to make sure that they somehow get me which then tells you that if Prashant Neil wanted a star he could have got anyone you know he could have got it’s not I’m not the only option if a star is all that he wanted he he is
Prashant Neil you know and he could have and after kgf2 absolutely yeah he could have gone to anybody for him it was no in my mind praj is Raj Manar so uh I am also equipped enough as a filmmaker and as an actor to read a script or to hear
Hear a narration and then understand if they’re after the star or if they after the actor the idea is always let the actor make the decision not the staran welcome to CNN news8 thank you for having me sir prant we are just few hours away from the release of your film
Salar part one the Traer looks very promising it looks like it’s really made for the big screen what are you feeling right now nervous anxious or excited nervous sir what are you looking forward to the most from the audiences I’m hoping they like the drama I’m hoping they like the emotion um up
And about the scale and all the action sequences I think they’re just embellishments I’m I’m just really hoping that they really like the story of daa and V that is that is the intention of the movie also so like there are many fan theor which are doing the round some are
Comparing it some are saying that it is inspired by mhata what can we expect from Salah I I put it in the trailer and I’m hope I I was uh excited by that very line when I came up with it that you know the two best friends become the two biggest enemies and
U mahabarata and RAM have come up with every possible emotion or story I don’t think we can I I think I think we all draw from that ocean um but uh the story of two best friends and how they become the two biggest enemies and what happens
In a situation like that you know I just I I want to tell the I want to tell the Journey of how they became friends and how big of big friends they were and how did they turn into fours so that is that is the one thing that I was excited with
When I started making this and that is exactly what I want to show sir but it is going to take me six hours to tell you that I’m just presenting the first three hours tomorrow so then then what is it that you know every director has
Something to say with it story what is it that you want to say with Allah the message I don’t give out messages I think even if you take messages from my movie they don’t turn out to be the best messages I don’t think kgf had a message
To tell I’m just telling you the story of two individuals and uh how they are reacting in a in in in in an in an environment which is uh can be best described as dystopia that is that comes through Kaner yeah and in a violent world you’re going to see uh a
Friendship Blossom and a friendship turn sord you know the film is titled salar part one seiz fire which means you already have written part two of the film now you have made two films in the kgf world what according to you a film must offer with it sequel that you think
Will compel the audience to flog theaters it has to have the drama and uh the only reason that we made salar into two parts is I would liken this movie to a bahubali more than I would liken it to a kjf because of the drama that it had that bahubali had just
Within four or five characters they created such a phenomenal story SS Raji is is uh probably one of the best Craftsmen when it comes to something like that and and we drew inspiration from something like that you know that that drama has to sit well and I was not
Able to show this drama in just three hours I was not capable of uh making it in three hours and that that that that was the de that is when we took the decision of making it into two parts you’re known there’s than many successful storytellers that we have in
India I mean you a big dreamer I’m a big fan of yours Prashant uh uh you know prabas made a huge flash with bahubali the whole country was in love with him and still is but his last film sah rades sham and ADI purush did not perform well
At the box office do you think with Salah he’ll bounce back and will get audience acceptance from the Hindi bage well I don’t think we make a movie to say we want to enhance his career or this career whatever we start with just the storytelling was very exciting for
Me to take this story to him because of all the movies that I’ve absolutely loved watching when uh he was beginning his career they no sense the fieriness that he had and uh all of those things and I think the last three movies that he made uh should not deter everybody I don’t
Know why it is uh why it seems like that his his way of he wanted to present a different story every single time sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t uh 90% of all movies fail every year and it just fall in in in that bracket our our agenda is not to enhance somebody’s
Career if it does get enhanced then it is a bonus we’re here to tell a story and uh um I think uh the storytelling should take precedence about everybody else not me not Pras not praj nobody I think everybody has to has to understand that we are telling you a different
Story this time and I I have to convince you with that story and all of us are put in that equal effort and if it enhances pra’s career I I think it will uh salar is not going to enhance it his reputation was already preceding him
Before it is just is just going to give him that small nudge for bigger things sure sure you know tinu Anand has compared you with Frank AA he said Prashant even go and explain the back the background actors what they are doing in the scene do you think even
Someone who is in the crowd doing any action makes a difference it does it does but uh I think that is more uh how do I put this it’s it’s like uh a flaw that I might have that you know I want everybody to do that perfect bit of acting but uh
It it it necessarily does not apply it goes from person to person I generally design design my movies around uh the frame looking perfect and for that the actors have to look perfect so so that that is that is how I look at it probably peopleon won’t notice it the
First few days that they’re in the theater but after that they probably will I think they will you know prashan you’ve been pushing boundaries with your films you have this wild imagination and the skill that we have seen in your film what are your dreams like like when what
When you actually imagine this King Kingdom of kanar but there was no um wild see Kar is made of three tribes and they they date back to a thousand years back and those three tribes get together and they do what they do and then they build this
Modern city and uh that was that I wanted to tell uh a dystopian World in a very different way and uh I wanted to create enough drama I wanted to create enough uh I wanted to create enough baddies and everything in in a world like that where this friendship would be
Tested to its level and I I could not imagine doing it in a very very normal world the world that we live in and we are so blessed to live in a very normal world I could not do I could not think about uh uh uh putting in this
Friendship in a place like that and that is why I had to do what I had to do with Kaner and what are your dreams like and do you dream about this dystopian World a lot I think I draw that inspiration from World War 2 and all the movies that
Have been made around that and I see that the emotion and everything behind that is much higher I I have loved those movies that have been made on World War uh 2 and World War I so I tried to create an environment like that it’s not
Like I I I I’m going to make every movie like that it’s just that these stories had to be told in that way so that is why I created them I’m not I’m going further I I don’t think I can come up with better words you know you with kgf you have
Already established yush as his pan India star I haven’t done it he has done it for himself then what are the boxes you think that that need to be ticked in order to break the language barrier when you’re making a film in that scale emotion and drama I think I think um
Emotion and drama I don’t think kjf will exist without the mother in it uh I I think it would have been just another movie the bond between the mother and the son I think that emotion is something that connected everybody you think about it and it connects everybody
And I’m doing the same thing with friendship this time I want uh everybody to uh call their friends a salar that is that is that is that is my that is what I want uh to achieve with something like this and I think it is those human
Relations that you take whether it is here or you want to make it in Mars where wherever you want to make it it’s it still holds good that uh principle that you have to show human values the best that you can now you know having made four films as a director do you
Know your comfort zone now I mean do you have what is your comfort zone Zone if I can ask you my comfort zone are always my technicians my technicians they’re they’re world class everything that I’m every uh time somebody says Prashant Neil is a good director all that
Accolades have to go to my technicians because without them I cannot be who I am and because of uh their prowess their technical prowess and their ability to judge Cinema I I’m here I wouldn’t exist without them you know to everybody wants to make this pan India film you had
Sanjay dut in kgf Karen Jor of course came Ander launch of kgf 2 is there now a plan to cast a Bollywood hero in one of your director Adventure see that when uh bahubali 1 came out you didn’t know any any one of them and when kgf1 came out you didn’t know
Any one of them it was only in kgf2 that we had already planned to bring in sanj that whether it worked in the Hindi belt or not so when you stick stick to your guns and you make a movie that is very pure and true to what you set out to
Make in the first place instead of manipulating it by saying I want to bring in an aister and then give him a little extra part uh to that will ruin them the whole essence of the movie I don’t think we do that necessarily I would love to there are some brilliant
Actors in Bollywood and if they are the right choice then I will pursue them and hunt them down and make sure that they’re in the movie you know today Hollywood has a lot of interest in India especially after rrr Oscar win they’re very keen to collaborate with directors
From South India are there talks going on between you and Hollywood Studios who wants to collaborate with you everybody is not a SS so we’ll have to get there to for for things like that to happen but no no I’m I’m not uh there yet and nobody has approached me then what do
You say about those comparisons of salar with kgf and when do you think we can expect kgf 3 and the second part of Salah uh we have to see the result tomorrow I’m always I’m not I’m not the ones who’s going to count my uh chickens before they hatch
I I I want to see the response of the audience and usually you get a feedback from the audience what they liked in the movie what they didn’t like of of course the story is set and uh we are we’re ready to go with with saladu but I I
Just need to take a break I just got off kgf and I was I was into salar I need to take a break from that kgf 3 will happen kgf 3 is also a script that was already written otherwise we wouldn’t put it in
Part two but in the end of part two that you know we were making kf3 this is that we have to align again uh the yesh has a lot of commitments and VI sir has a lot of commitments of his own and a project like kf3 cannot be done with multiple
Things going on we just have to clear our schedules one day and we’re going to start it then you know the obvious question what is the strategy behind theing Salah along with Dunkey knowing that it will impact the film business that was not a call that was made by me
Or Pras sir or PR sir none of us wanted the situation that that that’s a call that is made by the production and we that’s that’s probably one of the very few things that he had asked from us that you know he’s somebody who believes
In astrology a lot and uh he does not deviate from that it has worked for him every single time before so uh that was the only date that we had we we apologized to their team also because they had announced it’s not it’s not not a good thing for anybody to
Be uh putting their movie in a date which has been announced and they had announced a year before so apologies from the whole team to the team of dkey because we we did not want a situation like that to come and they they’re obviously colossal Rajkumar sir and shuk
Sir they’re colossal we didn’t want to a situation like that but it came up only because of um you know the astrology and everything else and what v s believes in more I actually wanted to ask you you Cinema unites everybody your films is binding it you just don’t belong to one
Part of India you belong to whole India everybody loves you in this case what do you have to say about these fans who or the people who are trying to create this North versus South divide I think they are handful of people who always do that they’re very
Passionate about what they do it’s never right but you can never control them also at the same time is just that emotions uh get the better of you in a situation like that and uh having a competition like that I don’t think any one of us do Cinema for competition we
Do it for our livelihood and and people usually don’t understand something like that just that shuk s is so big and Pras is Pras s is so big and you know just tempers flare you know when you say that he’s better or he’s better or box office
Numbers are going to be compared I don’t think box office is ever going to Define uh whether you’re a big star or not that they’re they’re big stars because of everything that they have done for 30 years 20 years I don’t think that’ll Define anything and and it is bound to
Happen you know I I was a I was I was just a pure fan at one point of time and I would have rooted for my hero and that is just momentary you know I think it will pass and it’s not right basically it’s not right but it it
Happens you know music has always been very big part of our films very curious to know what role does music play in prashan Neil’s films and will you ever make a musical I I see any song or anything should be a background music I I feel
That you know it has to be a part of the film it should not it should not get you out of it of course I have done that with kgf1 you know I tried to make a special number and all of those things but that was just to enhance the market
Now you understand you know people have moved over moved on after covid uh you know they have the exposure of the entire world in front of them they watched every content Under the Sun and uh it it just makes sense to tell a story and if a song is a part of the
Story then you should tell it that’s the way I look at it and that’s the way I want to make these movies that is why I don’t have a very huge popular commercial number in salar though we planned it but we did not we could not
Execute it because it was it was it was not in tune with the story and finally what do you think audience going to take away when they going to experience this imaginary tale by everyone’s favorite director Prashant Neil on Friday in I don’t know I don’t know about everyone’s
Favorite director but I I just I just want them to come and see uh this blossoming friendship between daa and Warda and and all the other characters they’ve done a fantastic job of supporting a wonderful uh um story like this I I’m saying wonderful I should not be saying that
People should be saying that but I just I just want them to uh come in and enjoy the friendship and uh see how that translates into enmity at one some point or the other well here’s wishing you best of luck for salar and for your upcoming projects looking forward to
Watch salar on the big screen thank you so much for your time and best so much thank you so much thank you okay so uh salar want to talk about it your next big release um I read that you know Mr SS Raja MO is the first one who actually
Bought the ticket uh yes you know tell me a little bit about you know what does that support that you know sense of Brotherhood you know from people of the same fraternity mean to you no it’s amazing at least you know U he is probably the biggest filmmaker the
Country has at the moment uh probably one of the biggest International Brands India has is SS rajoli sir and for him to come out and extend that support to us not just about buying the first ticket he actually interviewed Prashant prabas and myself and we had a long 2
And a half hour long conversation about salar about Cinema about his kind of film making for him to be taking that time off and coming and supporting a film with which he is not necessarily involved within any capacity is just amazing it’s a humbling experience that
Uh somebody with that kind of clout and influence uh can go out there and help uh a friend’s film or another film from his own industry and to make sure that you know we get that visibility Raj Moi sir interviewing us gives us more visibility you know he doesn’t need to
Do it uh so it was wonderful it was amazing and I’ve I’ve known Raja for a while now he’s that kind of a person he is just a really really nice person yeah will we see you working with him any I I sure hope so I pray I get to work with
Him someday like probably every actor in the country I am I’m also hoping and praying that someday I get to be directed by him yeah yes yes um okay so you know this is one thing that I think really connects you and Pras sir uh which I really admired you
Stated in an interview recently that uh you know you had a role on paper but you know it was because of prabas s to certain extent that you know it’s probably got extended a little bit while you were shooting so more than yeah I did actually but more than my role
Getting extended which it did what we really sort of discovered and fleshed out from the script even most so is the bond between these two characters uh it was always a film about two friends from the ideation stage in the story was about these two people about daa and
Vera uh which was a surprise you know I after um so I listened to the first narration of Salah much much before the general public got to know about such a project right I mean this was during the shoot of kgf2 right that prashan the
First time over a zoom told me the idea of Salah and I was very surprised because when when you think of the director of the kg franchise making a film with prabas who’s one of the country’s biggest stars you don’t anticipate it being a story about two
Friends you don’t anticipate it being a story about the bonding between two men and that really surprised me and full credit to prabas for being secure enough for being confident enough for being magnanimous enough to say that no this is a film that needs to be made and uh
The that character has to be played by so and so and we really have to make the film about these two people uh and as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember Prashant telling me that I always knew it was going to be a story of two people
But to get this together what is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a lot more about the bonding about these two absolute friends who can kill and
Die for each other true and then what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you’re talking about I mean U I also heard somewhere that you know you actually passed on the role of ibraim in kurui to
Jos and Matthew you know this is something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and Pras sir you know having this sense of security um tell me something has this stemmed over time or were you always you know this sense of security was always
There does for the lack of a better word selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it doesn’t matter people are going to
Forget the film and you but if you have a role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who intelligent enough you will always know that you have to put the film first right uh uh you could
Have a mind-blowing character and if the film does not work people will not remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like prabas they know this better than anyone know Pras knows that for salar to work the bond
Between daa and V will have to work yeah so he knows that I know for salar to work that daa will have to work the most discussions the most sest I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to Prashant and told him
Listen I think there’s another way to do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about Pras scenes Pras will tell you this pan will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the film should be your
Second priority because ultimately your aim as an actor should be to build towards the vision of the director and to make sure you’re part of a film that works right uh so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part of a film that
Works no matter what that you then start thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know pravas is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the right person to answer this
But do you also feel the same about yourself me no I’m not as nice a guy as Pras is I why do you say that no because he is just incred like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t know 7500
Days every day every day I have seen him and not just to me to everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is there anything you want this guy does not sit down if there’s another person without a
Chair standing and he is just that guy day in day out all through right I’m not that nice I know I’m I have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is
Himself and he’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be uncomfortable with with him yeah if you ever meet him and if you get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh salar has received an a certificate um
You have compared it to you know something like Game of Thrones yeah uh would would you say that you know the fact that it has received an a certificate will perhaps you know cut down a certain chunk of the audience from watching it well I I assume is that
Something that’s assume children will not be allowed in theaters which is understandable because there’s a film certified a but I also know that without the violence salar will not be what salar is because the violence in the film is very much a character of the plot of the premise and it’s a
Screenplay instrument to further the drama I keep comparing it to Game of Thrones because salar is very much a drama uh you know in spite of all the spectacular action the violence the huge production design the massive sets everything salar is essentially about relationships about what happens between
These two people right not just about these two people there are a host of characters and it’s very intricate character Dynamics and it’s a drama beautifully written drama which is why the comparison to Game of Thrones and uh and I I completely understand why Prashant decided that rather than make a
Few cuts and get a UA I’d rather keep the violence as it is and get an A because if you if he had made those cuts I think the film would have been incomplete but are you a Game of Thrones fan yeah I I love the it’s easily one of
The best written streaming service materials ever so I mean of course after a point you felt like the makers were pressured into sort of going on with it which which happens across networks across series you know it always happens but on on a base level it’s just a wonderfully
Written series absolutely very true you know since you’re talking about violence in a film and you rightfully said that you know perhaps the violence here in salar is is a character in itself uh you know we recently saw animal it’s it’s creating you know ripples at the box
Office also you know grabbed a lot of attention for its violence quotient U do you think that has also somewhere cemented your confidence in you know salar being a violent film so I haven’t watched animal yet so I can’t comment on animal but I of the because I’m a
Filmmaker also I’m of the opinion that as a filmmaker if you think you need to shoot graphic violence to be able to say the story the way you want to say it you should have the Liberty to do it because ultimately after having made the film you are submitting it to a regulatory
Authority called the sensor board to and then they tell you that listen your film is going to be certified such and such which means only such and such sections of the audience can watch your film right so our responsibility as a filmmakers to make sure that that we
Submit it to the sensor board how we make the film should be left to us because the audience has already been told this is certified such and such because it has violence because it has nudity or whatever you know it has already been said so censorship should
Happen at the exibition sector make sure that you know who goes into the theater and who gets to see the film other than that the filmmaker I because I’m an artist I I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to but of course who sees the
Material should be right at as it is absolutely right yeah uh you know pan Indian films is like the order of the day today um so you are now you know directing Lucifer too so you know when especially when you take over the director’s chair and you make a film uh
Does that pressure of giving it a pan Indian multilingual release come to your mind ever so the first thing to understand here is that you cannot make a pan indan film the film becomes pan Indian you don’t set out thinking let me make a pan Indian film this is a
Discussion I’ve had with multiple corporates across you know discussion tables like these where I’ve told them no we thinking wrong you know when you start asking me can that character be done by someone from Hindi can that character be done someone from telu you are essentially doing this I understand
To make sure that the film has relatability across languages because actors from various languages areen it absolutely but then you look at all the pan Indian successes they didn’t make the film a success because of who’s in it let’s assume a bahubali the the beginning of the whole movement it was
Essentially completely you know made from Telugu Stars let’s look at kgf let’s look at Kara in even more you know probably gratifying example so you don’t make a pan Indian film you choose a script I mean you choose a story that you want to say you write a script and
Then you stay honest to what’s on paper and try and make the best version of that script of course you want your film to be viewed by people across the country where a normal small scale industry specific film and a pan Indian film will differ is at the other end of
The spectrum how you release it how you Market it how you go around you know like say today salaris I don’t know an A-list release in every language in India right right it was an A-list release in Hindi in Telugu in Canada in Malayalam in Tamil everywhere there it
Differs as you’re making the film you’re making an honest film you’re not making pan Indian film yeah so that is I think something that we need to come to terms with because everybody is after the pan Indian pie that is right yeah okay so tell me something honestly U let’s say
Tomorrow you get a script okay from a it’s a canado Canada film and uh so what happens is sometimes your charact your you as an actor perfectly fit into the shoes of the character and sometimes you as an actor can figure it out that okay
I might be cast in this film for this character so that the makers at large can perhaps capture the Malayalam Market do you sometimes figure that out why you are being cast yeah so classic case in example is salar right when home Bal films in fact salar was first pitched to
Me by home Bal films at the end of a discussion where we were discussing the possibility of me directing something for home Bal and they told me Prashant would like to pit a character because we are doing this big film that Prashant is directing and Pras is starring him and
My immediate reaction with myself is to say no right I’m getting prepared to say no because this is exactly what I thought I’m thinking oh okay this must be like some 4 500 Crow film that they’re making and they’re going to try and get stars from various Industries to
Sort of cushion each market and all that all that thinking flew out of the window at the first narration because I realized that Prashant is not thinking that way for Prashant it was not about this guy from that industry this guy from this industry at least for Prashant
Because I know him personally know I kind of know how he works it was purely based on who he thinks is the best bet for his character and uh I’m I know this for a for a fact because at one particular point in time o to the pandemic and various different other
Things there was a point where I thought I will not be able to do salar and I met Prashant and I told him I would have loved to do this film but unfortunately it looks like I’m not going to be able to do it Prashant and prabas stopped the
Shoot and and they rework the entire schedule around to make sure that they somehow get me which then tells you that if Prashant Neil wanted a star he could have got anyone you know he could have got it’s not I’m not the only option if
A star is all that he wanted he he’s Prashant Neil you know and he could have and after kgf2 absolutely yeah he could have gone to anybody for him it was no in my mind praj is Raj Manar so uh I I’m also equipped enough as a filmmaker and
As an actor to read a script or to hear hear a narration and then understand if they’re after the star or if they’re after the actor the idea is always let the actor make the decision not the star prashan Neil welcome to CNN news8 thank you for having me sir Prashant we are
Just few hours away from the release of your film salar part one the trer looks very promising it looks like it’s really made for the big screen what are you feeling right now nervous anxious or excited nervous sir what are you looking forward to the most from the
Audiences I’m hoping they like the drama I’m hoping they like the emotion um open about the scale and all the action sequences I think they’re just embellishments I’m I’m just really hoping that they really like the story of daa and varda that is that is the intention of the movie also so like
There many fan theories which are doing the round some are comparing it some are saying that it is inspired by maata what can we expect from Salah I I put it in the trailer and I’m hope I I was uh excited by that very line when I came up with it that you
Know the two best friends become the two biggest enemies and U Mahabharata and RAM have come up with every possible emotion or story I don’t think we can I I think we all draw from that ocean um but uh the story of two best friends and how they become the two biggest enemies
And what happens in a situation like that you know I just I I want to tell this I want to tell the Journey of how they became friends and how big of big friends they were and how did they turn into fors so that is that is the one
Thing that I was excited with when I started making this and that is exactly what I want to show sir but it is going to take take me six hours to tell you that I’m just presenting the first three hours tomorrow so then then what is it that you know every director has
Something to say with it story what is it that you want to say with Allah the message I don’t give out messages I think even if you take messages from my movie they don’t turn out to be the best messages I don’t think kgf had a message
To tell I’m just telling you the story of two individuals and uh how they are reacting in a in in in an in an environment which is uh can be best described as dystopia that is that comes through cancer yeah and in a violent world you’re going to see a friendship
Blossom and a friendship turn sort yeah you know the film is titled salar part one ceasefire which means you already have written part two of the film now you have made two films in the kgf world what according to you a film must offer with its sequel that you think will
Compel the audience to flog theaters it has to have the drama and uh the only reason that we made salar into two parts is I would liken this movie to a bahubali more than I would liken it to a k because of the drama that it had that bahubali had just
Within four or five characters they created such a phenomenal story SS Raj is uh probably one of the best Craftsmen when it comes to something like that and and we drew inspiration from something like that you know that that drama has to sit well and I was not able to show
This drama in just 3 hours I was not capable of uh making it in three hours and that that that that was the dec that is when we took the decision of making it into two parts you’re known there’s in many successful storytellers that we
Have in India I mean you a big dreamer I’m a big fan of yours Prashant uh uh you know prabas made a huge flash with bahubali the whole country was in love with him and still is but his last film sah rades sham and ADI purush did not
Perform well at the box office do you think with Salah he’ll bounce back and will get audience acceptance from the Hindi Bel I don’t think we make a movie to say we want to enhance his career or this care or whatever we start with just the storytelling was very exciting for
Me to take this story to him because of uh all the movies that I’ve absolutely loved watching when uh he was beginning his career the innocense the fieriness that he had and uh all of those things and I think the last three movies that he made uh should not deter everybody I
Don’t know why it is uh why it seems like that his his way of he wanted to present a different story every single time sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t uh 90% of all movies fail every year and it just fallen in in in that bracket our our agenda is not to enhance
Somebody’s career if it does get enhanced then it is a bonus we’re here to tell a story and uh um I think uh the storytelling should take precedence above everybody else not me not Pras not pitaj nobody I think everybody has to has to understand that we are telling
You a different story this time and I I have to convince you with that story and all of us have put in that equal and if it enhances pra’s career I I think it will uh salar is not going to enhance it his reputation was already
Preceding him before it is just is just going to give him that small nudge for bigger things sure sure you know tinu Anand has compared you with Frank Capa he said Prashant even go and explain the back the background actors what they doing in the scene do you think even
Someone who is in the crowd doing any action makes a difference it does it does but but uh I think that is more uh how do I put this it’s it’s like uh a fla that I might have that you know I want everybody to do that perfect bit of acting but uh
It it it necessarily does not apply it goes from person to person I generally design design my movies around uh the frame looking perfect and for that the actors have to look perfect so that that is that is how I look at it probably people won’t notice it the first few
Days that they’re in the theater but after that they probably will I think they will you know prashan you’ve been pushing boundaries with your films you have this wild imagination and the skill that we have seen in your film what are your dreams like like what when you
Actually imagine this King Kingdom of Kaner but there was no um wild see kanar is made of three tribes and they they date back to a thousand years back and those three tribes get together and they do what they do and then they build this modern city and uh
That was that I wanted to tell uh a dystopian World in a very different way and uh I wanted to create enough drama I wanted to create enough uh I wanted to create enough baddies and everything in in a world like that where this friendship would be tested to its level
And I I could not imagine doing it in a very very normal world the world that we live in and we are so blessed to live in a very normal world I could not do I could not think about uh uh uh putting in this friendship in a place like that
And that is why I had to do what I had to do with cancer and what are your dreams like and do you dream about this dystopian World a lot I think I draw that inspiration from World War Two and all the movies that have been made
Around that and I see that the emotion and everything behind that is much higher I I have loved those movies that have been made on World War uh 2 and World War I so I tried to create an environment like that it’s not like I I
I I’m going to make every movie like that it’s just that these stories had to be told in that way so that is why I created them I’m not I’m going further I I don’t think I can come up with better words you know you with kgf you have
Really established yush as his pan India star I haven’t done it he has done it for himself then what are the boxes you think that need to be ticked in order to break the language barriers when you’re making a film of that scale emotion and drama I think I think um emotion and
Drama I don’t think kjf will exist without the mother in it uh I think it would have been just another movie the bond between the mother and the son I think that emotion is something that connected everybody you think about it and it connects everybody and I’m doing
The same thing with friendship this time I want uh everybody to uh call their friends a salar that is that is that is that is my that is what I want uh to achieve with something like this and I think it is those human relations that
You take whether it is here or you want to make it in Mars where wherever you want to make it it’s it still holds good that uh principle that you have to show human values the best that you can now you know having made four film as a
Director do you know your comfort zone now I mean do you have do what is your comfort zone if I can ask you my comfort zone are always my technicians my technicians they’re they’re world class everything that I’m every uh time somebody says Prashant Neil is a good director all that
Accolades have to go to my technicians because without them I cannot be who I am and because of uh their prowess their technical prowess and their ability to judge Cinema I I’m here I wouldn’t exist without them you know today everybody wants to make this pan India film you
Had Sanjay D in kgf Karen Jor of course came and launch of kgf2 is there now a plan to cast a Bollywood hero in one of your directory Adventure see that when uh bahubali 1 came out you didn’t know any any one of them and when kgf 1 came out you didn’t know
Any one of them it was only in kgf2 that we had already planned to bring in a sanj that whether it worked in the Hindi belt or not so when you stick to your guns and you make a movie that is very pure and true to what you set out to
Make in the first place instead of manipulating it by saying I want to bring in an aister and then give him a little extra part uh to and that will ruin the the whole essence of the movie I don’t think we do that necessarily I would love to there are some brilliant
Actors in bwood and if they are the right choice then I will pursue them and hunt them down and make sure that they’re in the movie you know today Hollywood has a lot of interest in India especially after rrr Oscar win they’re very keen to collaborate with directors from South
India are there talks going on between you and Hollywood Studios who wants to collaborate with you everybody is not a SSI so we’ll have to get there to for for things like that to happen but no no I’m I’m not uh there yet and nobody has
Approached me then what do you say about those comparisons of with kgf and when do you think we can expect kgf 3 and the second part of salar we have to see the result tomorrow I’m always I’m not I’m not the ones who’s going to count my uh chickens before they hatch
I I I want to see the response of the audience and usually you get a feedback from the audience what they liked in the movie what they didn’t like of of course the story is set and uh we are we’re ready to go with with saladu but I I
Just need to take a break I just got off k KF and I was I was into salar I need to take a break from that kgf 3 will happen kgf 3 is also a script that was already written otherwise we wouldn’t put it in part two but in the end of
Part two that you know we were making kf3 this just that we have to align again uh yesh has a lot of commitments and VI sir has a lot of commitments of his own and a project like kf3 cannot be done with multiple things going on we
Just have to clear our schedules one day and we’re going to start it then you know the obvious question what is the strategy behind reading Salah along with Dunkey knowing that it will impact the film business that was not a call that was made by me or Pras sir or
PR sir none of us wanted the situation that that that’s a call that is made by the production and we that’s that’s probably one of the very few things that he had asked from us that you know he’s somebody who believes in astrology a lot
And uh he does not deviate from that it has worked worked for him every single time before so uh that was the only date that we had we we apologized to their team also because they had announced it’s not it’s not not a good thing for anybody to
Be uh putting their movie in a date which has been announced and they had announced a year before so apologies from the whole team uh to the team of donkey because we we did not want a situation like that to come and they they’re obviously colossal Rajkumar sir
And shuk S they’re colossal we didn’t want to a situation like that but it came up only because of um you know the astrology and everything else and what v s believes in more I actually wanted to ask you you know Cinema unites everybody your film is binding it you just don’t
Belong to one part of India you belong to whole India everybody loves you in this case what do you have to say about these fans who or the people who are trying to create this North versus South divide they are handful of people who always do that they’re very passionate
About what they do it’s never right but you can never control them also at the same time it’s just that emotions uh get the better of you in a situation like that and uh having a competition like that I don’t think any one of us do
Cinema for competition we do it for our livelihood and and people usually don’t understand something like that just that shuk s is so big and Pras is Pras s is so big and you know just tempers flare you know when you say that he’s better or he’s better or box office numbers are
Going to be compared I don’t think box office is ever going to Define uh whether you’re a big star or not that they’re they’re big stars because of everything that they have done for 30 years 20 years I don’t think that’ll Define anything and and it is bound to
Happen you know I I was a I was I was just a pure fan at one point of time and I would have rooted for my hero and that is just momentary you know I think it will pass and it’s not right basically it’s not right but it it
Happens you know music has always been very big part of our films very curious to know what role does music play in prashan Neil’s films and will you ever make a musical I I see any song or anything should be a background music I I feel
That you know it has to be a part of the film it should not it should not get you out of it of course I have done that with kgf1 you know I tried to make a special number and all of those things but that was just to enhance the market
Now you understand you know people have moved over moved on after covid you know they have the exposure of the entire world in front of them they watched every content Under the Sun and uh it it just makes sense to tell a story and if
A song is a part of the story then you should tell it that’s the way I look at it and that’s the way I want to make these movies that is why I don’t have a very huge popular commercial number in salar though we planned it but we did
Not we could not execute it because it was it was it was not in tune with the story and finally what do you think audience going to take away when they’re going to experience this imaginary tale by everyone’s favorite director Prashant Neil on Friday in I don’t know I don’t
Know about everyone’s favorite director but I I just I just want them to come and see uh this blossoming friendship between daa and W and and all the other characters they’ve done a fantastic job of supporting a wonderful uh um story like this I I’m saying wonderful I should not be saying that
People should be saying that but I just I just want them to uh come in and enjoy the friendship and uh see how that translates into enmity at one some point or the other well here’s wishing you best of luck for salar and for your upcoming projects looking forward to watch salar
On the big screen thank you so much for your time and so much thank you so much thank you okay so uh salar we’re going to talk about it your next big release um I read that you know Mr SS Raja MO is the first one who actually bought the
Ticket uh yes you know tell me a little bit about you know what does that support that you know sense of Brotherhood you know from people of the same fraternity mean to you no it’s amazing at least you know U he is probably the biggest filmmaker the
Country has at the moment uh probably one of the biggest International Brands India has is SS rajoli sir and for him to come out and extend that support to us not just about buying the first ticket he actually interviewed Prashant prabas and myself and we had a long two
And a half hour long conversation about salar about Cinema about his kind of film making for him to be taking that time off and coming and supporting a film with which he is not necessarily involved within any capacity is just amazing it’s a humbling experience that
Uh somebody with that kind of clout and influence uh can go out there and help uh a friend’s film or another film from his own industry and to make sure that you know we get that visibility Raj Moi sir interviewing us gives us more visibility you know he doesn’t need to
Do it uh so it was wonderful it was amazing and I’ve I’ve known Raja for a while now he’s that kind of a person he is just a really really nice person yeah will we see you working with him any I I sure hope so I pray I get to work with
Him someday like probably every actor in the country I am I’m also hoping and praying that someday I get to be directed by him yeah yes yes um okay so you know this is one thing that I think really connects you and prabas Sir uh which I really admired you stated in an
Interview recently that uh you know you had a role on paper but you know it was because of Pras to certain extent that you know it’s probably got extended a little bit while you were shooting so more than yeah I did actually but more than my role getting extended which it
Did what we really sort of discovered and fleshed out from the script even more so is the bond between these two characters uh it was always a film about two friends from the ideation stage in the story was about these two people about daa and Vera uh which was a
Surprise I know I after um so I listened to the first narration of Salah much much before the general public got to know about such a project right I mean this was during the shoot of kgf2 right that prashan the first time over a zoom
Told me the idea of salar and I was very surpised because when you think of the director of the KJ franchise making a film with prabas who’s one of the country’s biggest stars you don’t anticipate it being a story about two friends you don’t anticipate it being a
Story about the bonding between two men and that really surprised me and full credit to prabas for being secure enough for being confident enough for being magnanimous enough to say that no this is a film that needs to be made and U the that character has to be played by
So and so and we really we have to make the film about these two people uh and uh as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember Prashant telling me that I always knew it was going to be a story of two people but to get this together
What is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a lot more about the bonding about these two absolute friends who can kill and die for each other true
And then what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you’re talking about I mean uh I also heard somewhere that you know you actually passed on the role of ibraim in kurui to Ros and Matthew you know this
Is something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and Pras sir you know having this sense of security um tell me something has this stemmed over time or were you always you know this sense of security was always there does for the lack of a better
Words selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it doesn’t matter people are going to forget the film and you but if you have
A role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who intelligent enough you will always know that you have to put the film first m right uh you could have a mind-blowing character and if the film
Does not work people will not remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like prabas they know this better than anyone you know Pras knows that for salar to work the bond between daa and V
Will have to work yeah so he knows that U I know for Salah to work that daa will have to work the most discussion the most suggestions I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to Prashant and told him listen I think
There’s another way to do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about Pras scenes Pras will tell you this pan will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the film should be your second priority
Because ultimately your aim as an actor should be to build towards the vision of the director and to make sure you’re part of a film that works right uh so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part of a film that works no matter
What that you then start thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know Pras is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the right person to answer this but do you
Also feel the same about yourself me no I’m not as nice a guy as Pras is I why do you say that no because he is just incredible like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t know 7,500 days every day every day I
Have seen him and not just to me to everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is there anything you want this guy does not sit down with there another person without a chair standing and he is just that guy day in day out
All through right I’m not that nice I know I’m I have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is himself and he’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be
Uncomfortable with with him yeah if you ever meet him and if get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh salar has received an a certificate um you have compared it to you know something like Game of Thrones yeah uh
Would would you say that you know the fact that it has received an a certificate will perhaps you know cut down a certain chunk of the audience from watching it well I I assume that something that’s well I assume children will not be allowed in theaters which is understandable because there’s a film
Certified a but I also know that without the violence salar will not be what salar is because the violence in the film is very much a character of the plot of the premise and it’s a screenplay instrument to further the drama I keep comparing it to Game of
Thrones because salar is very much a drama uh you know in spite of all the spectacular action the violence the huge production design the massive sets everything salar is essentially about relationships about what happens between these two people right not just about these two people there are a host of
Characters and it’s very intricate character Dynamics and it’s a drama beautifully written drama which is why the comparison to Game of Thrones and uh and I I completely understand why Prashant decided that rather than make a few cuts and get a UA I’d rather keep
The violence as it is and get an A because if you if he had made those cuts I think the film would have been incomplete but are you a Game of Thrones fan yeah I I love it’s easily one of the best written streaming service materials
Ever so I mean of course after a point you felt like the makers were pressured into sort of going on with it which which happens across networks across series you know it always happens but on on a base level it’s just a wonderfully written series absolutely very true you
Know since you’re talking about violence in a film and you rightfully said that you know perhaps the violence here in salar is is a character in itself uh you know we recently saw animal it’s it’s creating you know ripples at the box office also you know grabbed a lot of
Attention for its violence quotient U do you think that has also somewhere cemented your confidence in you know salar being a violent film so I haven’t watched animal so I can’t comment on animal but I of the because I’m a filmmaker also I’m of the opinion that as a filmmaker if you
Think you need to shoot graphic violence to be able to say the story the way you want to say it you should have the Liberty to do it because ultimately after having made the film you are submitting it to a regulatory Authority called the sensor board to and then they
Tell you that listen your film is going to be certified such and such which means only such and such sections of the audience can watch your film right so our responsibility as a fil makers to make sure that we submit it to the sensor board how we make the film should
Be left to us because the audience has already been told this is certified such and such because it has violence because it has nudity or whatever you know it has already been said so censorship should happen at the exhibition sector make sure that you know who goes into
The theater and who gets to see the film other than that the filmmaker I because I’m an artist I I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to but of course who sees the material should be regulated as it is absolutely right yeah uh you know
Pan Indian films is like the order of the day today um so you are now you know directing Lucifer too so you know when especially when you take over the director’s chair and you make a film uh does that pressure of giving it a pan Indian multilingual release come to your
Mind ever so the first thing to understand here is that you cannot make a pan Indian film the film becomes pan indan you don’t set out thinking let me make a pan Indian film this is a discussion I’ve had with multiple corporates across you know discussion tables like these where I’ve told them
No we are thinking wrong you know when you start asking me can that character be done by someone from Hindi can that character be done when some from Telugu you are essentially doing this I understand to make sure that the film has relatability across languages because actors from various languages
Are in it absolutely but then you look at all the pan Indian successes they didn’t make the film a success because of who’s in it let’s assume a bahubali the beginning of the whole movement it was essentially completely you know made from Telugu Stars let’s look at kgf let’s look at
Kara in even more you know probably gratifying example so you don’t make a pan Indian film you choose a script I mean you choose a story that you want to say you write a script and then you stay honest to what’s on paper and try and
Make the best version of that script of course you want your film to be viewed by people across the country where a normal small scale industry specific film and a pan Indian film will differ is at the other end of the spectrum how you release it how you Market it how you
Go around you know like say today salar is I don’t know an A-list release in every language in India right right it was an A-list release in Hindi in Telugu in Canada in Malayalam in Tamil everywhere there it differs as you’re making the film you’re making an honest
Film you’re not making a pan Indian film yeah so that is I think something that we need to come to terms with because everybody is after the pan Indian pie that is right yeah okay so tell me something honestly U let’s say tomorrow you get a script okay from a it’s a
Canado Canada film and uh so what happens is sometimes your Char your you as an actor perfectly fit into the shoes of the character and sometimes you as an actor can figure it out that okay I might be cast in this film for this character so that the makers at large
Can perhaps capture the Malayalam Market do you sometimes figure that out why you are being cast yeah so the classic case in example is salar right when home Bal films in fact salar was first pitched to me by home Bal films at the end of a discussion where we were discussing the
Possibility of me directing something for home Bal and they told me Prashant would like to pitch a character because we are doing this bck film that Prashant is directing and Pras is starring in and my immediate reaction Within Myself is to say no right I’m getting prepared to
Say no because this is exactly what I thought I’m thinking oh okay this must be like some 4 500 CR film that they’re making and they’re going to try and get stars from various Industries to sort of cushion each market and all that all that thinking flew out of the
Window at the first narration because I realized that Prashant is not thinking that way for Prashant it was not about this guy from that industry this guy from this industry at least for Prashant I because I know him personally now I kind of know how he works it was purely
Based on who he thinks is the best bet his character and uh I’m I know this for a for a fact because at one particular point in time o to the pandemic and various different other things there was a point where I thought I will not be
Able to do salar and I met Prashant and I told him I would have loved to do this film but unfortunately it looks like I’m not going to be able to do it Prashant and prabas stopped the shoot and they rework the entire schedule around to
Make sure that they somehow get me which then tells you that if Prashant Neil wanted a star he could have got anyone you know he could have got it’s not I’m not the only option if a star is all that he wanted he he’s Prashant Neil you
Know and he could have and after kgf2 absolutely yeah he could have gone to anybody for him it was no in my mind praj is Raj Manar so uh I am also equipped enough as a filmmaker and as an actor to read a script or to hear hear a narration and then
Understand if they’re after the star or if they after the actor the idea is always let the actor make the decision not the star prashan Neil welcome to CNN news8 thank you for having me sir Prashant we are just few hours away from the release of your film salar part one
The Tater looks very promising it looks like it’s really made for the big screen what are you feeling right now nervous anxious or excited nervous sir what are you looking forward to the most from the audiences I’m hoping they like the drama I’m hoping they like the emotion um up
And about the scale and all the action sequences I think they’re just embellishments I’m I’m just really hoping that they really like the story of daa and varda that is that is the intention of the movie also so like there are many fan theories which are doing the round
Some are comparing it some are saying that it is inspired by mhata what can we expect from Salah I I put it in the trailer and I’m hope I I was uh excited by that very line when I came up with it that you know the two best friends become the two
Biggest enemies and uh mahabarata and RAM have come up with every possible emotion or story I don’t think we can I I think we all draw from that ocean um but uh the story of two best friends and how they become the two biggest enemies and what happens in a
Situation like that you know I just I I want to tell the I want to tell the Journey of how they became friends and how big of big friends they were and how did they turn into fours so that is that is the one thing that I was excited with
When I started making this and that is exactly what I want to show so but it is going to take me 6 hours to tell you that I’m just presenting the first three hours tomorrow so then then what is it that you know every director has
Something to say with its story what is it that you want to say with Allah the message I don’t give out messages I think even if you take messages from my movie they don’t turn out to be the best messages I don’t think kgf had a message
To tell I’m just telling you the story of two individuals and uh how they are reacting in a in in in an an in an environment which is uh can be best described as dystopia that is that comes through Kaner yeah and in a violent world you’re going to see a friendship
Blossom and a friendship turn S yeah you know the film is titled salar part one ceasefire which means you already have written part two of the film now you have made two films in the k GF world what according to you a film must offer with its sequel that you think will
Compel the audience to flog theaters it has to have the drama and uh the only reason that we made salar into two parts is I would liken this movie to a bahubali more than I would liken it to a kjf because of the drama that it had that bahubali had just
Within four or five characters they created such a phenomenal story SS rajoli is uh probably one of the best Craftsmen when it comes to something like that and and we drew inspiration from something like that you know that the drama has to sit well and I was not
Able to show this drama in just three hours I was not capable of uh making it in three hours and that that that that was the de that is when we took the decision of making it into two parts you’re know there’s than many successful story tellers that we have in India I
Mean you a big dreamer I’m a big fan of yours Prashant uh you know prabas made a huge flash with bahubali the whole country was in love with him and still is but his last film sah radham and ADI purush did not perform well at the box office
Do you think with Salah he’ll bounce back and will get audience acceptance from the Hindi belt as well I don’t think we make a movie to say we want to enhance his career or this carer or whatever we start with just the storytelling was very exciting for me to
Take this story story to him because of uh all the movies that I’ve absolutely loved watching when uh he was beginning his career the innocense the fieriness that he had and uh all of those things and I think the last three movies that he made uh should not deter everybody I don’t
Know why it is uh why it seems like that his his way of he wanted to present a different story every single time sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t uh 90% of all movies fail every year and it just fallen in in in that bracket our our uh agenda is not to enhance
Somebody’s carer if it does get enhanced then it is a bonus we’re here to tell a story and uh um I think uh the storytelling should take precedence above everybody else not me not Pras not praj nobody I think everybody has to has to understand that we are telling you a
Different story this time and I I have to convince you with that story and all of us put in that equal effort and if it enhances pra’s career I I think it will uh salar is not going to enhance it his reputation was already preceding him
Before it is just is just going to give him that small nudge for bigger things sure sure you know U Anand has compar you with Frank AA he said Prashant even go and explain the back the background actors what they are doing in the scene
Do you think even someone who is in the crowd doing any action makes a difference it does it does but uh I think that is more uh how do I put this it’s it’s like uh a flaw that I might have that you know I want everybody
To do that perfect bit of acting but uh it it it necessarily does not apply it goes from person to person I generally design design my movies around uh the frame looking perfect and for that the actors have to look perfect so that that is that is how I
Look at it probably people won’t notice it the first few days that they’re in the theater but after that they probably will I think they will you know Prashant you’ve been pushing boundaries with your films you have this wild imagination and the skill that we have seen in your film
What are your dreams like like when what when you actually imagine this King Kingdom of Kana but there was no wild ker is made of three tribes and they they date back to a thousand years back and those three tribes get together and they do what they do and then they
Build this modern city and uh that was that I wanted to tell uh a dystopian World in a very different way and uh I wanted to create enough drama I wanted to create enough uh I wanted to create enough baddies and everything in in a world like that where this friendship
Would be tested to its level and I I could not imagine doing it in a very very normal world the world that we live in and we are so blessed to live in a very normal world I could not do I could not think about uh uh uh putting in this
Friendship in a place like that and that is why I had to do what I had to do with cancer and what are your dreams like and do you dream about this dystopian World a lot I think I draw that inspiration from World War I and all the movies that
Have been made around that and I see that the emotion and everything behind is much higher I I have loved those movies that have been made on World War uh 2 and World War I so I Tred to create an environment like that it’s not like I
I I I’m going to make every movie like that it’s just that these stories had to be told in that way so that is why I created them I’m not I’m going further I I don’t think I can come up with better worlds you know you with kgf you have
Really established yush as his pan India star I haven’t done it he has done it for himself then what are the boxes you think that need to be ticked in order to break the language barriers when you’re making a film in that scale emotion and drama I think I think um emotion and
Drama I don’t think kjf will exist without the mother in it uh I think it would have been just another movie the bond between the mother and the son I think that emotion is something that connected everybody you think about it and it connects everybody and I’m doing
The same thing with friendship this time I want uh everybody to uh call their friends a salar that is that is that is that is my that is what I want uh to achieve with something like this and I think it is those human relations that
You take whether it is here or you want to make it in Mars where wherever you want to make it it’s it still holds good that uh principle that you have to show human values the best that you can now you know having made four film as a
Director do you know your comfort zone now I mean do you have what is your comfort zone if I can ask you my comfort zone are always my technicians my technicians they’re they’re world class everything that I’m every uh time somebody says Prashant Neil is a good director all that
Accolades have to go to my technicians because without them I cannot be who I am and because of uh their prowess their technical prowess and their ability to judge Cinema I I’m here I wouldn’t exist without them you know today everybody wants to make this pan India film you
Had Sanjay dut in kgf Karen Jor of course came at re launch of kgf2 is there now a plan to cast a Bollywood hero in one of your directory Adventure see that when uh bahubali 1 came out you didn’t know any any one of them and when kgf1 came out you didn’t know
Any one of them it was only in kgf2 that we had already planned to bring in sanj that whether it worked in the the Hindi belt or not so when you stick to your guns and you make a movie that is very pure and true to what you set out to
Make in the first place instead of manipulating it by saying I want to bring in an aister and then give him a little extra part uh to and that’ll ruin the the whole essence of the movie I don’t think we do that necessarily I would love to there are some brilliant
Actors in Bollywood and if they are the right choice then I will pursue them and hunt them down and make sure that they’re in the movie you know today Hollywood has a lot of interest in India especially after rr’s Oscar win they’re very keen to collaborate with directors
From South India are there talks going on between you and Hollywood Studios who wants to collaborate with you everybody is not a SSI so we’ll have to get there to for for things like that to happen but no no I’m I’m not uh there yet and nobody has approached me then what do
You say about those comparisons of salar with kgf and when do you think we can expect kgf 3 and the second part of Salah uh we have to see the result tomorrow I’m always I’m not I’m not the on who’s going to count my uh chickens before they hatch
I I I want to see the response of the audience and usually you get a feedback from the audience what they liked in the movie what they didn’t like of of course the story is set and uh we are we’re ready to go with with salad but I I just
Need to take a break I just got off kgf and I was I was into Salah I need to take a break from that kgf 3 will happen kgf 3 is also a script that was already written otherwise we wouldn’t put it in part two but in the end of part two that
You know we were making kf3 it’s just that we have to align again uh yesh has a lot of commitments and VI sir has a lot of commitments of his own and a project like kf3 cannot be done with multiple things going on we just have to
Clear our schedules one day and we’re going to started then you know the obvious question what is the strategy behind reading Salah along with Dunkey knowing that it will impact the film business that was not a call that was made by me or Pras sir or PR sir none of us wanted
The situation that that’s a call that is made by the production and we that’s that’s probably one of the very few things that he had asked from us that you know he’s somebody who believes in astrology a lot and uh he does not deviate from from that it has worked for
Him every single time before so uh that was the only date that we had we we apologized to their team also because they had announced it’s not it’s not not a good thing for anybody to be uh putting their movie in a date which has been announced and they had
Announced a year before so apologies from the whole team uh to the team of dkey because we we did not want a situation like that to come and they they obviously colossal Rajkumar sir and shuk S they’re colossal we didn’t want to a situation like that but it came up
Only because of um you know the astrology and everything else and what v s believes in more I actually wanted to ask you you Cinema unites everybody your films is binding it you just don’t belong to one part of India you belong to whole India everybody loves you in
This case what do you have to say about these fans who or the people who are trying to create this North versus South divide they are handful of people who always do that they’re very passionate about what they do it’s never right but you can never control them also at the same time
Is just that emotions uh get the better of you in a situation like that and uh having a competition like that I don’t think any one of us do Cinema for competition we do it for our livelihood and and people usually don’t understand something like that just that shuk s is
So big and Pras is Pras s is so big and you know just tempers flare you know when you say that he’s better or he’s better or box office numbers are going to be compared I don’t think box office is ever going to Define uh whether
You’re a big star or not that they’re they’re big stars because of everything that they have done for 30 years 20 years I don’t think that’ll Define anything and and it is bound to happen you know I I was I was I was just a pure
Fan at one point of time and I would have rooted for my hero and that is just momentary you know I think it will pass and uh it’s not right basically it’s not right but it it happens you know music has always been very big part of our films very curious
To know what role does music play in prashan Neil’s films and will you ever make a musical I I see any song or anything should be a background music I I feel that you know it has to be a part of the film it should not it should not get you
Out of it of course I have done that with kgf1 you know I tried to make a special number and all of those things but that was just to enhance the market now you understand you know people have moved over moved on after covid uh you know they have the exposure of the
Entire world in front of them theyve watched every content Under the Sun and uh it it just makes sense to tell a story and if a song is a part of the story then you should tell it that’s the way I look at it and that’s the way I
Want to make these movies that is why I don’t have a very huge popular commercial number in Salah though we planned it but we did not we could not execute it because it was it was it was not in tune with the story and finally what do you think audience going to take
Away when they’re going to experience this imaginary tale by everyone’s favorite director Prashant Neil on Friday in I don’t know I don’t know about everyone’s favorite director but I I just I just want them to come and see uh this blossoming friendship between daa and Warda and and all the
Other characters they’ve done a fantastic job of supporting uh a wonderful uh um story like this I I’m saying wonderful I should not be saying that people should be saying that but I just I just want them to uh come in and enjoy the friendship and uh see how that
Translates into enemity at one some point or the other well here wishing you best of luck for Salah and for your upcoming projects looking forward to watch salar on the big screen thank you so much for your time and so much thank you so much thank you okay so uh salar
We’re going to talk about it your next big release U I read that you know Mr SS Raja MO is the first one who actually bought the ticket uh yes you know tell me a little bit about you know what does that support that you know sense of
Brotherhood you know from people of the same fraternity mean to you no it’s amazing at least you know um he is probably the biggest filmmaker the country has at the moment uh probably one of the biggest International Brands India has is SS rajoli sir and for him
To come out and extend that support to us not just about buying the first ticket he actually interviewed Prashant Pras and myself and we had a long 2 and a half hour long conversation about salar about Cinema about his kind of film making for him to be taking that
Time off and coming and supporting a film with which he is not necessarily involved within any capacity is just amazing it’s a humbling experience that uh somebody with that kind of clout and influence uh can go out there and help uh a friend’s film or another film from
His own industry and to make sure that you know we get that visibility Raj Moi sir interviewing us gives us more visibility you know he doesn’t need to do it uh so it was wonderful it was amazing and I’ve I’ve known Raja for a while now he’s that kind of a person he
Is just a really really nice person yeah will we see you working with him and I I sure hope so I pray I get to work with him someday like probably every actor in the country I am I’m also hoping and praying that someday I get to be
Directed by him yeah yes yes um okay so you know this is one thing that I think really connects you and Pras sir uh which I really admired you stated in an interview recently that uh you know you had a role on paper but you know it was
Because of prabas s to certain extent that you know it probably got extended a little bit while you were shooting so more than yeah I did actually but more than my role getting extended which it did what we really sort of discovered and flesh out from the script even more
So is the bond between these two characters uh it was always a film about two friends from the ideation stage the story was about these two people about daa and Vera uh which was a surprise I know I after um so I listened to the first narration of Salah much much
Before the general public got to know about such a project right I mean this was during the shoot of kgf2 right that prashan the first time over a zoom told me the idea of lot and I was very surprised because when you think of the director of the kg franchise making a
Film with prabas who’s one of the country’s biggest stars you don’t anticipate it being a story about two friends you don’t anticipate it being a story about the bonding between two men and that really surprised me and full credit to Pras for being secure enough for being confident enough for being
Magnanimous enough to say that no this is a film that needs to be made and U the that character has to be played by so so and we really have to make the film about these two people uh and as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember
Prashant telling me that I always knew it was going to be a story of two people but to get this together what is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a
Lot more about the bonding about these two absolute friends who can kill and die for each other true and then what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you’re talking about I mean U I also heard somewhere that you know you
Actually passed on the role of ibraim in kurui to rosan Matthew you know this is something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and Pras sir you know having this sense of security um tell me something has this stemed over time or were you always you
Know this sense of security was always there does for the of a better word selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it
Doesn’t matter people are going to forget the film and you but if you have a role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who’s intelligent enough you will always know that you have to put the film first
Right uh you could have a mindblowing character and if the film does not work people will not remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like prabas they know this better than anyone you
Know Pras knows that for salar to work the bond between daa and V will have to work yeah so he knows that I know for salar to work that daa will have to work the most discussions the most suggestions I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to
Prashant and told him listen I think there’s another way to do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about Pras scenes Pras will tell you this pan will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the
Film should be your second priority because ultimately your aim as an actor should be to build towards the vision of the director to make sure you’re part of a film that works right uh so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part
Of a film that works no matter what that you then start thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know pravas is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the
Right person to answer this but do you also feel the same about yourself me I’m not as nice a guy as Pras is I why do you say that no because he is just incredible like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t
Know 7500 days every day every day I have seen him and not just to me to everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is anything you want this guy does not sit down with this another person without a chair standing and he
Is just that guy day in day out all through right I’m not that nice I’m know I’m that I have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is himself and
He’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be uncomfortable with with him yeah if you ever meet him and if you get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh salar has received an a certificate um you have
Compared it to you know something like Game of Thrones yeah uh would would you say that you know the fact that it has received an a certificate will perhaps you know cut down a certain chunk of the audience from watching it well I I assume something well I assume children
Will not be allowed in theaters which is understandable because there’s a film certified a but I also know that without the violence salar will not be what salar is because the violence in the film is very much a character of the plot of the premise and it’s a screenplay instrument to further the
Drama I keep comparing it to Game of Thrones because salar is very much a drama uh you know in spite of all the spectacular action the violence the huge production design the massive sets everything salar is essentially about relationships about what happens between these two people right not just about
These two people there are a host of characters and it’s very intricate character Dynamics and it’s a drama beautifully written drama which is why the comparison to Game of Thrones and uh and I I completely understand Prashant decided that rather than make a few cuts and get a UA I’d rather keep the
Violence as it is and get an A because if you if he had made those cuts I think the film would have been incomplete but are you a Game of Thrones fan yeah I I love the it’s easily one of the best written streaming service materials ever
So I mean of course after a point you felt like the makers were pressured into sort of going on with it which which happens across networks across series you know it always happens but on on a base level it’s just a wonderfully written series absolutely very true you
Know since you’re talking about violence in a film and you rightfully said that you know perhaps the violence here in salar is is a character in itself uh you know we recently saw animal it’s it’s creating you know ripples at the box office also you know grabbed a lot of
Attention for its violence quotient U do you think that has also somewhere cemented your confidence in you know salar being a violent film so I haven’t watched animal yet so I can’t comment on animal but I of the because I’m a filmmaker also I’m of the opinion that
As a filmmaker if you think you need to shoot graphic violence to be able to say the story the way you want to say it you should have the Liberty to do it because ultimately after having made the film you are submitting it to a regulatory Authority called the sensor board to and
Then they tell you that listen your film is going to be certified such and such which means only such and such sections of the audience can watch your film right so our responsibility as a filmmakers to make sure that we submit it to the sensor board how we make the
Film should be left to us because the audience has already been told this is certified such and such because it has violence because it has nudity or whatever you know it is already been said so censorship should happen at the exhibition sector make sure that you
Know who goes into the theater and who gets to see the film other than that the filmmaker I because I’m an artist I I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to but of course who sees the material should be regulated as it is absolutely right yeah
Uh you know pan Indian films is like the order of the day today um so you are now you know directing Lucifer too so you know when especially when you take over the director’s chair and you make a film uh does that pressure of giving it a pan
Indian multilingual release come to your mind ever so the first thing to understand here is that you cannot make a pan Indian film the film becomes pan Indian you don’t set out thinking let me make a pan Indian film this is a discussion I’ve had with multiple corporates across
You know discussion tables like these where I’ve told them no we thinking wrong you know when you start asking me can that character be done by someone from Hindi can that character be done when some from Telugu you are essentially doing this I understand to make sure that the film has relatability
Across languages because actors from various languages are in it absolutely but then you look at all the pan Indian successes they didn’t make the film a success because of who’s in it let’s assume a bahubali the the beginning of the whole movement it was essentially completely you know made from Telugu
Stars let’s look at kgf let’s look at Kara in even more you know probably gratifying example so you don’t make a pan Indian film you choose a script I mean you choose a story that you want to say you write a script and then you stay
Honest to what’s on paper and try and make the best version of that script of because you want your film to be viewed by people across the country where a normal small scale industry specific film and a pan Indian film will differ is at the other end of the spectrum how
You release it how you Market it how you go around you know like say today salar is I don’t know an A-list release in every language in India right right it is an A-list release in Hindi in Telugu in Canada in Malayalam in Tamil everywhere there it differs as you’re
Making the film you’re making an honest film you’re not making a pan Indian film yeah so that is I think something that we need to come to terms with because everybody is after the pan Indian P that is right yeah okay so tell me something honestly U let’s say tomorrow you get a
Script okay from a it’s a canado Canada film and uh so what happens is sometimes your charact your you as an actor perfectly fit into the shoes of the character and sometimes you as an actor can figure it out that okay I might be cast in this film for this character so
That the makers at large can perhaps capture the Malayalam Market do you sometimes figure that out why you are being cast yeah so the classic case in example is salar right when home Bal films in fact salar was first pitched to me by home Bal films at the end of a
Discussion where we were discussing the possibility of me directing something for home Bal and they told me Prashant would like to pitch a character because we are doing this dick film that Prashant is directing and Pras is starring in and my immediate reaction Within Myself is to say no right I’m
Getting prepared to say no because this is exactly what I thought I’m thinking oh okay this must be like some 4 500 CR film that they’re making and they’re going to try and get stars from various Industries to sort of cushion each market and all that all that thinking flew out of the
Window at the first narration because I realized that Prashant is not thinking that way for Prashant it was not about this guy from that industry this guy from this industry at least for Prashant because I know him personally now I kind of know how he works it was purely based
On who he thinks is the best bet of his character and uh I’m I know this for a for a fact because at one particular point in time o to the pandemic and various different other things there was a point where I thought I will not be
Able to do salar and I met Prashant and I told him I would have loved to do this film but unfortunately it looks like I’m not going to be able to do it Prashant and prabas stopped the shoot and they reworked the entire schedule around to
Make sure that they somehow get me which then tells you that if Prashant Neil wanted a star he could have got anyone you know he could have got it’s not I’m not the only option if a star is all that he wanted he he’s Prashant Neil you
Know and he could have and after kgf2 absolutely he could have gone to anybody for him it was no in my mind praj is Raj Manar so uh I am also equipped enough as a filmmaker and as an actor to read a script or to hear hear a narration and
Then understand if they’re after the star or if they’re after the actor the idea is always let the actor make the decision not the star pran Neil welcome to CNN new thank you for having me sir pran we are just few hours away from the release of your film salar part one the
Tater looks very promising it looks like it’s really made for the big screen what are you feeling right now nervous anxious or excited nervous sir what are you looking forward to the most from the audiences I’m hoping they like the drama I’m hoping they like the emotion um up
And about the scale and all the action sequences I think they’re just embellishments I’m I’m just really hoping that they really like the story of daa and varda that is that is the intention of the movie also so like there are many fan theories which are doing the round
Some are comparing it some are saying that it is inspired by mhar what can we expect from Salah I I put it in the trailer and I’m hope I I was uh excited by that very line when I came up with it that you know the two best friends become the two
Biggest enemies and uh mahabarata and RAM have come up with every possible emot or story I don’t think we can I I think we all draw from that ocean um but uh the story of two best friends and how they become the two biggest enemies and what happens in a
Situation like that you know I just I I want to tell the I want to tell the Journey of how they became friends and how big of big friends they were and how did they turn into Force so that is that is the one thing that I was excited with
When I started making this and that is exactly what I want to show sir but it is going to take me six hours to tell you that I’m just presenting the first three hours tomorrow so then then what is it that you know every director has
Something to say with its story what is it that you want to say with Allah the message I don’t give out messages I think even if you take messages from my movie they don’t turn out to be the best messages I don’t think kjf had a message
To tell I’m just telling you the story of two individuals and uh how they are reacting in a in in in an an in an environment which is uh can be best described as dystopia that is that comes through Kaner yeah and in a violent world you’re going to see a friendship
Blossom and a friendship turn sort yeah you know the film is titled salar part one ceasefire which means you already have written part two of the film now you have made two film in the kgf world what according to you a film must offer with its sequels that you think will compel
The audience to flock theaters it has to have the drama and uh the only reason that we made salar into two parts is I would liken this movie to a bahubali more than I would liken it to a kjf because of the drama that it had that bahali had just within
Four or five characters they created such a phenomen story SS Raji is uh probably one of the best Craftsmen when it comes to something like that and and we drew inspiration from something like that you know that the drama has to sit well and I was not able to show this
Drama in just three hours I was not capable of uh making it in three hours and that that that that was the de that is when we took the decision of making it into two parts you’re not there than many successful storytellers that we have in India I mean you a big Dreamer
I’m a big fan of yours Prashant uh uh you know prabas made a huge flash with bahubali the whole country was in love with him and still is but his last film sah rades sham and ADI purush did not perform well at the box office do you
Think V Salah he’ll bounce back and will get audience acceptance from the Hindi belt as well I don’t think we make a movie to say we want to enhance his career or this career whatever we start with just the storytelling was very exciting for me to take this story to
Him because of uh all the movies that I’ve absolutely loved watching when uh he was beginning his career the innocense the fieriness that he had and uh all of those things and I think the last three movies that he made uh should not deter everybody I don’t
Know why it is uh why it seems like that his his way of he wanted to present a different story every single time sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t uh 90% of all movies fail every year and it just fallen in in in that bracket our our agenda is not to enhance somebody’s
Career if it does get enhanced then it is a bonus we’re here to tell a story and uh um I think uh the storytelling should take precedence above everybody else not me not Pras not praj nobody I think everybody has to has to understand that we are telling you a different
Story this time and I I have to convince you with that story and all of us have put in that equal effort and if it enhances pra’s career I I think it will uh salar is not going to enhance it his reputation was already preceding him
Before it is just is just going to give him that small nudge for bigger things sure sure you know U Anand has compared you with Frank Kaa he said Prashant even go and explain the back the background actors what they are doing in the scene
Do you think even someone who is in the crowd doing any action makes a difference it does it does but uh I think that is more uh how do I put this it’s it’s like uh a flaw that I might have that you know I want everybody
To do that perfect bit of acting but uh it it it necessarily does not apply it goes from person to person I generally design design my movies around uh the frame looking perfect and for that the actors have to look perfect so so that that is that is how I look at it
Probably people won’t notice it the first few days that they’re in the theater but after that they probably will I think they will you know prashan you’ve been pushing boundaries with your films you have this wild imagination and the skill that we have seen in your film
What are your dreams like like what when you actually imagine this King Kingdom of Kana but there was no um Wild khar is made of three tribes and they they date back to a thousand years back and those three tribes get together and they do what they do and
Then they built this modern city and uh that was that I wanted to tell uh a dystopian World in a very different way and uh I wanted to create enough drama I wanted to create enough uh I wanted to create enough baddies and everything in in a world like that where this
Friendship would be tested to its level and I I could not imagine doing it in a very very normal world the world that we live in and we are so blessed to live in a very normal world I could not do I could not think about uh uh uh putting
In this friendship in a place like that and that is why I had to do what I had to do with cancer and what are your dreams like and do you dream about this dystopian World a lot I think I draw that inspiration from World War 2 and
All the movies that have been made around that and I see that the emotion and everything behind that is much higher I I have loved those movies that have been made on World War uh 2 and World War I so I Tred to create an environment like that it’s not like I I
I I’m going to make every movie like that it’s just that these stories had to be told in that way so that is why I created them I’m not I’m going further I I don’t think I can come up with better worlds you know you with kgf you have
Really established yush as his pan India star I haven’t done it he’s it for himself then what are the boxes you think that need to be ticked in order to break the language barrier when you’re making a film in that scale emotion and drama I think I think um emotion and
Drama I don’t think kjf will exist without the mother in it uh I I think it would have been just another movie the bond between the mother and the son I think that emotion is something that connected everybody you think about it and it connects everybody and I’m doing
The same thing with friendship this time I want uh everybody to to uh call their friends a salar that is that is that is that is my that is what I want uh to achieve with something like this and I think it is those human relations that
You take whether it is here or you want to make it in Mars where wherever you want to make it it’s it still holds good that uh principle that you have to show human values the best that you can now you know having made four film as a
Director do you know your comfort zone now I mean do you have what is your comfort zone if I can ask you my comfort zone are always my technicians my technicians they’re they’re world class everything that I’m every uh time somebody says prashan Neil is a good director all that accolades
Have to go to my technicians because without them I cannot be who I am and because of uh their prowess their technical prowess and their ability to judge Cinema I I’m here I wouldn’t exist without them you know today everybody wants to make this pan India film you
Had Sanjay dut in kgf Karen y of course came at the Traer launch of kgf2 is there now a plan to cast a Bollywood hero in one of your directory Adventure see that when uh bahubali one came out you didn’t know any any one of them and when kgf1 came out you didn’t
Know any one of them it was only in kgf2 that we had already planned to bring in sanj that whether it worked in the Hindi belt or not so when you stick to your guns and you make a movie that is very pure and true to what you set out to
Make in the first place instead of manipulating it by saying I want to bring in an aister and then give him a little extra part uh to that’ll ruin the the whole essence of the movie I don’t think we do that necessarily I would love to there are some brilliant actors
In Bollywood and if they are the right choice then I will pursue them and hunt them them down and make sure that they’re in the movie you know today Hollywood has a lot of interest in India especially after RR Oscar with they’re very keen to collaborate with directors
From South India are there talks going on between you and Hollywood Studios who wants to collaborate with you everybody is not a SSI so we’ll have to get there to for for things like that to happen but no no I’m I’m not uh there yet and nobody has approached me then what do
You say about those comparisons of salar with kgf and when do you think we can expect kgf 3 and the second part of Salah we have to see the result tomorrow I’m always I’m not I’m not the ones who’s going to count my uh chickens before they hatch
I I I want to see the response of the audience and usually you get a feedback from the audience what they liked in the movie what they didn’t like of of course the story is set and uh we are we’re ready to go with with salad but I I just
Just need to take a break I just got off kgf and I was I was into salar I need to take a break from that kgf 3 will happen kgf 3 is also a script that was already written otherwise we wouldn’t put it in
Part two but in the end of part two that you know we were making kjf 3 this is that we have to align again uh yesh has a lot of commitments and VI sir has a lot of commitments of his own and project like kf3 cannot be done with
Multiple things going on we just have to clear our schedules one day and we we’re going to start it then you know the obvious question what is the strategy behind reading Salah along with Dunkey knowing that it will impact the film business that was not a call that was
Made by me or Pras sir or PR sir none of us wanted the situation that that’s a call that is made by the production and we that’s that’s probably one of the very few things that he had asked from us that you know he’s somebody who
Believes in astrology a lot and uh he he does not deviate from that it has worked for him every single time before so uh that was the only date that we had we we apologized to their team also because they had announced it’s not it’s not not a good thing for anybody to
Be uh putting their movie in a date which has been announced and they had announced a year before so apologies from the whole team uh to the team of dkey because we we did not want a situation like that to come and they they’re obviously colossal Rajkumar sir
And shuk Sir they’re colossal we didn’t want to a situation like that but it came up only because of um you know the astrology and everything else and what v s believes in more I actually wanted to ask you you Cinema unites everybody your films is binding it you just don’t
Belong to one part of India you belong to whole India everybody loves you in this case what do you have to say about these fans who or the people who are trying to create this North versus South divide think there are handful of people who always do that they’re very passionate
About what they do it’s never right but you can never control them also at the same time is just that emotions uh get the better of you in a situation like that and uh having a competition like that I don’t think any one of us do
Cinema for competition we do it for our livelihood and and people usually don’t understand something like that it’s just that shuk s is so big and Pras is Pras is so big and you know just tempers flare you know when you say that he’s better or he’s better or box office
Numbers are going to be compared I don’t think box office is ever going to Define uh whether you’re a big star or not that they’re they’re big stars because of everything that they have done for 30 years 20 years I don’t think that’ll Define anything and and it is bound to
Happen you know I I was I was I was just a pure fan at one point of time and I would have rooted for my hero and that is just Just moment you know I think it will pass and it’s not right basically it’s not right but it it
Happens you know music has always been been very big part of our films very curious to know what role does music play in prashan Neil’s films and will you ever make a musical I I see any song or anything should be a background music I I feel
That you know it has to be a part of the film it should not it should not get you out of it of course I have done that with kgf1 you know I tried to make a special number and all of those things but that was just to enhance the market
Now you understand you know people have moved over moved on after covid uh you know they have the exposure of the entire world in front of them theyve watched every content Under the Sun and uh it it just makes sense to tell a story and if a song is a part of the
Story then you should tell it that’s the way I look at it and that’s the way I want to make these movies that is why I don’t have a very huge popular commercial number in salar though we planned it but we did not we could not
Execute it because it was it was it was not in tune with the story and finally what do you think audience going to take away when they’re going to experience this imaginary tale by everyone’s favorite director Prashant Neil on Friday in I don’t know I don’t know about everyone’s favorite director but I
I just I just want them to come and see uh this blossoming friendship between daa and Warda and all the other characters they’ve done a fantastic job of supporting a wonderful uh um story like this I I’m saying wonderful I should not be saying that people should
Be saying that but I just I just want them to uh come in and enjoy the friendship and uh see how that translates into enity at one some point or the other well here wishing you best of luck for Salah and for your upcoming projects looking forward to watch salar
On the big screen thank you so much for your time and bl so much thank you so much thank you okay so uh salar we’re going to talk about it your next big release U I read that you know Mr SS Raja m is the first one who actually
Bought the ticket uh yes you know tell me a little bit about you know what does that support that you know sense of Brotherhood you know from people of the same fraternity mean to you no it’s amazing at least you know um he is probably the biggest filmmaker the
Country has at the moment uh probably one of the biggest International Brands India has is SS rajoli sir and for him to come out and extend that support to us not just about buying the first ticket he actually interviewed Prashant Pras and myself and we had a long two
And a half hour long conversation about salar about Cinema about his kind of film making for him to be taking that time off and coming and supporting a film with which he is not necessarily involved within any capacity is just amazing it’s a humbling experience that
Uh somebody with that kind of clout and influence uh can go out there and help uh a friend’s film or another film from his own industry and to make sure that you know we get that visibility Raj Moi sir interviewing us gives us more visibility you know he doesn’t need to
Do it uh so it was wonderful it was amazing and I’ve I’ve known rajala for a while now he’s that kind of a person he is just a really really nice person yeah will we see you walking with him and I I sure hope so I pray I get to work with
Him someday like probably every actor in the country I am I’m also hoping and praying that some day I get to be directed by him yeah yes yes um okay so you know this is one thing that I think really connects you and Pras sir uh
Which I really admired you stated in an interview recently that uh you know you had a role on paper but you know it was because of prabas to certain extent that you know it probably got extended a little bit while you were shooting so more than yeah I did actually but more
Than my role getting extended which it did what we really sort of discover covered and fleshed out from the script even more so is the bond between these two characters uh it was always a film about two friends from the ideation stage the story was about these two
People about daa and Vera uh which was a surprise you know I after um so I listened to the first narration of Salah much much before the general public got to know about such a project right I mean this was during the shoot of kgf2 right that prashan first time over a
Zoom told me the idea of salar and I was very surprised because when you think of the director of the kg franchise making a film with prabas who’s one of the country’s biggest stars you don’t anticipate it being a story about two friends you don’t anticipate it being a
Story about the bonding between two men and that really surprised me and full credit to prabas for being secure enough for being confident enough for being magnanimous enough to say that no this is a film that needs to be made and U the that character has to be played
By so and so and we really have to make the film about these two people and as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember Prashant telling me that I always knew it was going to be a story of two people but to get this together
What is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a lot more about the bonding about these two absolute friends who can kill and die for each other true
And what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you talking about I mean uh I also heard somewhere that you know you actually passed on the role of ibraim in kurui to Ros and Matthew you know this is
Something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and Pras sir you know having this sense of security um tell me something has this stemmed over time or were you always you know this sense of security was always there does for the lack of a better word
Selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it doesn’t matter people are going to forget the film and you but if you have
A role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who’s intelligent enough you will always know that you have to put the film first right uh you could have a mindblowing character and if the film does not work people will not
Remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like Pras they know this better than anyone Pras knows that for salar to work the bond between daa and V will have to work yeah so he knows
That U I know for salar to work that daa will have to work the most discussions the most suggestions I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to Prashant and told him listen I think there another way to do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about
Pras scenes Pras will tell you this Prashant will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the film should be your second priority because ultimately your aim as an actor should be to build towards the
Vision of the director and to make sure you’re part of a film that works right uh so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part of a film that works no matter what that you then start thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film
Lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know pravas is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the right person to answer this but do you also feel the same about yourself me I’m
Not as nice a guy as has Pras is why do you say that no because he is just incredible like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t know 7500 days every day every day I have seen him and not just to me to
Everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is there anything you want this guy does not sit down with this another person without a chair standing and he is just that guy day in day out all through right I’m not that nice I
Know I’m I have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is himself and he’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be uncomfortable with with him yeah if you ever meet him and
If you get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh salar has received an a certificate um you have compared it to you know something like Game of Thrones yeah uh would would you say that you know the fact that it has
Received an a certificate will perhaps you know cut down a certain chunk of the audience from watching it well I I assume something well I assume children will not be allowed in theaters which is understandable because there’s a film certified a but I also know that without
The violence salar will not be what salar is because the violence in the film is very much a character of the plot of the premise and it’s a screenplay instrument to further the drama keep comparing it to Game of Thrones because salar is very much a
Drama uh you know in spite of all the spectacular action the violence the huge production design the massive sets everything salar is essentially about relationships about what happens between these two people right not just about these two people there are a host of characters and it’s very intricate
Character Dynamics and it’s a drama beautifully written drama which is why the comparison to Game of Thrones and uh and I I completely understand why prant decided that rather than make a few cuts and get a UA I’d rather keep the violence as it is and get an A because
If you if he had made those cuts I think the film would have been incomplete but are you a Game of Thrones fan yeah I I love the it’s easily one of the best written streaming service materials ever so I mean of course after a point you
Felt like the makers were pressured into sort of going on with it which which happens across networks across series you know it always happens but on on a base level it’s just a wonderfully written series absolutely very true you know since you’re talking about violence in a film and you rightfully said that
You know perhaps the violence here in salar is is a character in itself uh you know we recently saw animal it’s it’s creating you know ripples at the box office also you know grabbed a lot of attention for its violence quotient U do you think that has also somewhere
Cemented your confidence in you know salar being a violent film so so I haven’t watched animal yet so I can’t comment on animal but I am of the because I’m a filmmaker also I’m of the opinion that as a filmmaker if you think you need to shoot graphic violence to be
Able to say the story the way you want to say it you should have the Liberty to do it because ultimately after having made the film you are submitting it to a regulatory Authority called the sensor board to and then they tell you that listen your film is going to be
Certified such and such which means only such and such sections of the audience can watch your film right so our responsibility as a filmmakers to make sure that we submit it to the sensor board how we make the film should be left to us because the audience is
Already been told this is certified such and such because it has violence because it has nudity or whatever you know it is already been said so censorship should happen at the exhibition sector make sure that you know who goes into the theater and who gets to see the film
Other than that the filmmaker I because I’m an artist I I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to but of who sees the material should be regulated as it is absolutely right yeah you know pan Indian films is like the order of the
Day today um so you are now you know directing Lucifer too so you know when especially when you take over the director’s chair and you make a film uh does that pressure of giving it a pan Indian multilingual release come to your mind ever so the first thing to
Understand here is that you cannot make a pan Indian film the film comes pan indan you don’t set out thinking let me make a pan indan film this is a discussion I’ve had with multiple corporates across you know discussion tables like these where I’ve told them
No we are thinking wrong you know when you start asking me can that character be done by someone from Hindi can that character be done when some from telu you are essentially doing this I understand to make sure that the film has relatability across languages because actors from various languages
Are in it absolutely but then you look at all the pan Indian successes they didn’t make the film a success because of who’s in it let’s assume a bahubali the the beginning of the whole movement it was essentially completely you know made from Telugu Stars let’s look at kgf
Let’s look at Kara you even more uh you know probably gratifying example so you don’t make a pan Indian film you choose a script I mean you choose a story that you want to say you write a script and then you stay honest to what’s on paper
And try and make the best version of that script of course you want your film to be viewed by people across the country where a normal small scale industry specific film and a pan Indian film will differ is at the other end of the spectrum how you release it how you
Market it how you go around you know like say today salar is I don’t know an A-list release in every language in India right right it was an A-list release in Hindi telu in Canada in Malayalam in Tamil everywhere there it differs as you making the film you’re
Making an honest film you’re not making a pan Indian film yeah so that is I think something that we need to come to terms with because everybody is after the pan Indian P that is right yeah okay so tell me something honestly uh let’s say tomorrow you get a script okay from
A it’s a Canada Canada film and uh so what happens is sometimes your charact your you as an actor perfectly fit into the shoes of the character and sometimes you as an actor can figure it out that okay I might be cast in this film for this character so that the makers at
Large can perhaps capture the Malayalam Market yeah do you sometimes figure that out why you are being cast yeah so the classic case in example is salar right when home Bal films in fact salar was first pitched to me by home Bal films at the end of a discussion where we were
Discussing the possibility of me directing something and they told me Prashant would like to pitch a character because we are doing this big film that Prashant is directing and tras is starring in and my immediate reaction Within Myself is to say no right I’m getting prepared to
Say no because this is exactly what I thought I’m thinking oh okay this must be like some 4 500 CR film that they’re making and they’re going to try and get stars from various Industries to sort of cushion each market and all that all that thinking flew out of the
Window at the first narration because I realized that Prashant is not thinking that way for Prashant it was not about this guy from that industry this guy from this industry at least for Prashant because I know him personally now I kind of know how he works it was purely based
On who he thinks is the best bet of his character and uh I’m I know this for a for a fact because at one particular point in time o to the pandemic and various different other things there was a point where I thought I will not be
Able to do salar and I met Prashant and I told him I would I’ve Lov to do this film but unfortunately it looks like I’m not going to be able to do it Prashant and prabas stopped the shoot and they reworked the entire schedule around to
Make sure that they somehow get me which then tells you that if Prashant Neil wanted a star he could have got anyone you know he could have got it’s not I’m not the only option if a star is all that he wanted he he’s Prashant Neil you
Know and he could have and after kgf to absolutely yeah he could have gone to anybody for him it was no in my mind praj is d so uh I am also equipped enough as a filmmaker and as an actor to read a script or to hear hear a narration and
Then understand if they’re after the star or if they’re after the actor the idea is always let the actor make the decision not the star prashan NE welcome to CNN new thank you for having me sir prant we are just few hours away from the release of your film salar part one
The Tater looks very promising it looks like it’s really made for the big screen what are you feeling right now nervous anxious or excited no sir what are you looking forward to the most from the audiences I’m hoping they like the drama I’m hoping they like the emotion um up
And above the scale and all the action sequences I think they’re just embellishments I’m I’m just really hoping that they really like the story of DEA and varda that is that is the intention of the movie also so like there are many fan theories which are doing the round some are comparing it
Some are saying that it is inspired by mhar what can we expect from Salan I I put it in the trailer and I’m hope I I was uh excited by that very line when I came up with it that you know the two best friends become the two biggest enemies and
U mahabarata and RAM have come up with every problem possible emotion or story I don’t think we can I I think we all draw from that ocean um but uh the story of two best friends and how they become the two biggest enemies and what happens
In a situation like that you know I just I I want to tell the I want to tell the Journey of how they became friends and how big of big friends they were and how did they turn into Force so that is that is the one thing that I was excited with
When I started making this and that is exactly what I want to show sir but it is going to take me 6 hours to tell you that I’m just presenting the first 3 hours tomorrow so then then what is it that you know every director has
Something to say with its story what is it that you want to say with Allah the message I don’t give out messages I think even if you take messages from my movie they don’t turn out to be the best messages I don’t think kgf had a message
To tell I’m just telling you the story of two individuals and uh how they are reacting in a in in in an in an environment which is uh can be best described as dystopia that is that comes through Kaner yeah and in a violent world you’re going to see a friendship
Blossom and a friendship turn sord yeah you know the film is titled salar part one seiz fire which means you already have written part two of the film now you have made two film in the kgf world what according to you a film must offer with its sequel
That you think will compel the audience to flog theaters it has to have the drama and uh the only reason that we made salar into two parts is I would liken this movie to a bahubali more than I would liken it to a kjf because of the drama
That it had that bahali had just within four or five characters they created such a phenomenal story SS rajmi is uh probably one of the best Craftsmen when it comes to something like that and and we drew inspiration from something like that you know that the drama has to sit well and
I was not able to show this drama in just 3 hours I was not capable of uh making it in 3 hours and that that that that was the that is when we took the decision of making it into two parts you’re known there’s than many successful storytellers that we have in
India I mean you a big dreamer I’m a big fan of yours Prashant uh uh you know Pras made a huge flash with bahubali the whole country was in love with him and still is but his last film sah radam and ADI purush did not perform well at the
Box office do you think with Salah he’ll bounce back and will get audience acceptance from the Hindi belt as well I don’t think we make a movie to say we want to enhance his career or this career whatever we start with just the storytelling was very exciting for me to
Take this story to him because of uh all the movies that I’ve absolutely loved watching when uh he was beginning his career the innocense the fieriness that he had and uh all of those things and I think the last three movies that he made uh should not deter everybody I don’t
Know why it is uh why it seems like that his his way of he wanted to present a different story every single time sometimes it works sometimes it it doesn’t uh 90% of all movies fail every year and it just fallen in in in that bracket our
Our agenda is not to enhance somebody’s career if it does get enhanced then it is a bonus we’re here to tell a story and uh um I think uh the storytelling should take precedence above everybody else not me not Pras not praj nobody I think everybody has to has to understand
That we are telling you a different story this time and I I have to convince you with that story and all of us have put in that equal effort and if it enhances pra’s career I I think it will uh salar is not going to enhance it his reputation was already preceding him
Before it is just is just going to give him that small nudge for bigger things sure sure you know tinu Anand has compared you with Frank AA he said Prashant even go and explain the back the background actors what they are doing in the scene do you think even
Someone who is in the crowd doing any action makes a difference it does it does but uh I think that is more uh how do I put this it’s it’s like uh a flaw that I might have that you know I want everybody to do that perfect bit of acting but uh
It it it necessarily does not apply it goes from person to person I generally design design my movies around uh the frame looking perfect and for that the actors have to look perfect so that that is that is how I look at it probably people won’t notice
It the first few days that they’re in the theater but after that they probably will I think they will you know prashan you’ve been pushing boundaries with your films you have this wild imagination and the skill that we have seen in your film what are your dreams like like what when
You actually imagine this King Kingdom of caner but there was no um wild see khar is made of three tribes and they they date back to a thousand years back and those three tribes get together and they do what they do and then they build this
Modern city and uh that was that I wanted to tell uh a dystopian World in a very different way and uh I wanted to create enough drama I wanted to create enough uh I wanted to create enough bades and everything in in a world like that where this friendship would be
Tested to its level and I I could not imagine doing it in a very very normal world the world that we live in and we are so blessed to live in a very normal world I could not do I could not think about uh uh uh putting in this
Friendship in a place like that and that is why I had to do what I had to do with Kaner and what are your dreams like and do you dream about this dystopian World a lot I think I draw that inspiration from World War 2 and all the movies that
Have been made around that and I see that the motion and everything behind that is much higher I I have loved those movies that have been made on World War uh 2 and World War I so I tried to create an environment like that it’s not
Like I I I I’m going to make every movie like that it’s just that these stories had to be told in that way so that is why I created them I’m not I’m going further I I don’t think I can come up with better worlds you know you with kgf you have
Really established yush as a pan India star I haven’t done it he has done it for himself then what are the boxes you think that need to be ticked in order to break the language barriers when you’re making a film of that scale emotion and drama I think I think um emotion and
Drama I don’t think kjf will exist without the mother in it uh I think it would have been just another movie the bond between the mother and the son I think that emotion is something that connected everybody you think about it and it connects everybody and I’m doing
The same thing with friendship this time I want uh every body to uh call their friends a salar that is that is that is that is my that is what I want uh to achieve with something like this and I think it is those human relations that
You take whether it is here or you want to make it in Mars where wherever you want to make it it’s it still holds good that uh principle that you have to show human values the best that you can now you know having made four film as a
Director do you know your comfort zone now I mean do you have what is your comfort zone if I can ask you my comfort zone are always my technicians my technicians they’re they’re world class everything that I’m every uh time somebody says Prashant Neil is a good director all that
Accolades have to go to my technicians because without them I cannot be who I am and because of uh their prowess their technical prowess and their ability to judge Cinema I I’m here I wouldn’t exist without them you know today everybody wants to make this pan India film you
Had Sanjay D and kgf Karen Jor of course came at TR the launch of kgf 2 is there now a plan to cast a Bollywood hero in one of your director Adventure see that when uh bahubali one came out you didn’t know any any one of them and when kgf1
Came out you didn’t know any one of them it was only in kgf2 that we had already planned to bring bring in a San that whether it worked in the Hindi belt or not so when you stick to your guns and you make a movie that is very pure and
True to what you set out to make in the first place instead of manipulating it by saying I want to bring in an aister and then give him a little extra part uh to that will ruin the the whole essence of the movie I don’t think we do that
Necessarily I would love to there are some brilliant actors in Bollywood and if they are the right choice then I will pursue them and hunt them down and make sure that they’re in the movie you know today Hollywood has a lot of interest in India especially after R Oscar will
They’re very keen to collaborate with directors from South India are there talks going on between you and Hollywood Studios who wants to collaborate with you everybody is not a SSI so we’ll have to get there to for for things like that to happen but no no I’m I’m not uh there
Yet and nobody has approached me then what do you say about those comparisons of salar with kgf and when do you think we can expect kgf 3 and the second part of Salah we have to see the result tomorrow I’m always I’m not I’m not the ones
Who’s going to count my uh chickens before they hatch I I I want to see the response of the audience and usually you get a feedback from the audience what they liked in the movie what they didn’t like of of course the story is set and uh we are we’re
Ready to go with with salad but I I just need to take a break I just got off kgf and I was I was into salar I need to take a break from that kgf 3 will happen kgf 3 is also a script that was already written otherwise we wouldn’t put it in
Part two but in the end of part two that you know we were making kgf 3 this is that we have to align again uh the yesh has a lot of commitments and VI sir has a lot of commitments of his own and a project like kf3 cannot be done with
Multiple things going on we just have to clear our schedules one day and we’re going to start it then you know the obvious question what is the strategy behind reading Salah along with Dunkey knowing that it will impact the film business that was not a call that was
Made by me or Pras or PR sir none of us wanted the situation that that that’s a call that is made by the production and we that’s that’s probably one of the very few things that he had asked from us that you know he’s somebody who
Believes in astrology a lot and and uh he does not deviate from that it has worked for him every single time before so uh that was the only date that we had we we apologized to their team also because they had announced it’s not it’s not it’s not a good thing for
Anybody to be uh putting their movie in a date which has been announced and they had announced a year before so apologies from the whole team uh to the team of dkey because we we did not want a situation like that to to come and they they’re obviously colossal Rajkumar sir
And shuk S they’re colossal we didn’t want to a situation like that but came up only because of um you know the astrology and everything else and what VI s believes in more I actually wanted to ask you you Cinema unites everybody your films is in binding it you just
Don’t belong to one part of India you belong to whole India everybody loves you in this case what do you have to say about these fans who or the people who are trying to create this North versus South divide I think there are handful of people who always do that they’re very
Passionate about what they do it’s never right but you can never control them also at the same time is just that emotions uh get the better of you in a situation like that and uh having a competition like that I don’t think any one of us do Cinema for competition we
Do it for our livelihood and and people usually don’t understand something like that just that shuk s is so big and PR is braas is so big and you know just tempers flare you know when you say that he’s better or he’s better or box office
Numbers are going to be compared I don’t think box office is ever going to Define uh whether you’re a big star or not that they’re they’re big stars because of everything that they have done for 30 years 20 years I don’t think that’ll Define anything and and it is bound to
Happen you know I I was a I was I was just a pure fan at one point of time and I would have rooted for my hero and that is just momentary you know I think it will pass and it’s not right basically it’s not right but it it
Happens you know music has always been very big part of our films very curious to know what role does music play in prashan Neil’s films and will you ever make a musical I I see any song or anything should be a background music I I feel
That you know it has to be a part of the film it should not it should not get you out of it of course I have done that with with kgf1 you know I tried to make a special number and all of those things but that was just to enhance the market
Now you understand you know people have moved over moved on after covid uh you know they have the exposure of the entire world in front of them theyve watched every content Under the Sun and uh it just makes sense to tell a story and if a song is a part of the story
Then you should tell it that’s the way I look at it and that’s the way I want to make these movies that is why I don’t have a very huge popular commercial number in salar we planned it but we did not we could not execute it because it
Was it was it was not in tune with the story and finally what do you think audience going to take away when they’re going to experience this imaginary tale by everyone’s favorite director Prashant Neil on Friday I don’t know I don’t know about everyone’s favorite director but I I
Just I just want them to come and see uh this blossoming friendship between daa and Warda and and all the other characters they’ve done a p fantastic job of supporting a wonderful uh um story like this I I’m saying wonderful I should not be saying that
People should be saying that but I just I just want them to uh come in and enjoy the friendship and uh see how that translates into enmity at one some point or the other well here wishing you best of luck for Salah and for your upcoming projects looking forward to watch salar
On the big screen thank you so much for your time and best so much thank you so much thank you okay so uh salar we’re going to talk about it your next big release U I read that you know Mr SS Raja MO is the first one who actually
Bought the ticket uh yes you know tell me a little bit about you know what does that support that you know sense of Brotherhood you know from people of the same fraternity mean to you no it’s amazing at least you know um he is probably the biggest filmmaker the
Country has at the moment uh probably one of the biggest International brands India has is SS rajoli sir and for him to come out and extend that support to us not just about buying the first ticket he actually interviewed Prashant prabas and myself and we had a long two
And a half hour long conversation about salar about Cinema about his kind of film making for him to be taking that time off and coming and supporting a film with which he is not necessarily involved within any capacity is just amazing it’s a humbling experience that
Uh somebody with that kind of clout and influence uh can go out there and help uh a friend’s film or another film from his own industry and to make sure that you know we get that visibility Raj M sir interviewing us gives us more visibility you know he doesn’t need to
Do it uh so it was wonderful it was amazing and I’ve I’ve known Raj M sir for a while now he’s that kind of a person he is just a really really nice person yeah will we see you walking with him and I sure hope so I pray I get to
Work with him someday like probably every actor in the country I am I’m also hope in and praying that someday I get to be directed by him yeah yes yes um okay so you know this is one thing that I think really connects you and prabas
Sir uh which I really admired you stated in an interview recently that uh you know you had a role on paper but you know it was because of prabas s to certain extent that you know it probably got extended a little bit while you were shooting so more than yeah I did
Actually but more than my role getting extended which it did what we sort of discovered and fleshed out from the script even more so is the bond between these two characters right uh it was always a film about two friends from the ideation stage the story was about these
Two people about daa and Vera uh which was a surprise I know I after um so I listened to the first narration of Salah much much before the general public got to know about such a project right I mean this was during the shoot of kgf2
Right that prashan the first time over a zoom told me the idea of salar and I was very surprised because when you think of the director of the KJ franchise making a film with prabas who’s one of the country’s biggest stars you don’t anticipate it being a story about two
Friends you don’t anticipate it being a story about the bonding between two men and that really surprised me and full credit to prabas for being secure enough for being confident enough for being magnanimous enough to say that no this is a film that needs to be made and uh
The that character has to be played by so and so and we really have to make the film about these two people uh and uh as we progressed in the shoot uh I I remember Prashant telling me that I always knew it was going to be a story
Of two people but to get this together what is happening on screen is something that you know that’s pleasantly surprising me too so from what is written to what is in the film today I think you’ll see a lot more about the bonding about these two absolute friends
Who can kill and die for each other true and then what happens between them yes so that’s exactly what I was coming to you know the sense of security that you talking about I mean uh I also heard somewhere that you know you actually passed on the role of ibraim in kurui to
Ros and Matthew you know this is something and it’s so nice to see that you know two such big stars you and Pras sir you know having this sense of security um tell me something has this stemmed over time or were you always you know this sense of security was always
There does for the lack of a better word selfishness of an actor never take precedence you know what it comes from absolute selfishness it comes from absolute selfishness and knowledge of knowing that if you have a fantastic role in a film that doesn’t work it doesn’t matter people are going to
Forget the film and you but if you have a role that works in a film that works that that is what will count so if you are an actor who intelligent enough you always know that you have to put the film first right uh you could have a
Mindblowing character and if the film does not work people will not remember the character but if you’re part of a film that works people will always remember the film and your character and people like prabas they know this better than anyone you know Pras knows that for
Salar to work the bond between daa and V will have to work yeah so he knows that U I know for Salah to work that they will have to work the most discussions the most suggestions I have given Prashant the most number of times I walked up to Prashant and told him
Listen I think there’s another way to do the scene are not about my scenes they’re all about Pras scenes Pras will tell you this pant will tell you this it I I’m I’ve always believed that your first priority should be the film itself what you do in the film should be your
Second priority because ultimately your aim as an actor should be to build towards the vision of the director and to make sure you’re part of a film that works right so it’s from that thought process that selfish thought process that I have to be part of a film that
Works no matter what that you then start thinking no it’s not about me it’s about the film lovely that’s so lovely uh you said that you know pravas is uh blissfully delightfully unaware of his stardom I mean this might not you might not be the right person to answer this
But do you also feel the same about yourself me know I’m not as nice a guy as Pras is why do you say that no because he is just incredible like he uh see what I I must have been there with him for I don’t know 7500 days every day
Every day I have seen him and not just to me to everyone on set asking them would you like some food to be sent are you comfortable is there anything you want this guy does not sit down with there another person without a chair standing and he is just that guy day in
Day out all through right I’m not that that nice I know I’m have to be honest yeah he’s just he’s one of the biggest stars of the country and probably the only person who does not know this is himself and he’s really delightful that way and he’s it’s impossible to be
Uncomfortable with with him yeah if you ever meet him and if you get a chance to interview him you’ll you’ll see what I mean yes yes that’s true okay uh so uh Salah has received an a certificate um you have compared it to you know something like game of
Yeah uh would would you say that you know the fact that it has received an a certificate will perhaps you know cut down a certain chunk of the audience from watching it well I I assume that something well I assume children will not be allowed in theaters which is
Understandable because there’s a film certified a but I also know that without the violence salar will not be what salar is because the violence in the film is very much a character of the plot of the premise and it’s a screenplay instrument to further the drama
I keep comparing it to Game of Thrones because salar is very much a drama uh you know in spite of all the spectacular action the violence the huge production design the massive sets everything salar is essentially about relationships about what happens between these two people right not just about these two people
There are a host of characters and it’s very intricate character Dynamics and it’s a drama beautifully written drama which is why the comparison to Game of Thrones and uh and I I completely understand why Prashant decided that rather than make a few cuts and get a UA
I’d rather keep the violence as it is and get an A because if you if he had made those cuts I think the film would have been incomplete but are you a Game of Thrones fan yeah I I love the it’s easily one of the best written streaming
Service materials ever so I mean of course after a point you felt like the makers are pressured into sort of going on with it which which happens across networks across series you know it always happens but on on a base level it’s just a wonderfully written series absolutely very true you
Know since you’re talking about violence in a film and you rightfully said that you know perhaps the violence here in salar is is a character in itself uh you know we recently saw animal it’s it’s creating you know ripples at the box office also you know grabbed a lot of
Attention for its violence Cent U do you think that has also somewhere cemented your confidence in you know salar being a film so I haven’t watched animal yet so I can’t comment on animal but I of the because I’m a filmmaker also I’m of the opinion that as a filmmaker if you
Think you need to shoot graphic violence to be able to say the story the way you want to say it you should have the Liberty to do it because ultimately after having made the film you are submitting it to a regulatory Authority called the sensor board to and then they
Tell you that listen your film is going to be certified such and such which means only such and such sections of the audience can watch your film right so our responsibility as a filmmakers to make sure that we submit it to the sensor board how we make the film should
Be left to us because the audience has already been told this is certified such and such because it has violence because it has nudity or whatever you know it is already been said so censorship should happen at the exhibition sector make sure that you know who goes into the
Theater and who gets to see the film other than that the filmmaker I because I’m an artist I I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to but of course who sees the material should be regulated as it is absolutely right yeah uh you know
Pan Indian films is like the order of the day today um so you are now you know directing Lucifer too so you know when especially when you take over the director’s chair and you make a film uh does that pressure of giving it a pan Indian multilingual release come to your
Mind ever so the first thing to understand here is that you cannot make a pan Indian film the film becomes pan indan you don’t set out thinking let me make a pan Indian film this is a discussion I’ve had with multiple corporates across you know discussion tables like these where I’ve told them
No we are thinking wrong you know when you start asking me can that character be done by someone from Hindi can that character be done on someone from telu you are essentially doing this I understand to make sure that the film has relatability across languages because actors from various languages
Are in it absolutely but then you look at all the pan Indian successes they didn’t make the film a success because of who’s in it let’s assume a bahubali the beginning of the whole movement it was essentially completely you know made from Telugu Stars let’s look at kgf
Let’s look at Kara you even more uh you know probably gratifying example so you don’t make a pan Indian film you choose a script I mean you choose a story that you want to say you write a script and then you stay honest to what’s on paper
And try and make the best version of that script of course you want your film to be viewed by people across the country where a normal small scale industry specific film and a pan Indian film will differ it’s at the other end of the spectrum how you release it how
You Market it how you go around you know like say today salar is I don’t know an A-list release in every language in India right right it is an A-list release in Hindi in Telugu in Canada in Malayalam in Tamil everywhere there it differs as making the film you’re making
An honest film you’re not making a pan Indian film yeah so that is I think something that we need to come to terms with because everybody is after the pan Indian pie that is right yeah okay so tell me something honestly uh let’s say tomorrow you get a script okay from a
It’s a canado Canada film and uh so what happens is sometimes your charact your you as an actor perfectly fit into the shoes of the character and sometimes you as an actor can figure it out that okay I might be cast in this film for this character so that the makers at large
Can perhaps capture the Malayalam Market do you sometimes figure that out why you are being cast yeah so classic case in example is salar right when home Bal films in fact salar was first pitched to me by home Bal films at the end of a discussion where we were discussing the
Possibility of me directing something for hbal and they told me Prashant would like to pitch a character because we are doing this dick film that is directing and Pras is starring in and my immediate reaction Within Myself is to say no right I’m getting prepared to say no
Because this is exactly what I thought I’m thinking oh okay this must be like some 4 500 CR film that they’re making and they’re going to try and get stars from various Industries to sort of cushion each market and all that all that thinking flew out of the
Window at the first narration because I realized that Prashant is not thinking that way for Prashant it was not about this guy from that industry this guy from this industry at least for Prashant because I know him personally now I kind of know how he works it was purely based
On who he thinks is the best bet for his character and uh I’m I know this for a for a fact because at one particular point in time o to the pandemic and various different other things there was a point where I thought I will not be
Able to do salar and I met Prashant and I told him I would have loved to do this film but unfortunately it looks like I’m not going to be able to do it h Prashant and prabas stopped the shoot and they reworked the entire schedule around to
Make sure that they somehow get me which then tells you that if Prashant Neil wanted a star he could have got anyone you know he could have got it’s not I’m not the only option if a star is all that he wanted he he’s Prashant Neil you
Know and he could have and after kgf2 absolutely yeah he could have gone to anybody for him it was no in my mind PR ra is rajar so uh I am also equipped enough as a filmmaker and as an actor to read a script or to hear hear a
Narration and then understand if they’re after the star or if they after the actor the idea is always let the actor make the decision not the staran Neil welcome to CNN news8 thank you for having me sir prant we are just few hours away from the release of your film
Salar part one the T looks very promising it looks like it’s really made for the big screen what are you feeling right now nervous anxious or excited no sir what are you looking forward to the most from the audiences I’m hoping they like the drama I’m hoping they like the emotion um up
And above the scale and all the action sequences I think they’re just embellishments I’m I’m just really hoping that they really like the story of daa and VHA that is that is the intention of the movie also so like there are many fan theories which are doing the round some are comparing it
Some are saying that it is inspired by maata what can we expect from Salah I I put it in the trailer and I’m hope I I was uh excited by that very line when I came up with it that you know the two best friends become the two biggest enemies and
U Mahabharata and RAM have come up with every possible emotion or story I don’t think we can I I think we all draw from that ocean um but uh the story of two best friends and how they become the two biggest enemies and what happens in a
Situation like that you know I just I I want to tell the I want to tell the Journey of how they became friends and how big of big friends they were and how did they turn into Force so that is that is the one thing that I was excited with
When I started making this and that is exactly what I want to show sir but it is going to take me 6 hours to tell you that I’m just presenting the first 3 hours tomorrow so then then what is it that you know every director has
Something to say with its story what is it that you want to say with Allah the message I don’t give out messages I think even if you take messages from my movie they don’t turn out to be the best messages I don’t think kjf had a message
To tell I’m just telling you the story of two individuals and uh how they are reacting in a in in in an in an environment which is uh can be best described as dystopia that is that comes through cancer yeah and in a violent world you’re going to see a
Friendship Blossom and a friendship turn sore yeah you know the film is titled salar part one ceasefire which means you already have written part two of the film now you you have made two films in the kgf world what according to you a film must offer with its sequel that you think will
Compel the audience to flog theaters it has to have the drama and uh the only reason that we made salar into two parts is I would liken this movie to a bahubali more than I would liken it to a k because of the drama that it had that bahali had just within
Four or five characters they created such a phenomenal story SS Raji is uh probably one of the best Craftsmen when it comes to something like that and and we drew inspiration from something like that you know that the drama has to sit well and I was not able to show this
Drama in just three hours I was not capable of uh making it in three hours and that that that that was the that is when we took the decision of making it into two parts yeah know there’s than many successful storytellers that we have in India I mean you a big dreamer
I’m a big fan of yours Prashant uh you know prabas made a huge flash with bahubali the whole country was in love with him and still is but his last film sah radham and ADI purush did not perform well at the box office do you think with Salah he’ll bounce back and
Will get audience acceptance from the Hindi belt as well I don’t think we make a movie to say we want to enhance his career or this career whatever we start with just the storytelling was very exciting for me to take this story to him because of uh all the movies that
I’ve absolutely loved watching when uh he was beginning his career the in no sense the fieriness that he had and uh all of those things and I think the last three movies that he made uh should not deter everybody I don’t know why it is uh White seems like
That his his way of he wanted to present a different story every single time sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t uh 90% of all movies fail every year and it just fallen in in in that bracket our our agenda is not to enhance somebody’s career if it does get enhanced then it
Is a bonus we’re here to tell a story and uh um I think uh the storytelling should take precedence about everybody else not
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