Every Millenial Love story

The OK Jaanu cast talk about their latest release, their journey from acting in side roles to playing lead roles, about live-in relationships, marriage, movie remake and much more. 

OK Jaanu, starring Shraddha Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapoor, is making all the right noises. Its songs, ‘Humma Humma’ (which is being re-used from Mani Ratnam-AR Rahman classic, Bombay) and ‘Enna Sona’ are a big hit on YouTube already. The chemistry between its lead pair has also come up for praise. With Dharma Production as its producer, the film seems poised for a flying start. What many wouldn’t know is that OK Jaanu is a remake of 2015’s Tamil romantic drama, O Kandhal Kanmani, directed by Mani Ratnam. 

The duo expressed their excitement and love for Delhi winters and said that finally their winter clothes are being used. When asked about the change they noticed in each other after Aashiqui 2, Aditya said, “Shraddha has become very busy. She has done more films than me. So, that’s the only change in time that I noticed”. On the other hand, Shraddha said, “What I like about Aditya is his preparation of the role and the dialogues. There’s not much change in him, except for his hairstyle!” Aditya Roy Kapoor who began his acting career with side roles in London Dreams, Action Replay and Guzaarish considers himself to be lucky to share screen space with big Bollywood stars.

The multi-talented Shraddha Kapoor has proved her mettle in every film. When asked about her idea of live-in-relationship, she answered “I am  living with my family and I enjoy spending time with them but if I get someone in my life with whom I could think of spending my life with, then I might go for the live-in- relationship”. She will also be seen in Half Girlfriend and Haseena: The Queen of Mumbai. 

The music of the film is already a hit among the audience and the chartbusters. With a new age version of the iconic song ‘Humma’, Shraddha said “I was very young when the original song came and at that time I used to dance on the number in front of the mirror. We cannot recreate the magic which the original song did but we tried our best to at least match with it bit. I am really glad that people like the song.”

The film which is a remake of Mani Ratnam’s Tamil hit has its dialogues written by Gulzar, 

and music by A R Rahman. 

Shraddha and Aditya, who had a major success together in 2013’s Aashiqui 2, are cast in the roles originally played by South stars Dulquer Salmaan and Nithya Menen. 

Adi and Tara are a young couple who move in together in Mumbai, marking time until called up by their respective careers. OK Jaanu, like OK Kanmani, ponders on the theme of modern vs. traditional values. Tara and Adi are headed, respectively, to Paris and USA for a long time. So, while they are waiting to hear about their future, they live together in an apartment they rent from an older couple played by – Naseeruddin Shah and Leela Samson, who reprises her role from OK Kanmani. To Naseer’s character falls the burden of counselling Adi and Tara when the inevitable happens – their no-strings-attached relationship must end when it’s time to leave for foreign shores, or must it?

OK Jaanu’s soundtrack has generated major interest in the film, particularly ‘The Humma Song’ – A R Rahman re-used some of the music of OK Kanmani for the Hindi version and added two new ones. One of these is the remix of ‘Humma Humma’, Rahman’s chartbuster from Mani Ratnam’s 1995 film Bombay, which he has allowed rapper Badshah to rework into ‘The Humma Song’. The song itself has been given a mixed reception but the video, featuring Shraddha and Aditya dancing on a bed (like Manisha Koirala and Arvind Swamy in the original), has been a hit. ‘Parandhu Sella Vaa,’ the OK Kanmani song that the remix replaces in OK Jaanu, also featured Dulquer Salmaan and Nithya Menen dancing on and around their bed.

“We have heard he (Mani Ratnam) has seen the film. He is the co-producer, so he would have seen the film and he has loved it. We are looking forward to see him praise us in person,” said actor Aditya Roy Kapoor.  “It was nice to see Dulquer tweet about our trailer (of Ok Jaanu). We haven’t met Dulquer and Mani sir (Mani Ratnam). We have been trying to meet him but he is out of Mumbai. The schedules have not matched. We are not lucky enough to meet him,” he said. 

The 31-year-old Fitoor actor says he is aware of the comparisons being drawn between Ok Jaanu and Ok Kanmani. “When a remake is loved you know there will be comparisons. But you can’t lose sleep over it. One just has to make the film with the best of their abilities and the reason why it is made again is because it has been loved so much,” he said.

“It (remake) gives us confidence more than pressure as the screenplay has been appreciated. You don’t get to taste the waters before for every film except remakes,” added actor, Shraddha Kapoor. In the film, Aditya and his co-star Shraddha will be seen as a young couple in a live-in relationship based in Mumbai, and when the actor was asked if he would ever opt for it, he quips, “I have not done it before...so, I can’t speak about the experience. If I am in a relationship with someone if..I feel I want to live with that person for a while, I don’t see any reason why it can be a negative thing.” 

Aditya thinks live-in relationship helps one in understanding and getting closer to the person he/she is with. Sometimes it also ends the relationship quicker than it getting dragged on for a longer time. So, it quickens the process either ways,” he adds. The VJ-turned-actor insists the film is dealing with the subject without being preachy about it. “It is neither damning either side as it is not saying marriage is a bad thing. It (film) has an older couple with a very successful marriage and then you have this couple they are in live-in. The film is not just about live-in relationships alone. You are belittling it by saying it is just about that,” he added. The Shaad Ali directed movie also features Naseeruddin Shah and Leela Samson.