Kanika Dhillon on the various motifs in Haseen Dillruba: Ode to Hindi pulp fiction, Ganges for all moods, and food for thriller-Entertainment News , Firstpost

Vinil Mathew’s romantic thriller Haseen Dillruba released last week to a widely polarised response from critics. While the ensuing debate has remained largely limited to whether the makers inadvertently endorsed violence against women, other themes that made the film more rooted and nuanced could never make it to the discourse as prominently.

Firstpost got in touch with Kanika Dhillon, credited for the story, screenplay, and dialogues, to get a sense of how she built the world of Haseen Dillruba, but we could not help but also touch upon the surround sound. Edited excerpts from the interaction below:

Haseen Dillruba largely hinges on the protagonist’s penchant for pulpy crime-romance novels. What do you think makes those novels unputdownable?

Thank you! Many people have been reaching out saying how this is an ode to the Hindi pulp crime world. We have some fascinating work done there by writers like Surendra Mohan Pathak and Ved Prakash Sharma, Om Prakash Sharma, and many more. This generation has not read that pulp. Or (they are) not aware of those paperbacks hanging on railway stations. Because once you dig in, these master storytellers of Hindi pulp don’t let you get away. They hold you captive with the emotional and situational landscape. The bold strokes in which the stories are told make you want to surrender entirely. And that’s why they are unputdownable. My character Dinesh Pandit is a tribute to such legends, and the protagonist’s devotion to Dinesh Pandit is a nod to the readers who have loved and enjoyed Hindi pulp.

For people living in small towns, these novels serve as windows to the world as well as an outlet to their suppressed feelings. Have novels like these also helped your growth as a writer or a woman?

You know, there is an inherent snobbery in the way we view English vis a vis the Hindi discourse. I wanted to smash that and turn it on its head, and celebrate Hindi pulp. It’s rooted in our milieu. It’s our language. It’s our own version of Sidney Sheldons. But we have not been able to celebrate it as much as we celebrate the English authors. We somehow don’t apply the context to celebrate Hindi pulp, which always is considered jarring and unpolished. Novels like these are a peek into the world of the repressed and suppressed because as a society, we largely are that — even now! And yes, reading them, finding some home truths or just enjoying a wild ride of a story does impact you as a reader or as a person. And I feel that too.

The setting of Jwalapur, a fictional small town by the Ganges is fascinating. How do you think those balconies overlooking gurgling water complemented the characters and plot, literally and symbolically?

The Ganges is symbolic of a giant force of nature — flowing gently while you brave your storms as a human big or small. Sometimes, you go deep down under, and sometimes you stay afloat — the continuity of the Ganges next to the dramatic lives of these characters witnesses their pain, their love, their betrayal, and at key points, even offers refuge and solace. The scene where Rishu takes a dip, when his life is in shambles, or even at a point when he needs an escape, it’s there. Like a force of nature. Holding our secrets, and most importantly, continuing to flow at its own pace.

A chunk of meat and a crushed sugarcane are used to denote rage and lust respectively. A peacemaking between the husband and wife takes place during a tea-making session. Is Haseen Dillruba as much a food film as a bloody love story?

Hahahaha! Many love stories start with food and end also with food! In the Indian context, we love our food. In fact, a woman’s identity sometimes is tied to how well can she rustle up the masalas in the kitchen and make a wonder dish for her husband and in-laws. So yes, a nod to the great Indian kitchen as being the prized trophy in the middle of household politics and many a times playing a not-so-happy mistress between a loved-up couple! Because my murder weapon also comes from the kitchen. It also is a symbol of the lust Neel (Harsdhvardhan Rane) and Rani (Taapsee Pannu) shared. It’s also the symbol of trespassing a boundary — the kitchen. Food and the mutton are deeply interwoven in this story in more ways than one, and I need a lot more time to discuss that!

Rani Kashyap is introduced as a woman who loves to dress in sleeveless blouses and saris with hand-painted flowers. We see her as someone craving sexual fulfilment. Were you skeptical that a patriarchal audience like ours will not root for her when they need to?

The audiences are far more intelligent than what we take them to be. The audiences have loved it. The skepticism came from other quarters — educated feminists and some experts. I respect their opinion.

They have every right to view it with their lens, as I have every right to present it with mine. Just that I don’t give them a position of authority to pass a judgment on this — it’s an opinion — a welcome opinion like many others.

In fact, recently I retweeted a tweet from Dr Shruti Kapoor, who is the founder of sayfty.com. It’s an organisation that educates and empowers women against violence, and she is amongst the 100 most influential people in gender politics. She spoke about Haseen Dillruba, and did not see it as problematic when viewed in context. Now, that’s an opinion to consider as well — don’t you think so?

Coming to the audience, they have loved the girl who wants sexual fulfilment in marriage because perhaps they have understood and identified the themes of dysfunctional arranged marriages — sexual fulfilment, redemption, and sacrifice — at a sub-conscious level better than a theorised, almost taking-a-high-moral-ground expert.

So let’s agree to disagree with them on this one. We are all on the same side. We all want to smash patriarchy so all good there. And I am grateful to the audiences who enjoyed this wild ride and enjoyed the film for what it is! Flawed or not so flawed, there was a lot of love from them, and I am grateful!

In our last interview, we discussed your male characters at length. Rishu certainly takes the cake on that front. Did you see him as someone who is proud of how simple he is, and takes revenge from those who try to rob him of that simplicity?

I have always been fascinated by simple introvert wallflowers — underconfident, easily dismissed — because many of them carry a bomb of repressed rage. I wanted to write Rishu with steep sharp arcs and sharp turnarounds — just like bursting a bubble filled with decades of complexes, rejections, and the just-not-good-enough syndrome.

How would this guy love? How would this guy be when betrayed? How would this guy exact revenge? Can he ever forgive? How far will he go for his redemption Rishu is a lot of that — a lot of contradictions and a lot of love — all jumbled together like a mass of electric wires. Unfortunately, when you put him in the wrong socket, he brings the whole tower down! Vikrant Massey has done exactly that with his performance, and I am thrilled that people are loving him as Rishu!

What can you tell us about Raksha Bandhan, your next big film with Akshay Kumar in the lead? How have you challenged yourself as a writer there?

It’s still being shot, and I usually prefer my directors to start the conversations on the new upcoming films. So whenever Mr Aanand L Rai is ready to share more of his film with the audiences and the world, I shall happily answer more questions on that. But since it’s the first time I am co-writing with Himanshu (Sharma, husband), it has been a different but great experience.

Haseen Dillruba is streaming on Netflix India.

(Also read: Vikrant Massey, Taapsee Pannu, Harshvardhan Rane on why one can’t pick sides in their bloody love story Haseen Dillruba)