In an interview with BrandEquity, Hrithik Roshan spoke at length about what it takes to get a story greenlit under HRX Films. He also explained why, for him, the final seal of approval always lies in the director’s complete acceptance of the script.
Hrithik Roshan followed the HRX Films rule book: “If you ignore the director you’re a fool!”; Aamir Khan explains the secret ingredients behind the global success of RRR and China: “Honesty, conviction, pure vision”
Talking about his banner, Hrithik Roshan said, “HRX Films is a division of Filmcraft because that’s the main school from where I learned. So, HRX Films operates under Filmcraft and it’s the sweet spot between the business thinking of that school or my father’s school and the emotion-packed, nuanced content and HRX Films is creating that sweet spot that brings the two together.”
He explained, “Some of the big commercial films I have done are a communal experience, where the whole theater applauds. But then there are some films which you watch alone, and you feel satiated, you cry, and it changes you from the inside. It’s cathartic and that’s cathartic, I would say, I never get caught up in the extreme commercial bombast of a film. That cathartic trip is always missed. So, HRX Films is bringing these two together. Trying to bring that sweetness to the place.”
Hrithik credits this to his cousin Ishaan, who identifies “names, scripts, directors” and filters them in the office before they reach Hrithik Roshan. He revealed, “At times I don’t like the script, but he loves it. So, he waits 6-8 months and brings it back to me. By that time, I have changed a bit in my life and I am actually in a better position to recognize the beauty of the script.”
After this Hrithik talked openly about the production Storm And praised director Ajitpal Singh of tab bar fame, “When I met Ajit, I fell in love with him and his creative mind. I, honestly, told him, ‘Whatever you create I am with you.'”
On the question of creative control, Hrithik’s stance is clear: “If you think you can incorporate your genius ideas into the director’s film without his approval then you are a fool… If you try to push something, sideline him or force him to accept something that he does not feel fits into his film, then you are a fool. You are foolish and you are ruining yourself because only the director will know how the whole painting will look and whether that color or that Is stroke right or wrong?”
Finally, Hrithik argued that Indian content is becoming increasingly global, from the reach of Raj Kapoor and Mithun Chakraborty in Russia to the performance of Aamir Khan’s films in China and the worldwide wave of RRR. He pointed to the common ingredient in all these films – “There is a component of honesty, conviction and a vision that is unadulterated. They are very true to that one director’s vision.”
