Director Mohit Suri has revealed that Saiyaara, his upcoming romantic drama starring Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda, was initially conceptualized as Aashiqui 3. The filmmaker shared that the idea was first pitched to Bhushan Kumar and Mukesh Bhatt as a potential installment in the Aashiqui franchise but eventually evolved into a standalone project.
“To be honest, they had pitched me to come up with a draft for Aashiqui 3 in the beginning. At that time, Mukesh ji and Bhushan were on better terms. I know, they have a very sensitive relationship. They are friends at times, and then they are not. So, I thought of this idea for Aashiqui 3, which is now Saiyaara. But they were in the hurry and wanted to announce, which is something I was not comfortable with. I prefer in having a script first and then make an announcement. But to sum it up, yes, this idea was originally for Aashiqui 3,” Suri said to Pinkvilla.
Luv Ranjan Urged Him To Write A Love Story
Suri credited filmmaker Luv Ranjan for encouraging him to revisit the romance genre. “I largely credit Luv Ranjan to push me to write a love story. He motivated me to write this script, and then simultaneously, I saw some action films not doing as well as expected. Then I saw The Romantics, it spoke about the similar times that existed in the 80s. Then I developed that idea into screenplay completely,” he said.
The filmmaker, known for romantic hits like Aashiqui 2 and Ek Villain, added that the timing and inspiration aligned for him to write Saiyaara, especially after noticing a shift in audience response to big-budget action films.
Aashiqui 2 Was An original idea, Not A Franchise Film At First
Suri further explained that even Aashiqui 2, the 2013 musical blockbuster, wasn’t originally developed as part of a franchise. “Aashiqui 2 was also not written as Aashiqui 2. I was dying to make a love story after Murder 2. It was first supposed to have big stars, then Emraan Hashmi, but nobody wanted to do a love story with Vishesh at that time, including my brother and hero of the company, Emraan. But I was willing to make it no matter what, and that’s when Bhushan came to me and said why don’t you spin this script into Aashiqui 2. And then, Mukesh ji gave me a deal of having a higher budget with the title Aashiqui. So I agreed, and made the film,” he shared.
Now, with Saiyaara, Mohit Suri returns to the genre that has defined much of his filmography. The project marks the acting debut of Ahaan Panday, while Aneet Padda joins him as the female lead.
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