On the write lines

Kanika Dhillon is the real haseena behind Haseen Dillruba and Phir Aayi Haseen Dillruba. Only unlike the femme fatale of her movies, she wields a pen. Indeed, writing a sequel of a hugely loved film is easier said than done.

She, also the co-producer of recently released Netflix thriller Phir Aayi Haseen Dillruba, has found the responsibility of pleasing the fans of characters of the prequel, not just Rani and Vishu, but, more importantly, the invisible author Dinesh Pandit, doubly onerous. And if you are wondering who is Dinesh Pandit? Well, he is as much her ‘alter ego’ as a tribute to Hindi pulp fiction writers like Ved Prakash Sharma and Surendra Mohan Pathak. She says, “Pulp fiction writers really know the pulse of their audiences and offer you a window into real India.” The beauty of ‘becoming’ Dinesh Pandit for her lies in, “I need not follow a structured narrative. I can defy all logic. Writing pulp is like dancing with the beast.”

For someone who studied at St Stephen’s College, New Delhi, and at the London School of Economics, she enjoyed reading Hindi pulp fiction writers as much as James Hadley Chase and Sidney Sheldon. She says, “I grew up in Amritsar. I may have studied at premier institutions, but I am as rooted in my soil.” If her hometown figured in her career defining movie Manmarziyaan, it also cemented her creative partnership with her frequent collaborator Taapsee Pannu, for whom she has written in no less than five movies. Together, she laughs, “We call ourselves ‘Sardarni & Company’. We are headstrong women who know and speak their minds. When I am writing for her, I know I can push the buttons.”

Interestingly, when she writes the second draft of her films, she clearly has actors in her mind and taps into their strengths. “It’s important to know which actor is playing what character so the synergy can happen.” And that’s why she takes pride in etching out some memorable parts for her actors, be it Sara Ali Khan in Kedarnath, Abhishek Bachchan in Manmarziyaan, Kangana Ranaut in Judgmentall Hai Kya, and Sunny Kaushal in Phir Aayi Haseen Dillruba.

As a woman writer, she is not compelled to paint women in certain hues; in her world she can be a seductress, an adulterer, a flawed sassy being. The only woman she would not care to write is, “A helpless one who doesn’t have the agency of choice. Or even if I were to, it would be as a cautionary tale.” In fact, Kanika is perturbed by the rigid way in which we are defining feminism. “Our understanding of it is not inclusive and leaves out women from the heartland. They may not have any glass ceilings to break, but their voice has to be factored in.”

If back in time she defended Sandeep Vanga Reddy’s Kabir Singh, today she sees no reason to pan Animal either. She counter-questions, “What is the problem with the wife’s character? She marries the man she wants to, walks out of the marriage when it becomes an ordeal. It would be a concern if she is depicted as subservient and yet an ideal. She has all the choices in the world…. she may have chosen wrongly. But then there is cause and effect, as it is for Rani in Haseen Dillruba.”

Talking of man-woman relationship, her equation with her husband Himanshu Sharma, also a noted writer, is as exciting as can be. She shares, “Our friends often tell us; put a camera in your house and you will have a ready sitcom.” They both love to have the last word, tell stories and indeed there are many she is dying to tell. With Do Patti, starring Kajol and Kriti Sanon, she turns a full-fledged producer. Kanika’s Katha Productions gives her the privilege and power to write the kind of stories that she wants to. For this beauty with brains, life is not made by chance but right choices.

No unsavoury tales to tell

Rumour mill may have deluded you into believing that stars often dictate terms and try to change the narrative, but Kanika Dhillon begs to differ, or, at least, has no personal unsavoury tales to tell. She says, “I have worked with the biggest stars, but they have never interfered. Once they know they are in safe hands, they let you do your job.”