Science fiction, romance and comedy, Raduaa sequel is one ambitious outing

Mona

Trust Punjabis to be where nobody is and nobody can… The latest to join this bandwagon is Raduaa Returns. A sci-fi movie, it has a significant romantic track, add to it Punjab’s staple comedy and you get the sequel to the 2018 film Raduaa (Radio). Towering over the team Raduaa Returns was The Great Khali, who plays Mohammad Khan, during its trailer launch on Monday at Mohali.

Now know the size of the man; while the rest get a high chair, his is low lying to fit all in one frame! “Imagine how difficult it is to get him in the film,” says Gurpreet Ghuggi. Setting the scene at the launch the World Heavyweight Champion, the seven-feet tall giant, had writer-director, five-feet something Nav Bajwa, opposite him. One slight twack and Nav turned red. “During the shoot, I had to use a gel to soothe my pain whenever he touched me!” shared Nav.

Khali was offered Hindi, English and Punjabi films, but was not comfortable. Credit to Nav for making him debut with a Punjabi film! “I get way too many offers, but I am always hesitant to do a film, but I loved Nav’s story and how despite being such a star he is so humble,” shared Khali, who enjoyed the shooting process and being on the sets. “Film hit jaani hai,” he said.

The sequel has come six years later; if the script took time, the VFX even more so. BN Sharma, who plays HCL, shared, “The scenes were shot on a green screen and it took huge coordination. It was so heartening to see the scene turn into a fantasy on the monitor.”

Paramveer Singh, who wasn’t part of the first outing, joined the cast in the sequel. He said, “Huge effort has been put in the special effects. There would be people working on 30-40 terminals here, about the same number in Mumbai and also in South India. Immaculate coordination has turned Punjabi sci-fi film a reality.”

The two actresses, Mahira Sharma and Naman Hanjra, play Rajkumari Ratna and AI robot KT, respectively. In her second Punjabi film, Mahira has dubbed for her character and is happy. Keeping interaction limited in Punjabi, she said, “I did not want to go wrong with my Punjabi dialogues and be trolled for it. Please watch our film, as it is one brave effort for Punjabi cinema.”

Naman opened up on playing a character like never before. There is a running sequence for which she wore four-inch heel on a treadmill facing a farrata fan. “My character is futuristic and I wore lenses to stay in the look. The wind displaced my lenses as soon as I started running, turning my eyes red. It was very challenging but I enjoyed it all.”

Gurpreet Ghuggi has seen Punjabi cinema making strides. He shared, “Punjabi films were big on action. Even the posters carried credit for maar-dhad. Maan (Gurdas) saab turned the tide in favour of love and family dramas, followed by comedy that reigned for decades. Period dramas next, I am telling you that at least 10 producers are going to do science fiction now.”

Amongst those present at the launch, Jaswant Rathore, who plays Dr Surinder Shetty, did fabulous mimicry of his idol Suniel Shetty. Taking due permission from Khali, he also did a bit on him, getting compliments from the man who was the first runner-up of Bigg Boss 4. Jaswant joked how Khali was the real winner for Shweta Tiwari won Rs 1 crore, while Khali ate eggs worth Rs1.5 crore!

(The film hits the theatres on November 22)