‘Was like going to film school’: 7 Dogs directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah on working with Salman Khan

Working with Salman Khan on their international action spectacle 7 Dogs was like attending a film school for directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah who say the Indian superstar brought his instinctive understanding of cinema to the project and made even brief moments on screen memorableThe MoroccanBelgian filmmaking duo best known for Bad Boys for Life and Bad Boys Ride or Die have assembled a starstudded global cast for the Saudi Arabian movie led by Egyptian actors Ahmed Ezz and Karim Abdel Aziz as an Interpol officer and a criminal figure who team up against a transnational criminal networkSalman and fellow Indian star Sanjay Dutt have pivotal roles in the movie besides renowned Italian actor Monica Bellucci and Hollywoods Giancarlo Esposito Adil said Salman brought effortless charisma to the sets reminding him of Hollywood star Will Smith the lead actor of Bad Boys film franchiseBilall Fallah and Adil El ArbiTheres a lot of charisma You get the same feeling when Will Smith is on set Its like Oh thats what a superstar looks like From the moment you put the camera on him something magical happens El Arbi told PTI in an interview Salman he said was also extremely experienced and could immediately understand a scene before adding his own touch to itHe knows right away what the scene is And he will do it perfectly And then he will create he will give you so much more And that is like going to film school Youre really witnessing cinema happening before your eyes he said 7 Dogs is essentially about Interpol officer Khalid AlAzzazi Ahmed Ezz who captures Ghali Abu Dawood Karim Abdel Aziz a senior figure linked to the criminal organisation known as 7 DogsWhen the syndicate begins trafficking a synthetic drug called Pink Lady Khalid is forced to work with Ghali to dismantle the network Their mission brings them into conflict with regional and international figures connected to the organization reads the official loglineSalman known for blockbusters such as Bajrangi Bhaijaan Sultan and Tiger Zinda Hai essays the role of Johar an exInterpol officer who becomes an unlikely ally of the duo in their mission Bilall said the superstars contribution went beyond the screenplay as he often came up with oneliners during the shootDuring editing when I was looking at the takes there was always something new that he put in that I didnt even realize when I was on set He just makes a scene memorable Even if its just a short moment he creates something that is pure cinema he added Their experience with Sanjay the star of blockbusters such as Munna Bhai MBBS Agneepath and Khalnayak was equally memorableThe veteran star plays Ranjeet the Indian member of the Seven Dogs alliance responsible for distributing Pink Lady in India Adil said they recently started watching the actors latest film the twopart spy saga Dhurandhar which became one of the Indian cinemas highest grossing movies of all timeWe started to watch the Dhurandhar series because everybodys talking about what a huge success it is he said Hes Sanjay so experienced And the action movies are so complex in Bollywood and so elaborate even more than Hollywood he said Adil said Sanjays warmth and sense of humour made the collaboration enjoyable while Bilall said he developed a close bond with the actor during his time in MumbaiHes just like a brother When I was in Mumbai with him I just fell in love He showed and took me to the authentic places and I just fell in love And I just want to keep on going back to India and just keep on making movies And hopefully we can create a movie or series together Sanjay is just unbelievably creative and is a real artist Bilall added The duos love for Indian cinema and its stars predates 7 DogsThe first Indian movie they ever watched was Shah Rukh Khans My Name Is Khan a film that resonated with them because of its themes of identity Islamophobia in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks As Moroccans and Muslims living in Europe the filmmakers said the films story had a particular resonance for themIt was such an important movie it was after 911 For us being Moroccans being Muslim in Europe that story really resonated with us a lot Adil said Bilall said he continued to discover Indian cinema and was struck by its breadth of creativity which he feels remains underexposed internationally Its such a cool discovery to see all these gems that Ive not been seeing yet And it just inspires me to see how much creativity there is in Indian cinema that hasnt really been seen in the world he said The duo said they would like to collaborate with more Indian stars especially Shah RukhIt would be great to work with him It would be awesome to make a movie with Will Smith and SRK Bilall said The filmmakers hope audiences experience 7 Dogs as a largescale theatrical action adventure while also connecting with its characters and humourI hope they love the characters travel with them and have all these adventures and obviously be entertained but also laugh because theres a lot of comedy also in the movie Adil said Bilall said he hopes to make a followup if audiences like the film The beauty of this movie is also that you have all the best players from around the world from different cinemas all in one movie a global movie that I think has a lot to offer he said 7 Dogs releases in Indian theatres in Hindi and English on August 21This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever