Aamne saamne with the Samantas

Ashim did you choose to name your film Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai because it evokes memories of the hit song from your fatherrsquos Kati Patang Ashim We wanted a romantic title and this title suits our film the best In fact the title was with someone else and we requested him to part with it Ashim and Aditya at Aradhana films in Andheri You are the first in three generations of Samantas to venture into acting Aditya Donrsquot you want to direct like your dad and granddad Aditya I contemplated being a director but I found playing different characters more interesting I also like the stardom associated with acting Directors are famous but they are not at the forefront Ashim My father and I had seen him act in a play and my father had told me ldquoHe is fantastic Why are you looking out for another actorrdquo Ashim did you ever try your hand at acting I didnrsquot have the looks I was too short I never considered acting as a career What kind of a romance is Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai Ashim It is a passionate romance centred around two hotelier families who are enemies Their children born on the same day get attracted to each other when they go to Poland for further studies When Adityarsquos character comes to know that the girl he loves is his enemyrsquos daughter he tries to avoid her but is intractably drawn to her and she faces a similar dilemma Young lovers facing family enmities did wonders in the rsquo80s Love Story Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak But is the theme relevant today Ashim Yes Today films like Dabangg and Rowdy Rathore are doing well but our filmmakers will make romantic movies again Yash Chopra is also making a romantic film with Shah Rukh Khan After Yash Chopra and my films you can expect 3040 romantic films Bobby Maine Pyaar Kiya Ek Duuje Ke Liye and Betaab had the same story but audiences saw them at least 56 times Each film was unique in the way it was narrated on screen Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai is directed by Shree Narayan Singh who has been my assistant and editor for a decade and he has done a fine job Remakes are all the rage today Ashim why didnrsquot you launch Aditya in a remake of Aradhana which was your dadrsquos biggest blockbuster Ashim I did think about it but the film is still very fresh in peoplersquos minds today He would have been compared to Rajesh Khanna I didnrsquot want his first film to be compared to an iconic film If the two of you could direct or act in a remake of a Shakti Samanta film which one would you choose Ashim Aradhana Amanush and China Town Aditya I would love to act in China Town and Howrah Bridge I would love to try action now What was your relationship like with Shakti Samanta Aditya I was very close to him but when he was making films I was quite young Yet I would observe his interactions with actors Ashim I would accompany my father to music recordings Coincidentally Kashmir Ki Kali Saawan Ki Ghata and Aradhana were shot during my summer vacations Subconsciously I picked up a lot of things from my dad He was my best friend Music was always another hero in Shakti Samantarsquos films The sound of music has changed completely do you think Anu Malik will be able to keep pace with it Ashim Music is the first hero in a love story A love story inspires music directors and lyricists I went to Anu Malik and told him that I needed an excellent music score for the launch of my sonrsquos career I told him to become my partner and that we would share the profits in the music Aditya At the music launch we started playing songs from our classics like Aradhana followed by the songs of Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai Those present enjoyed both equally The music is at par with the music of my grandfatherrsquos films How did you get hold of the late Anand Bakshirsquos lyrics Ashim A TV channel interviewed me about Anand Bakshi It prompted me to call Mr Bakshirsquos son and ask him if he had any of Bakshijirsquos unused songs He said he had quite a few I found the song Pyaar karna na tha pyaar karna pada suited my situation to the T Are you still in touch with your dadrsquos favourite actors Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore Ashim I am in constant touch with Sharmilaji and Rajesh Khanna I had narrated a script to Rajesh Khanna when he was well My father was very keen on making it and Rajesh Khanna was very excited and even expressed a desire to be involved with the screenplay and be present at the song recordings mdash just like he used to be present while my dad recorded songs with RD Burman Bollywood News Service