Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic

Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic starring Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherjee is one of the Bollywood biggies this summer and it marks the return of director Kunal Kohli after back-to-back blockbusters, Hum Tum (2004) and Fanaa (2006).

With Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, Kohli turns producer but it hasn't been an easy journey to achieve such a status in the industry.

Kohli started as a film critic and hosted a show called Chalo Cinema on Zee TV before he graduated to directing music videos.

After spending almost a decade working only on the small screen, he got his first big break when Aditya Chopra offered him the chance to direct Mujhse Dosti Karoge (2002) with Hrithik Roshan, Kareena Kapoor and Mukherjee. The film flopped and many had written off Kohli.

Luckily, Chopra's faith wasn't rattled and gave him a second chance with Hum Tum. The film was a critical and commercial success, bringing Kohli the Filmfare Best Director Award. Next came Fanaa, starring Aamir Khan and Kajol. The film smashed box office records.

Now Kohli intends to score a hat trick of blockbusters with Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic. Kohli spoke to tabloid! in an exclusive interview:

What's your new film, Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, all about?

It's about a little love and a little magic but the magic here is not the magician's magic, it's the magic of life. The story revolves around four orphans who are angry with Saif's character in the film.

Rani enters the lives of these troubled kids in order to unite them with Saif. It is an entertaining film with a subtle message.

How did the concept of casting Rani Mukherjee as an angel come to you?

I first wrote the script and the characters and then later chose to cast each character in the film. I didn't think I would cast Rani as an angel but once the angel's character was written, Rani was chosen.

She's highly talented actress. I wanted Rani to play a role which she has not played before. Moreover I had developed a fine tuning with Rani after working with her in Hum Tum.

You have teamed up Rani and Saif once again after the success of Hum Tum. How has the experience been the second time around?

It was interesting to work with both of them in Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic. Their roles are completely different from Hum Tum.

It's a completely new film, not similar to what they have done before. They love doing challenging roles and have proved it with their versatile performances.

I think they have both grown tremendously and it shows in their performance in the film. Hum Tum fetched both Rani and Saif awards for their performances and hopefully their performances in this film will also win them accolades.

Is Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic inspired by Mary Poppins and Hum Hain Rahi Pyaar Ke?

My story is entirely different from both. Just because there are orphans in the film, it doesn't necessarily mean that my movie is a copy.

My basic idea about the film is that when we are going through a rough patch in our lives, all of us are looking for some magic that will make a difference. Here the magic comes through an angel in the film. So it's entirely a different concept.

How easy was it to work with four kids in the film?

I think the most difficult part was to cast these four kids. I screen tested almost 300 before zeroing in on these four kids.

Since my film is set in Delhi, I required kids with strong north Indian accent and that is why I was picky about the kids. Once we chose the kids, we gave them rehearsals and trained them.

I already worked with a child (Master Ali Haji) in Fanaa, so that experience came in handy during this film. Overall, it was a delight working with the kids who shared a very good rapport with Saif and Rani and had lots of fun on the film's set.

What made you move into production with this movie?

Well, I think it's a natural progression for any director to become a producer. It's thanks to Aditya [Chopra], who encouraged me to turn to producing with Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic.

It feels good to have a film that is produced and directed under my name as you get a sense of ownership -which doesn't mean that I didn't own my earlier films. It is probably a special feeling to turn producer-director.