Lights, Camera, Action!

TANZIM PARDIWALLA CHATS WITH ANIRUDH IYER ABOUT HIS DIRECTORIAL DEBUT, AN ACTION HERO

- TANZIM PARDIWALLA

If you watch closely, a director’s debut will tell you a lot about who they are, not just as artistes but as people. An Action Hero unveils first-time feature director Anirudh Iyer as an unabashed movie buff through a series of references, meta-comedy, and an earnest study of the film industry. Led by Ayushmann Khurrana, who plays against type to portray an action hero, and Jaideep Ahlawat as a gangster on the quest for revenge, the film serves as a snarky commentary on Bollywood and the people who love and hate it. Before making his debut, Iyer already had a decade’s worth of experience behind the camera, working on films like Tanu Weds Manu and Zero, among others. His audacious debut film leaves both the critics and the audiences raving.

An Action Hero is quite the film to make a debut with. When did the concept come to you?

We started writing this during the lockdown. As an aspiring filmmaker, even when you’re assisting, you keep working on something so that one day, when your turn comes, you have that story. I’ve had five-six stories in my bank, but this one somehow felt more relevant at the time. During the lockdown, I started expanding on it with Neeraj Yadav. I narrated it to Aanand L Rai, and he said it was something he hadn’t heard before. It was a smooth process since I’ve been with the production house for a decade now.

The film comments on fan culture and the Boycott Bollywood trend