Karan Razdan on new directorial: How is a film titled 'Hindutva' controversial?

MUMBAI: Filmmaker-writer Karan Razdan says his new film Hindutva will make people aware about the true meaning of Hindu ideology, which is about love, sacrifice and brotherhood.

Razdan unveiled the title of his new film in the presence of Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat at his official residence in Dehradun on Monday, while addressing the media along with singer Daler Mehndi, and the film's cast members Ashish Sharma, Sonarika Bhadoria, Ankit Raj, Anup Jalota and Deepika Chikhalia.

Asked if he feels the title of the film could create controversy, he replied: "When I talked about this film's title, few people got excited. Some of them told me that I am making a film on a very controversial subject. I asked them is Christianity or Judaism controversial? If not, then how is 'Hindutva' controversial?"

"Hindutva's another name is love, brotherhood and goodwill among people. I feel few people have unnecessarily connected Hindutva with controversy but through our film, we are trying to clear the image of Hindutva," he added.

"In our country, some people are followers of Lord Ram, some are followers of Lord Krishna and some are followers of Lord Shiva. In our film, there is a scene where some guys discuss that we have very chilled way of life and religion in our country because on Mondays, we seeks blessings of Lord Shiva, on Thursdays we seek blessing of Sai Baba, and on Saturdays we seek blessing of Lord Hanuman," Razdan said.

"Whatever I have learned about Hindutva as an ideology, I understand only one thing -- there is nothing bigger than spreading love in this world. Love is the only thing which will help you to connect with God and that's what we are trying to show in the film," he added.

The filmmaker opened up about the content of his film, too. "This film revolves around childhood friendship, love triangle and youth politics. It talks about polarisation in society. I feel a filmmaker is like a mirror that shows realities of society to people. People often ask me if there is a certain problem in society, what is the solution? Our film talks about problems and tries to give solutions. At the end of the film, people will know that the true meaning of Hindutva is love, sacrifice and goodwill."

Razdan has directed films such as Girlfriend (2004), Hawas (2004) and Souten: The Other Woman (2006) in the past.

A major portion of Hindutva will be shot in Uttarakhand. The makers of the film are eyeing a release date in 2021.