The Aamir Khan Effect: How Katti Batti Was Transformed

A still from Katti Batti.

"Aamir and the Katti Batti story started almost a year ago. I went and narrated the script to him after which he suggested one very important change," he said

Katti Batti director Nikhil Advani said that superstar Aamir Khan suggested one modification in the script which worked wonders for the film.

Addressing a press conference during the shooting of a song for the movie, Nikhil said, "Aamir and the Katti Batti story started almost a year ago. I went and narrated the script to him. After listening to the script, he suggested one very important change in the script, which according to me changed the entire film," he said.

"When I recently met him at the success party of PK, he said that people liked the trailer a lot, 'So can I see the film?' I said, 'Of course, it'd be my honour' and he came and saw the film."
"Cinema is changing with us. Films are showing what young people are doing, clubbing going to pubs. The society is moving forward and so is cinema," said Rachit. Tushali observed that today, films have become much more casual and "chiller" compared to what was released a decade ago. "Movies, apart from the usual romantic themes, are being made. There are a lot of movies on themes of college life and we can connect to them," she said.
One of the dramatic changes in popular entertainment has been the rise of the heroine, and young women haven't missed this. They do, however, remain cautious about it. "Women have been portrayed as a having a docile personality over the years. That is changing," said Aditi. "Today, films in which strong-minded women take the initiative are no longer art films. Piku, Queen, Mary Kom, all had women at their centre and were loved, but what kind of impact they have, remains to be seen. You'll see a man go to the theatres and appreciate a film on women empowerment and come back home and treat his woman like shit. The influence is limited, the mindset needs to change.
Some, like Prakhar, are of the belief that these changes in Indian cinema are purely cosmetic and irrelevant because the movies don't reflect reality. "Bollywood has managed to change the script of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge with minor variations and has kept selling it to us. I don't think we are even close to engaging with modern concepts," he said.
And yet, week after week, millions of Indians flock to theatres, gaze adoringly at the love stories enacted on big screen, and let those images and soundtracks fill their dreams. At least in the world of popular Indian cinema, love does indeed make the world go round.
While preaching love at first sight is not the exclusive domain of Bollywood love stories, these are very one-dimensional depictions of love and this in turn defines romance for the audience in ways that are more about spectacle than anything else. "The idea that comes across in young guys, who think they are in love, is that they can give their 100 percent and get the girl," explained Rachit. "I'll go after the girl, propose to her in the middle of the market and impress her. That's what they think, when actually they end up harassing and embarrassing the girl."