Bollywood A-lister Varun Dhawan’s next film is the keenly anticipated Prime Video film “Bawaal,” from Nitesh Tiwari, director of India’s all-time highest grosser “Dangal.”
Dhawan plays a charming, vainglorious and image-conscious history teacher who gains redemption via profound realizations stemming from his study of WWII and from his new bride, portrayed by Janhvi Kapoor. The film shuttles between Lucknow in northern India and Western Europe.
Dhawan and Kapoor read for their parts separately with Tiwari, deliberately. “It’s like yin and yang, we’re like two opposites that attract and form a team. But we really did go about this film as a team. There was a little method approach to it, like in the first half of the film, when my character is not very nice to hers. When we were shooting in Lucknow, I didn’t interact much with her, I was a little cold to her,” Dhawan told Variety. As the film progresses, their relationship thaws.
As prep for the film, Dhawan and Kapoor visited sites associated with WWII, including the Anne Frank museum, the Normandy beaches where the D-Day landings took place, and the Auschwitz memorial. “That was something which was eye opening, and very terrifying to see what happened over there. So that helped a lot,” Dhawan said.
“We shot on the actual beach in Normandy where the Allied forces had collided with the German forces. That was also crazy to be able to shoot in these historic sites – one thing is to read about it and another thing is to experience it in person,” Dhawan said.
The production submitted the “Bawaal” script to the Auschwitz memorial, Dhawan said. “They were happy that we are in fact, doing something like that and letting people know about the kinds of atrocities that had happened and educating this part of the world [South Asia] on that because I also truly believe that what happened should never be forgotten. Because it helps. It serves genuinely as a lesson of what how things can go into a very negative manner if they’re not combated with truth and honesty,” Dhawan said.
“Bawaal,” produced by Sajid Nadiadwala’s banner Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment in collaboration with Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and Nitesh Tiwari’s Earthsky Pictures, is bypassing a theatrical release and going direct-to-digital on Prime Video. “You have to make sure that you have a good film because here [streaming] I don’t think a bad film can survive, to be honest. You have to be a very good film to thrive, because it’s so democratic. The way things function here the word-of-mouth plays in even more,” Dhawan said.
“The whole idea was to pitch this film on a global level, our producer Sajid Nadiadwala had that vision. Him releasing it himself, I don’t think he thought he can do that. But with partners like Amazon, it became much easier,” Dhawan said.
Dhawan’s creature comedy “Bhediya,” directed by Amar Kaushik, won acclaim when it was released last year. The sequel is being written and is due at the end of 2024. The actor also leads the cast of the Indian instalment of the Russo Bros’ “Citadel,” directed by renowned creator duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK (together known as Raj & DK).
In August, Dhawan commences his 18th film, as yet untitled, which will be directed by Atlee, whose next film is Shah Rukh Khan’s “Jawan.” “It has humor, romance, family, thrills, mass action, I think Atlee’s cinema is a genre in itself,” Dhawan said.
The actor is also rumored to have cameos in Kaushik’s horror-comedy sequel “Stree 2” (“Bhediya” is part of the “Stree” universe) and in “Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani,” directed by Karan Johar in whose “Student of the Year” he made his acting debut. “Both filmmakers are very dear to me, so you’ll have to watch out for them,” Dhawan said, neither confirming nor denying the rumors.
“Bawaal” streams from July 21.
