Filmmaker Vishal Furia is currently awaiting the release of his next film Forensic. It stars Vikrant Massey and Radhika Apte and is an adaptation of the 2020 Malayalam film of the same name. The Free Press Journal caught up with the director for an exclusive chat.
Vishal, who is aware of the north vs south debate and the transition of films into a ‘pan-India concept’, believes that there is no harm in doing remakes. He explains, “My own film Lapachhapi was remade into Chhorii. Sometimes due to regional or language limitations, a good story remains only to a certain audience of a certain state, and that is unfair for that story. So, if somebody wants to tell that story to a larger audience through a better collaboration, I think it only elevates the original story and gives it more respect. I myself have no problem doing remakes. Of course, the storytelling can be improved sometimes because when you’re telling the remake, you know you want to cater to a larger audience that is subjected to a good quality of content nowadays, more so because of the OTT platforms. And when I have collaborators like Vikrant and Radhika, I think this story will reach a larger audience, and it will only give respect to the original story.”
When asked if he has tweaked anything for the Hindi adaptation of Forensic, Vishal asserts that he has maintained the soul of the original film and only accentuated the horror in some of the facts, which are quite chilling. “Also, Vikrant and Radhika’s characters are quite different in this film, they’ve brought a lot on board, and that itself makes it unique. Besides that, the story also has been changed quite a bit. So, viewers who have seen and loved the original will find a lot of new elements in this version. It will almost be like a fresh watch for them,” he says.
The film’s first few glimpses, as revealed in its trailer and teaser, show children as corpses, given that the narrative is built around a serial killer who murders young girls on their birthday. Vishal admits that it is a sensitive topic and has to be dealt with care. However, the social aspects needed to be shown unfiltered to create awareness.
He concludes, “We have dealt with this topic with a lot of sensitivity but having said that, it is something which binds the story together, and that’s what makes it interesting and gripping. Hence, those elements or social facts had to be maintained. Of course, I am aware that children should be dealt with sensitively but also that they should be aware. I think we are too protective of them these days. Being aware only helps them become stronger human beings, and especially in these vulnerable times where everybody is so cutthroat and hateful towards each other, I think this only helps them to be more sympathetic and empathetic towards their environment.”
Forensic also stars Prachi Desai, Rohit Bose Roy and Vindu Dara Singh. It will premiere on ZEE5 on June 24.
