We were taken aback: Manoj Bajpayee, director Ritesh Shah on Ghooskhor Pandat row

Director Ritesh Shah and actor Manoj Bajpayee said they were taken aback by the controversy over the original title of their upcoming thriller Gajab Raat, but stressed that upsetting or alienating anyone was never their intention. The film, now titled Gajab Raat, was earlier called Ghooskhor Pandat.Members of the Brahmin community alleged that the original title hurt their sentiments, and the matter later reached the courts. The makers subsequently changed the title but decided against altering the completed film or its story.In an exclusive conversation with India Today ahead of the film’s release, Shah said the team had not intended to cause hurt and was surprised by the response.“Initially, the reaction is always one of innocence because the intention is never to cause any hurt. So, obviously, you are taken aback. You wonder, ‘Was I thoughtless?’ And you begin questioning yourself,” he said. Shah said the makers could either defend their decision or recognise that the title had offended some people.“Then you realise there are two ways of looking at it. Should I get into an articulate argument, or should I acknowledge that people have been hurt? As artists, I feel that hurt should immediately be acknowledged. Why should it interfere with the pleasure of their viewing experience?” Shah said. The director said the makers responded promptly and began considering alternative titles that would remain true to the story.“We immediately took cognisance of it. Manoj made an immediate statement, Neeraj ji (Pandey) made an immediate statement, and we decided to look at the other titles we had and find something equally appropriate. Because in trying to address the hurt feelings of certain people, you cannot harm the story either. You need to find something that is even more appropriate,” he explained.Reiterating that the controversy was unintentional, Shah said, “We were a little taken aback because that was never the intention. And it is never our intention as filmmakers or actors. We want more and more people to love us, enjoy our work, and have a communication of ideas. To upset or alienate anyone is never our intention.”He also acknowledged the possibility of an oversight by the team. “Even if you look at it commercially, what do we want? Numbers. And what do numbers mean? People. So we would never do anything intentionally to hurt anyone. There might have been an oversight, which has now been corrected.” No changes to the filmAsked whether the controversy had forced the makers to alter the film, Shah said the story remained untouched.“No, not at all. Because, you see, the story is such that if they had more context, even they would not have objected to the title. So it was just a title correction, based on the story we already had. We had already completed the film and were ready with it. So there was no correction or change made to the film itself,” Ritesh said.Several titles were already under discussionBajpayee said the team had considered several alternative names even before the controversy began.“I must tell you all that we had four other titles with us, and we kept changing them in our minds. I mean, among ourselves, we were discussing different titles. We had another title, and then we had the title that became quite controversial. Apart from these two, we had other possible titles as well,” he shared.Taking a lighter approach, Bajpayee added, “I think that tomorrow, if somebody says, ‘The Raat is not Gajab,’ no problem! The night is not amazing. We will come up with another title.”Asked whether the team had expected such strong objections to the original title, Shah said, “No. As I said, artists are very innocent by nature. We think that this is our work, and people are with us, so they will understand. Sometimes, people don’t understand.”The row over Ghooskhor Pandat began earlier this year. Objections were raised over the use of the word ‘Pandat’ alongside a term associated with corruption. The dispute subsequently reached the courts, after which the makers withdrew the original title.Directed by Ritesh Shah and produced by Neeraj Pandey, Gajab Raat also stars Divya Dutta, Saqib Saleem and Shraddha Das. The thriller is scheduled to premiere on Netflix on October 23.- Ends