Rolling out comedy

Director Sangeeth Sivan is back with another Hindi comedy Yamla Pagla Deewana 2, with the Deol men in the lead roles.

Sangeeth Sivan

Sangeeth Sivan grew up in Thiruvananthapuram watching Hindi films such as Sholay and Chupke Chupke . He loved Dharmendra in both those films and marvelled at how at ease the dashing actor was in both action and comedy roles. Years later, he is delighted that he has actually directed a film featuring Dharmendra. And that film, Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 , which also stars Dharmendra’s sons Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol in the lead, opened in cinemas across the country last week.

Sangeeth, whom most Malayalis still know as the director of the 1992 Mohanlal-Jagathy Sreekumar-starrer Yodha , though he has directed several others Malayalam films such as Nirnayam and Gandharvam , has also helmed over half-a-dozen films in Bollywood, including the hit comedies Kya Kool Hai Hum and Apna Sapna Money Money.

“

Kya Kool Hai Hum (2005) was my breakthrough film in Mumbai. While it was an adult comedy,

Apna Sapna Money Money , was a wholesome entertainer,” says Sangeeth. One of the highlights of

Apna Sapna Money Money was Riteish Deshmukh’s performance.

He, however, resisted the temptation to make a sequel to

Apna Sapna…, “because I couldn’t come up with a good enough plot. Then, Dharamendra asked me whether I would be interested to a direct a sequel to Yamla Pagla Deewana . He was also the producer of the film. I liked the concept and that was how Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 took off,” he adds.

The sequel, he adds, is an out-and-out comedy and has been shot in the United Kingdom (U.K.). “Dharmendra and Bobby play incorrigible conmen, while Sunny acts a law abiding and conservative expatriate living in the U.K. Neha Sharma and Australian model Kristina Akheeva are the heroines. Anupam Kher, Annu Kapoor and Johnny Lever are also part of the cast,” says Sangeeth.

Yodha

Yodha

Nirnayam He had recently produced a Malayalam film

Idiots , starring Asif Ali.

About directing a film in Malayalam, Sangeeth says, there might not be one immediately. “I want to do a Malayalam film, yes, but it will not be just another film; it should have substance. With Malayalam cinema changing fast and for the better, this is not a bad time to return home,” he says.