Key Points

Mohit said: “I wouldn’t have made Saiyaara if I hadn’t found formidable actors like Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda.”

“I was honestly thinking about making something else before my path crossed with Yash Raj Films that was looking for a young love story and was grooming Ahaan and Aneet to star in such a film.”

He shared that when a love story is made with debutants, they have to be convincing as actors to pull off the emotional layers and depths “that makes the love story feel believable for people.”

Suri said: “No one expects newcomers to have Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt level of acting but they need to be actors who hold their own on screen. I didn’t come across debutants with acting calibre, I didn’t find the vulnerability in the young crop and I had given up on the idea of making this script with debutants.”

The director shared that he had pivoted it to have faces that sell from a commerce point of view.

“Somehow, the writing process of Saiyaara took time and I met YRF and then I saw the auditions of Ahaan and Aneet and decided to spend time with them to get convinced about their acting, intellectual and emotional depth.”

Suri was blown away that there are two absolutely fresh new actors who have it in them to act, to surrender to a vision.

“It’s a rarity today honestly and it’s so refreshing to make a love story with newcomers! I’m glad I found these two because I’m making this story as it was meant to be made.”

YRF CEO, Akshaye Widhani, who is producing Saiyaara shared: “At YRF, we have a legacy of making love stories that have connected and stayed in people’s hearts for a long, long time. So, this collaboration with Mohit Suri, who loves this genre as much as we do, was always meant to happen. We were looking to tell a real love story that connects to today’s youth by showing how deep and true their feelings, emotions and commitments are and we are thrilled to have found Saiyaara.”

He added that the film is an intense love story with debutants that has not been made in a long, long time.

Saiyaara is set to release on July 18.

- IANS