The keenly awaited thriller Ek Thi Dayaan, which stars Emraan Hashmi and Konkona Sen Sharma, is a joint production of Balaji Motion Pictures and Vishal Bhardwaj. For this film, Ekta Kapoor has added a unique clause in her contract with the entire cast and crew of Ek Thi Daayan to keep the key character’s identity a secret. The movie is a suspense thriller and Ekta does not want the suspense to be out before the release of the film. To prevent any damaging whisper campaigns the producer has introduced a confidentiality clause in her contract that forbids her cast and crew from sharing or leaking any information pertaining to the identity of the ‘daayan’ in the film. If any crew member were found guilty they will be sued for the damages.
Non-disclosure Agreements are fairly common in the industry but is the first time a production house has sought to protect a plot or character from playing spoilsports. The film’s spokesperson confirmed the development and said it was Ekta’s idea, seconded by her senior team members.
The success of any suspense thriller depends a lot on how well the crew manages to keep its key plot point or character under wraps. Recently released Aamir Khan’s Talaash, a thriller suffered after word about its supernatural elements went viral on the internet. It was a sort of eye opener for filmmakers dealing with this genre.
Evidently, there is a lot riding on this character and sources close to the producer inform that her decision was brought about by the ‘proliferation of social networking sites’ that often cause damage by encouraging users to share vital information about the plot or characters online and elsewhere. Ekta’s decision has been welcomed by a large section of the film fraternity.
In fact, Vishesh Films, which has been making suspense thrillers, is already exploring the possibility of including such a clause for their next film Murder 3. “It won’t be a bad idea,” said Mahesh Bhatt, the head honcho of the production house and added, “What Ekta has done would definitely add to the moral responsibility of the cast and crew. The legal consequences could act as a deterrent.”
Interestingly Ekta and her director Kannan Iyer have also decided to shoot the climax at the end of the schedule, closer to its April release date. “This is also a departure from the trend, since most filmmakers shoot the critical shots way beforehand,” says a source close to the film.
“Usually crucial information about the film often makes its way from the set to the social networking sites as it is shot earlier and Ekta wanted to protect her film from all possible such attacks,” adds the source further.
So now we will all have to wait and watch to get the full story when Ek Thi Daayan hits theaters on April 18, 2013.
