In this special chat Purab Kohli talks with Subhash K Jha about his first film, which released 23 years ago.
Purab, it’s 23 years since you made your big screen debut.
23 years of Bas Yun Hi. Wow, I didn’t even realize it was 23 years of Bas Yun Hi. Thank you so much for remembering. Feels like a long time ago, my first film actually. So it’s 23 years of having my first film release. And also, if I remember correctly, I think Bas Yun Hi was probably one of the first films that was released during the new birth of the multiplex cinema.
Bas Yun Hi was a very unusual debut?
The memories of doing the film were just fantastic because it was shooting all in Bangalore. It was my first sort of solid outdoor kind of shoot with like-minded people and we had such a great time doing it. Of course, the film didn’t do well, and that’s the sadness of Bas Yun Hi.
I feel it would have worked better now.
Yeah probably. I think it was quite a unique film for its time, a slice-of-life film, a break away from the big 1,500-seater fillers of masala cinema. And it was apt for catering to the smaller cinemas, which was the multiplexes that just sort of come into motion at that time. So it was one of the first few films that released when the multiplexes were opening up. And I think our premiere was at FAME AdLabs. And we had a lovely party over there and everybody was so excited about it. And well, that’s all a long time ago. And yeah, I think Bas Yun Hi had it released now. They should re-release it. I think some films are re-releasing now. So, with not knowing what really works in the film industry, I think one should try and seek a re-release of Bas Yun Hi and see if that works. Well, anyway, thank you so much for remembering.
