New Delhi: "Satyaprem Ki Katha" is a story of a "feminist husband" who is just a supporting character in his wife's fight for justice, says director Sameer Vidwans.
The romance drama, which released in theatres last month, tackles the themes of date rape and trauma through the story of an odd married couple Satyaprem and Katha, played by Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani, respectively. Vidwans said the movie aims to sensitise men to become an ally of women in tackling the patriarchal mindset of the society.
"This is a story of a feminist husband. Women have to fight for their rights because the society is quite patriarchal. And if we want to deal with a patriarchal society, then the men need to have sensitivity.
"With our film, we have given a kind of a husband who says that 'you go and become the hero, I will be the supporting character of your story'," the filmmaker told PTI in an interview.
"Satyaprem Ki Katha" has earned over Rs 100 crore in worldwide gross, and while it was appreciated for the central theme, few criticised the movie on social media for showing Aaryan's character as a man saviour.
Vidwans said everyone is entitled to their opinion.
"(But) I think the critics missed out the dialogue where Sattu says 'I will be the supporting character of your story.' He says it twice in the movie. He doesn't say that I will save you and become a hero. But he says that you have to become the hero, and I will provide the support.
"The battle has to be fought by the girl and this is what he tells her. So he is just a pillar of support for her." Advani's experience on her 2020 movie "Guilty", which tackled similar themes, came in handy when she started working on "Satyaprem Ki Katha", said the director.
"At that time, she had interacted with a lot of rape survivors. She remembered that experience when she started working on this movie. She said she could understand the thought of process of rape survivors because of her interactions with them.
"We wanted natural performance from her and she was on the same page. It could've gone into a melodramatic zone or become superficial but we avoided that. We wanted to explore the character in detail and she has done a very good job with it," Vidwans added.
The credit for the story goes to writer Karan Sharma, who had earlier collaborated with the director on his critically-acclaimed 2019 Marathi movie "Anandi Gopal" that won the National Film Award for best film on other social issues Vidwans, known for Marathi movies "Time Please", "Double Seat" and "Mala Kahich Problem Nahi", said he always wanted to foray into Hindi cinema but with a movie that will entertain people as well as give a message.
"If I can give a message through my art, then it will be even better. So when I heard the script, I realised that it checked all the boxes, that it is in Hindi, it is entertaining and has a message. There was no reason for me to say no to it." For Vidwans, the movie turned out to be a tricky gig as he didn't want to be "preachy" in his approach.
"We knew that we were dealing with a sensitive subject and hoped to give a good message. We wanted to give the message along with entertainment. In all of our decisions, whether it pertained to the treatment, casting or anything else, we ensured that we didn't deviate from our set path. We have kept the soul of the movie intact." The filmmaker said he is happy with the way "Satyaprem Ki Katha" has been received by the audiences.
"I feel good, actually great that we came out with a good subject and it has been appreciated and embraced by the viewers. It has now become a Rs 100 crore grosser which is a testament of the fact that people have liked the movie," he said.
The movie is produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and Namah Pictures. It also stars Gajraj Rao, Supriya Pathak, Rajpal Yadav, and Shikha Talsania.
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