Anurag Basu: Idea of starting Jagga again gives me the chills

Four years after Jagga Jasoos tanked at the box office, director Anurag Basu says OTT platforms have approached him to make web series on Ranbir-starrer

Jagga Jasoos (2017) remains Anurag Basu’s most creatively satisfying work. That the audience did not buy into his charming, almost fantastical world is a different story altogether. Thankfully, with the advent of digital entertainment, the show business and audience preferences have changed in the four years since the Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif-starrer bombed at the box office. Would the adventures of Kapoor’s wide-eyed Jagga Bagchi interest the viewers today? Some think so.

Basu says that over the past two years, he has fielded offers from some streaming giants to convert Jagga Jasoos into a series. “I wouldn’t name the platforms, but we had offers of developing it into a series. But if it didn’t work in theatres, how do we know it will work on OTT? Pritam is excited about the idea, and wants us to start working on it. However, I am in a strange space [regarding it]. When you do something with so much love and it doesn’t work, you don’t want to try it again. The idea of starting Jagga all over again is enough to give me the chills,” says the filmmaker.

Also Read: Shilpa Shetty: Anurag Basu is like a mischievous kid on the set

Anurag Basu. Pic/Getty Images

Basu and Kapoor had jointly set up Picture Shuru Productions to back the adventure comedy. Even if he entertains the idea of taking the story ahead as a web series, the director notes that his leading man’s busy date diary will be a roadblock. “We keep talking about working together again, but that won’t happen anytime soon. Ranbir is extremely busy right now,” he says. 

For now, the filmmaker is working on a yet-unannounced episodic project for a major OTT player — his second outing on the web after the Netflix film, Ludo. The film recently won him the Best Director award at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. “[Ludo was released] in 35 languages and 200 countries; this kind of reach wouldn’t be possible in a theatrical [run]. OTT gives more strength to filmmakers. I believe the audience knows its mind, and it’s not correct to offer them shallow works. People have become more cinema-literate in the lockdown. My fear of whether [a project] will work or not, has now reduced considerably.” 

Also Read: Ludo 2 script is ready, says Anurag Basu

"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!