Pune Highway Team Interview: India has so many stories waiting to be told

New Indian Express

13-05-2025

The trailer of Rahul DaCunha and Bugs Bhargava's upcoming murder-mystery Pune Highway chooses to not reveal much. It features a frenzied, musical repetition of four words, Hansi (Laughter), Dosti (Friendship), Khoon (Murder) and Kaun (Who) combined with visuals of the main characters—all packaged under two minutes. At a time when trailers are often accused of laying bare the entire film, the makers of Pune Highway make sure to just give an enticing glimpse into its world. It was Rahul and Bugs' advertising experience that made them go for a crisper cut. 'Our film is made in such a way that if anything is revealed, it will ruin the experience. So, we decided to cut a trailer that only gives an essence of the film,' says Bugs, known for directing thrillers like Barot House (2019) and Nail Polish (2021).
Pune Highway is adapted from a play of the same name, originally written by Rahul, where Bugs played one of the characters. It was in 2006 that Bugs first suggested Rahul to make it into a film. Then, what took twenty years? 'Rahul making up his mind,' Bugs says with a laugh. Rahul, who is making his debut as a director, admits that he was scared of the medium initially. With the rise of OTT platforms, he found it easier to make the film. 'Streaming platforms don't seem as intimidating. It gives a feeling that my kind of film will eventually find a place somewhere instead of just being sent to festivals,' he reasons, adding that they eventually decided to release it in theatres for the experience it carries. Initially, when Rahul started thinking of adapting the play, he dabbled with the thought of setting the film in one room. However, he decided to break that continuum and visualise it differently for the screen. 'We have retained the core idea of the play. However big it has been shot, it still feels that the film was born from a personalisation of the play,' Rahul says.
The film stars Jim Sarbh, Amit Sadh, Anuvab Pal, Manjari Fadnnis, Ketaki Narayan, Sudeep Modak, Swapnil Ajgaonkar and Rajit Kapur in pivotal roles. Jim, apart from his stint in films, has been part of various plays too. The actor feels that the approach slightly changes when acting for the two mediums. 'It is a matter of volume. Acting in a huge theatre with 2,000 seats, there are certain movements that need to be stretched to engage people all the way in the back. However, doing the same in front of a camera in a close-up shot would look obscene,' he says.
Jim also feels that the way everyone reacts to a performance is subjective. He shares an anecdote when he performed a play by 'being' in the moment and 'feeling' every note deeply, yet it wasn't enough. 'I left the stage thinking that the director would praise me for it. But, instead the director comes over and is like, 'Why are you ruining my play?'', Jim shares, contrasting it with some other days when he would not really be feeling in-tune with his character and just go back to muscle memory to perform. 'On such days, the director will come to you and be like, 'The best show you've ever done was today'', he says. 'So, this emphasis on 'what I feel inside while performing' is sometimes not necessary.'
The actor recently also ventured into production as he backed two regional films that went on to receive international acclaim. One of them, the Marathi film, Sabar Bonda (Cactus Pears), won the World Cinema Dramatic Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival 2025 and the other one being a Bengali film, Baksho Bondi, starring Tillotama Shome, which premiered at Berlin Film Festival. His decision to support these projects stems from his belief in the diversity of stories in India. 'I think there are so many interesting stories just waiting to be told from all over the country. The more we explore these kinds of stories, the happier we will all be,' he says. Will that also make us better as an industry? 'I don't think it's a question of better or worse. You should just try to help films that you want to see. So, this is something that I want to see. It's just that simple,' he concludes.