Karan, Zoya, Dibakar and Anurag open to each others' ideas: 'Ghost Stories' producer

Mumbai: Producer Ashi Dua says having filmmakers like Karan Johar, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap and Dibakar Banerjee direct horror stories was an exciting ride.

The anthology film will be the third in the series for Ashi, who previously backed the filmmakers’ “Bombay Talkies” and “Lust Stories”.

“We are very excited for ‘Ghost Stories’. There’ll be four very different ghost stories. The idea of ghost is so different for each filmmaker. For some people, horror stories are the screaming shouting kind, for some it’s in the thriller aspect, for some it’s subtle or superstitious.

“It’ll have four completely different take on ghosts, some even comic. It’ll be these four filmmakers take on how they perceive ghost and the stories they want to tell,” Ashi told PTI.

The producer said the idea of making an anthology around ghosts occurred when they were promoting “Lust Stories” and all four directors were “scared and excited at the same time.”

“They’re exploring a genre which is new to them. They’re a bit nervous and excited and so are we to see what they’ve actually done. As an audience, I’m sure it’ll be exciting to watch Karan Johar doing a horror film or a Zoya doing one. So this is exciting for the audience as well as the filmmakers,” she added.

All the four filmmakers belong to a different stream of cinema and Ashi said bringing them together for the third time was an organic process as their bond has strengthened over the years.

“We are all in sync with each other. Over the years when you’re doing the same thing again and again, you completely understand each other’s mindsets. Earlier I’d panic about timelines or people not delivering.

“Now I know that everyone has a different style of shooting and they shoot at their own pace. Now I don’t panic the way I used to earlier. You eventually get the drill.” She said having the four industry giants together in one room is like being in a film school.

“All four filmmakers are friends and that helps. They are open to each other’s ideas, concepts and are so collaborative. They keep pushing each other. When we view the four films together to decide which film should be first, second, third, fourth, they are so nice about it.

“I feel like I’m in film school because they’re all so different from each other, I learn so much when I’m around them.