Boy meets woman, they fall in love and reside fortunately ever after. That’s how most love tales finish. However what if there was a love story with a number of endings? Rithvik Dhanjani knew that director Harsh Dedhia was on to one thing when he approached him for Misplaced and Present in Singapore. Whereas it sees the actor try a romantic-comedy after lengthy, the explanation why he gave his nod was that it’s an interactive movie.
“There have been interactive films prior to now, however they have been principally thrillers. There haven’t been any within the romantic-comedy area,” says Dhanjani. The MXPlayer film revolves round Dhanjani’s Dhruv, an introverted solo traveller, and Apoorva Arora’s Sitara, an adventure-seeking woman whose paths cross throughout a visit. In the beginning of the narrative, the viewers can determine whose journey they want to comply with—Dhruv or Sitara. “It offers the viewers an immersive and interactive expertise. I jumped [when I heard] the thought. [As a viewer], I might comply with each their journeys since you need to know the opposite facet of the story as properly,” he shares.
In 2018, Netflix had tried the interactive methodology with Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. The movie took social media by storm. Whereas the thought is participating in concept, the execution calls for a whole lot of work. Dhanjani agrees, stating, “We needed to shoot either side of the tales. Not simply that, we additionally shot all the opposite choices resulting in completely different outcomes.”
Rithvik Dhanjani and Apoorva Arora
Level out that it’s a good approach to improve viewership, particularly if the viewers explores every ending, and the actor says, “If it really works, it’s a nice technique. We’re shifting in the direction of interactive content material, particularly with the brand new AI expertise. It’s a approach to up the movie-watching expertise. This might very properly be the long run. When it was provided to me, I questioned how tech-friendly it might be. May individuals come again to the story and decide different choices? [After we shot], I noticed that it’s user-friendly.”
Whereas the actor was assured that the group would deal with any technical difficulties which may crop up, his major concern was whether or not the viewers would settle for the format in a rom-com. “Thrillers hold you on the sting. That’s why you’re intrigued and select the a number of [tracks] to see how every ends. A romantic movie is about feelings greater than something. However Harsh defined to me how [the format] would work fantastically.”
Considered one of tv’s hottest actors, Dhanjani had tried his hand at Bollywood with Jo Hum Chahein (2011) however didn’t handle to depart a mark. Virtually 12 years and two brief movies later, he’s blissful to discover a film once more. Taking part in the introverted Dhruv, who’s nothing like his off-screen persona, didn’t come straightforward to him. He shares, “Normally, I’m the one taking the lead and being proactive. I don’t know how you can take a backseat. So, I genuinely didn’t know [how to approach the character.] Harsh helped me so much in that regard. I’ve all the time been a director’s actor.”