'Vivek-Diya are fresh, not a repetitive pair'

After Shool and Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega, E Niwas is ready with his third directorial venture, Dum, which releases on January 24.

He claims he is not nervous about this Vivek Oberoi-Diya Mirza starrer. "My film is all about inner resolve. My inner resolve tells me Dum will be appreciated by classes and masses," he tells Vickey Lalwani:

Were you satisfied with the box-office performance of Shool and Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega?

Certainly not. I was happy with the critical acclaim, but I would have preferred many more cash registers ringing.

So you have taken care to see that you are third time lucky?

Yes. Dum is a slick and fast commercial film. Above all, it is engrossing. It will keep the audience on the edge of their seat.

Tell us more about Dum.

It has nothing to do with breathing exercises or smoking. *smiles*

It is about mental strength and will power. Young Uday Shinde (Vivek Oberoi) dreams of becoming a cop and serving his country. He faces many obstacles like Shankar (Atul Kulkarni), a psychotic cop who is very bitter. No one dares interfere in his evil motives, except Uday. So Shankar is thirsty for Uday's blood.

Kaveri (Diya Mirza), who plays a television host, is Uday's love interest. Since he is on a dangerous path, he tries his best to turn her away. But Kaveri waits till he accomplishes his mission.

How did the film happen?

I got a call from the Cineyug office out of the blue, saying they had bought the rights of a Tamil film [Dhill, directed by Dharani, starring Vikram] and they wanted me to remake it in Hindi. They [the Moranis] were coming back after five years into production. Raja Hindustani was their last production. I liked the Tamil film very much.

This was about a year ago, when Ram Gopal Varma's Company was being made. I saw Vivek Oberoi on the sets and thought he was a volcano of talent. I told Cineyug about him. They did not even call him before deciding for themselves; they simply went by my judgment.

Diya was going through a low phase in her career -- Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein and Deewanapan had flopped. I had seen those films. I think there's more to this girl than just beauty. Also, I know her personally.

Besides, Vivek-Diya is a fresh pair, not one of the usual repetitive ones.

Atul was brilliant in Hey! Ram and Chandni Bar. I could not think of anyone else as the negative cop.

How close is Dum to its Tamil version?

Close, but not a carbon copy. I had to make some changes to suit the Hindi audience. We increased the pace of the film and spruced up the look.

Dum was shot in about 100 days, mostly in Mumbai. We went to Mahabaleshwar and Jaisalmer for two songs.

Aren't you worried that you are releasing this film at a time when nothing is going right for Bollywood?

Yes, films are flopping left, right and centre. But Dum will be an exception. I have dum *smiles*

Bipasha Basu was supposed to do the item number Babuji, now done by Yana Gupta. Why did she walk out of the film?

I had only considered Bipasha as one of the candidates for that number. I met her and talked about it. I had even met Shilpa Shetty, Raveena Tandon, Isha Koppikar and Meghna Reddy.

I decided against Shilpa because she had already done a raunchy number for me in Shool. I did not take Raveena, Bipasha and Isha because there was no freshness in them when it came to item numbers -- they have done these before.

I decided on Yana because my friends told me she was a happening model. What matters is the end product. Yana has performed the number magnificently. She looks really hot. I don't regret not selecting the others.

What happened to Sitam?

It has been re-titled Tum. It stars Jackie Shroff, Saif Ali Khan, Aftab Shivdasani and Preeti Jhangiani. It is a love story with an element of fear.

And the Metalight Productions venture with Arjun Rampal?

That has not started yet. But I am doing a film with Arjun. I am also doing a film with Bobby Deol.

You started a film with Fardeen Khan soon after Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega but it was shelved...

No, but I had decided to do a film with Fardeen. I wanted six months with him. But he was more focused on his father's [Feroz Khan] film Jaanasheen, and my shooting kept getting postponed.

How long could I wait? I was annoyed and dropped the idea of working with him on that project.

I may do the same film with either Arjun or Bobby, though nothing is final.

But it all depends on my guru Ram Gopal Varma. If he wants me to direct a film for him, which is likely in the near future, my ideas can wait.