EXCLUSIVE: Aman Gill, Gaurav Verma reveal why Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat’s ‘A’ rating didn’t scare them: “Viewers realized it’s not a typical adult film… Animal and Kabir Singh proved ‘A’ rating is no barrier”; also reveal, “Deewaniyat was called CRINGE. 7 to 10 producers in Mumbai REJECTED it”

The Diwali release, Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat, has emerged as a huge hit at the box office. The credit, of course, goes to the film’s director, Milap Zaveri, lead actors Harshvardhan Rane and Sonam Bajwa, the hit music, and producer Anshul Garg’s determination. Two more people deserve the credit – Aman Gill and Gaurav Verma. Both not only gave a strategic release to the film but also played a huge role in correctly marketing it. In an exclusive interview with Bollywood Hungama, the dynamic duo spoke about their winning strategy and also explained why the ‘A’ rating given to the film didn’t stress them out.

Aman Gill explained that an adults-only rating doesn’t mean that the film will do limited business, “Animal (2023) and Kabir Singh (2019) have proved otherwise. If you keep aside the violence in Animal and the interval scene in Kabir Singh, both were family films. While Animal did Rs. 500 crores, Kabir Singh collected close to Rs. 300 crores. ‘A’ rated is a stigma in our head because it means that it’s a film only for those above 18. It doesn’t necessarily mean sex or vulgarity. We personally didn’t feel that Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat should have gotten an ‘A’ rating. But the CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) felt that the interval block was adult. Yet, it didn’t deter viewers as they saw it as a clean film. When a film has sexual content or cuss words, that’s when the families would stay away. The family audiences had seen the trailers and songs of Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat. They realized that it’s not a typical adult film and hence, decided to go for it.”

Gaurav Verma continued, “There can be a restrictive rating, where we should encourage audiences of only a certain age to watch the film. Ours was a thematically A-rated film. The Censors had a point of view and we respect it.”

How the dynamic duo came on board

Explaining how they came on board for Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat, Aman Gill revealed, “It was not planned. I knew Milap. He told me that a brand-new producer was making the film and wanted experienced people on board. We took this film as a one-off case. Going forward, this is a service we could provide to the industry. For us, it’s not just distribution. That is the easiest part for us. We also have Deepak Upreti, who is our partner. The amount of experience we three have, we could distribute films in our sleep!”

Gaurav Verma continued, “Between the three of us, Deepak is the most experienced. He has done some 600 films. Aman and I have released around 500 films. So, the three of us have an experience of distributing some 1000 films.”

He also exulted, “While working on Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat, we realized that there was a very big vacuum in understanding what your content is, who it is made for, who you are supposed to market it to and how to release it. Meanwhile, we are running behind numbers and other films, but we are not running behind our own film! Producers focus on getting the box office number of other big films instead of focusing on what their film should ideally do. In the process, people are trying to position a film not for what it is but where it should be. That’s where the gap is and we realized it while working on the film.”

Aman Gill revealed, “There’s a big disconnect in the industry. This film was called cringe. 7 to 10 producers in Mumbai rejected it before Anshul Garg backed it. When I heard the script in April, I told them, ‘Yeh film chalegi’!”

Also Read: EXCLUSIVE: Post-release roadshows, pre-release silence: Aman Gill and Gaurav Verma’s DISRUPTIVE no-interview marketing model rewrites Bollywood’s rulebook with Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat!

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