Hu tu tu, a film by Gulzar, produced by Dhirajlal Shah.

Beh minute aapsho,” begins Dhirajlal (Dhirubhai) Shah of Time Audio in his earthy Gujarati. Like any producer on the eve of his film’s opening, Shah is, so to speak, eating, drinking, sleeping Hu Tu Tu which releases on January 22 in Ahmedabad. And in these two minutes, he tackles distributors, territories, the phone calls, the paper work and the hangers-on at his Vile Parle office in Mumbai. “‘We are releasing the film ourselves and you can well imagine the hajaar kaam involved,” he muses when he realises that his beh minute is stretching a bit too far.

Nevertheless, like any businessman, he considers all these rigmaroles a part of his job. A job which, he feels, has been done very well. There is Sunil Shetty, Tabu and Nana Patekar essaying very novel kinds of roles. The music especially ‘Chhai chhap chhai’ and ‘Ghapla hai bhai’ have become popular. There has also been a controversy over the lyrics of the ‘Ghapla hai bhai’ number which had a line ‘LIC mein ghapla’, now changed to ‘bheema mein ghapla.’ Plus, there is the inimitable Gulzar who wields the directorial baton. Reasons enough to go watch the film.

“Hu Tu Tu has turned out even better than what I had expected,” observes Shah. “It reflects what is happening in our country today. The film is entirely Gulzarsaab’s idea. Originally it was to be produced by a Delhi-based producer but when the budget turned out to be a tidy sum, my good friend Sunil Shetty requested Gulzarsaab to rope me in as the producer.”

The countdown has already begun. Gulzar's 'Hu Tu Tu' is all set for a release. And the raves have not stopped coming in ever since. Recently, a truckload of scribes was carted to the scenic Alibaug where a catchy tune was being picturised on the lead pair Sunil Shetty and Tabu. The song is slated to hit the hot charts very soon and rightfully so. Sunil Shetty, sporting a false moustache and a smile, looked absolutely at ease with the heavy-duty song picturisation, while Gulzar's fave rave Tabu was grinning away from ear-to-ear.

It was a mix of awe for Gulzar and the film’s great script that made Shah look upon Hu Tu Tu as a good business proposition. “I first met Gulzarsaab in January 1998. His approach is unique. He told me the plot in a nutshell and I agreed instantly because the script was powerful. What matters most in a film is the script; it is the backbone which can make or mar the film.”

And, now, hardly a year later the film is complete and ready for release. Despite the current reign of mushy films, he is hopeful that the political satire Hu Tu Tu will do well. “There is a love story but the backdrop is different. The film is very hard-hitting and is very relevant to our times. Crime, corruption, politics are intertwined. Gulzarsaab puts forth the fact that there is nothing wrong with out country or the people, it is only a couple of politicians who are ruining the country to suit their own vested interests.”

Shah looks upon film production like any other business. “I am not into films to change society, to experiment or to preach and sermonise, but to make beh paisa,” he confesses. In the past, he has produced films like Vijaypath, Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi and Krishna besides presenting a couple of more films under his banner. Like all Kutchi boys, or at least most of them, he started off by running his father, Nanjibhai’s provision store which was later converted into an electronics shop. Cashing in on the video boom in the early 80s, he switched over to the video cassette business.” Remember the Esquire label, that was mine,” he says and claims to be the first to release pre-recorded video cassettes in the country. With the decline of the video craze he moved onto Time Audio and Video. And after having sold video and audio cassettes of films, producing films seemed a natural corollary. As a result Time Films International was floated.

With a couple of more productions in the pipeline including International Khiladi which stars Akshay Kumar, Twinkle and Ek Tha Dil, Ek Thi Dhadkan with an all-new cast, Shah looks forward to producing several more films. Maybe in the near future he may produce and direct his own films. “That would be the next big step for me. I have a couple of ideas let’s see how things work out. See, I am a self-made man. I don’t have much education. But life is a great teacher. I observe, experiment and learn. My business acumen guides me.” Shah, admittedly, likes to dabble with only those films and scripts which can sell.

“I am after all a businessman,” he says, “Hu ahiya beh paisa banavvaj avyo chu!”

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