July 1, 2011, was when Indian cinema made people experienced dark comedy like never before. Director Abhinay Deo took us into the not-so-polished worlds of Arup, Nitin and Tashi (Vir Das, Kunaal Roy Kapur and Imran Khan) in Delhi Belly and brought something novel to the comedy landscape. 10 years later, Delhi Belly is fresh in the minds of the audience as the film still manages to tickle the funny bone of viewers. 

Today, as Delhi Belly completes 10 years, PeepingMoon.com got in touch with Abhinay, who made his directorial debut with the dark comedy. Talking to PeepingMoon.com, Abhinay, the son of Marathi film personalities Ramesh and Seema Deo, said he has an appetite for dark comedies and humour that is understated. He further shared why Delhi Belly became a cult film that resonated with the youth. The director went on to reveal that Aamir Khan showed interest in playing the character of Nitin (Kunaal) and also volunteered to do an audition. For the unversed, Aamir was the producer of Delhi Belly and did a song titled I Hate You Like I Love You. 

Excerpts from the interview:

What's the meaning of Delhi Belly?

The title was given by Akshat Verma, the writer of the film. The British or Westerners, who came to India, would get loose motions whenever they would eat some street food or drink some wrong water. They had kept a simpler way of explaining loose motions and called it 'Delhi Belly'. That is the reason why in the film also Kunaal’s character Nitin, who eats the bad chicken, gets 'Delhi Belly' and that’s how the entire film happens.   

Black comedies in Bollywood are rare. Were you sceptical about doing Delhi Belly as your first directorial?

No, not at all. I love risky subjects. I love the humour that is understated and not plasticky. I love dark humour. When I read the script of Delhi Belly, I thought it was perfect for me. Many people told me that the film is risky and whether I really want to do it. I wasn’t sceptical at all.   

Do you feel Delhi Belly became a cult film because it was ahead of its time and not the typical Bollywood masala film?

When we started making Delhi Belly, we never thought it will become a cult film. I think there are multiple reasons why the film attained a cult status. One of the reasons is it broke taboos that were there in Indian cinema. At that point, Indian cinema was very rounded and never edgy. We put edge and used the language college-going youth always spoke. We presented reality without glamourising. It was a fresh way of looking at humour. Unlike many films in India, this film had no message. It was meant for people to go to theatres and laugh. 

The casting was pretty unusual. How did you bring them on board?

I always wanted the right actor and not a star for Delhi Belly. That’s because it was a different film and I wanted people who understood it. Secondly, I didn’t want the audience to expect anything from the cast. Normally, hum filmon ke poster dekhke hi idea aa jaata hai ki yeh kya hai. I didn’t want that. I wanted a question mark in people’s minds. Since it was an ensemble cast, we never wanted to focus only on one character. We kept on auditioning to find the right actor. 

Aamir Khan produced Delhi Belly. How did you convince him to come on board?

Akshat sent the script to Aamir and his wife Kiran Rao read it. When he heard her laughing, he was curious to read the script. Aamir loved it and he called me to ask whether I wanted to direct the film. When I read the script, I thought it is the best in the world. So, I didn't convince Aamir, but he brought me on board. 

I knew Aamir before Delhi Belly. My brother Ajinkya Deo knew Aamir through Ashutosh Gowariker. So, since he met Aamir on a couple of occasions, I was also introduced to him. But, we never spoke or discussed work. 

Being the son of acclaimed Marathi film personalities- Ramesh and Seema Deo, did you feel any pressure while directing Delhi Belly, which was an off-beat film?

I didn’t feel any pressure. As I said, I was always drawn towards dark humour. In my advertising career, I have done crazy work so I never felt awkward.  

Many people compared Kaalakaandi to Delhi Belly....

I don’t think it was right for people to compare both the films. Akshat, the writer of Delhi Belly, wrote and directed Kaalakaandi. It is unfair to compare the films as they are very different in terms of story, idea and timing. 

Any anecdote about Delhi Belly that the world is yet to know?

Aamir Khan wanted to play Kunaal Roy Kapur’s character, Nitin. I wanted to cast him but at that time, he was training for Ghajini. For that, he had undergone a major physical change. Kunaal’s character requirements were different so it didn’t work out at that time. Aamir was even ready to audition for that role. 

Do you see Delhi Belly being made into a web show?

That is an interesting idea but we haven’t thought about it so far. One thing is sure that I don’t want to make a commercial endeavour out of Delhi Belly. It was a film I made at a point and it did what it did. I don’t want to break the image of Delhi Belly by recreating it in a web show. As far as the second part of Delhi Belly is considered, we will attempt it. But something like a web show, I don’t know.   

Was Ranbir Kapoor was approached for Delhi Belly?

Yes, it is true that Ranbir Kapoor was approached for Delhi Belly. Many other actors were also approached and due to multiple reasons, it didn’t work out.   

Will Delhi Belly be relevant if it is remade now?

I don’t think it has reached the stage where the film has faded away from people’s memory. They still remember everything about the film. It is too early to be remade. 

If Delhi Belly 2 is planned, will you go for the same cast or choose different actors?

If at all we plan to make Delhi Belly 2, we’ll go with the same cast. The three boys made the film iconic. But let’s see. It completely depends on the script.