Imtiaz Ali
Imtiaz Ali
Imtiaz Aliis an Indian film director and writer. He started his career with writing and directing television shows. He directed shows like Imtehaan, Naina and Kurukshetra. In 2005 he made his directorial debut with Socha Na Tha, that did not do well. Then he earned critical and commercial success for his direction of Jab We Met. Love Aaj Kaland Rockstarmade him known amongst youngsters. His next films were Highwayand Tamasha...
NationalityIndian
ProfessionDirector
Date of Birth16 June 1971
CountryIndia
Usually, you lose interest in a story beyond a certain point. But with Highway, there was something very subtle, yet something very influential. I intended Highway to be the first film that I ever made. Didnt happen.
Anything I wanted to do and achieve has not been influential in my life, but my failures have.
I was interested in theatre and media and came to Mumbai to get a job. I imagined that the film industry would be a white building with producers sitting in different rooms, and you could walk in and meet them, and they would interview you and select you.
I enjoy looking beyond the obvious and look at the stories happening all around me - you kind of formulate things in your mind and get excited about them.
I was called to audition for a play when I was very young, following which I continued to act as well as write and direct. When I moved to Delhi and joined Hindu College, theatre became a very big part of my life.
I want all my films to look distinctly different, like some other directors I admire. But in a way, I can't really take myself completely out of the movies I make.
If a person wants to enjoy attention, he will create situations to get it.
I'm a big foodie. Hyderabadi cuisine is amazing, and the kind of mutton dishes available at some restaurants in the Old City is incredible.
I just write characters, and somehow they happen to be a boy and a girl. When the story is put together, and their characters interwoven, they do end up together somehow.
I feel whatever an actor does on screen is something the actor 'does,' and what the director can do is to tell, talk or instruct. So, all the credit for an actor's performance goes to the actor alone.
Coming from a middle class background, travel was always considered a luxury then, even if it meant going to a relative's place or a religious shrine.
I'm not the 'look at me' kind of a person. I do not like showing off in public or written about.
I enjoy scenes in films, which do not have the pressure of the story so much... and it flows. I've tried to go in that direction.
When you write a story, it just flows and you don't control it. It's subconscious.