How Akshay Kumar's 'Rustom' Ended Soni Razdan's Nanavati Dream Just Weeks Before Shoot
In the mid-2010s, veteran actress and filmmaker Soni Razdan was deeply immersed in preparing her second directorial feature. Following her 2005 debut film Nazar, which was penned by her husband Mahesh Bhatt, Razdan was forging a new creative partnership for her sophomore project titled Love Affair .
The period crime drama was being co-produced by Mahesh Bhatt's eldest daughter, Pooja Bhatt, under her Fish Eye Network banner, alongside Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series. Rather than a small-scale indie venture, Love Affair was designed as an expansive, highly polished period piece. The team had established an active pre-production hub in Ooty and assembled an exceptional ensemble cast:
While keeping the specific details confidential, Razdan noted that things simply went haywire with the budget for one reason or another. Before the producers could stabilize the financing, Tinu Suresh Desai’s mainstream crime thriller Rustom went into active development.
Starring Akshay Kumar in a fictionalized version of the Nanavati story, Rustom quickly captured the public's imagination, eventually earning Kumar a National Film Award for Best Actor. Facing a competing project with immense corporate backing, Razdan and her team realized the timing was no longer viable, leading them to quietly shelve Love Affair.
However, Razdan maintains that her shelved screenplay holds an entirely unique creative edge that has still not been brought to Indian screens.
A Unique Narrative Angle While mainstream commercial iterations like Rustom heavily romanticized or focused almost exclusively on the courtroom patriotism of the naval officer, Love Affair was structured closely around the domestic trio. Razdan's script specifically prioritized the psychological perspective of the wife, exploring the isolation, emotional breakdown, and societal fallout of a woman trapped within a historic scandal.
For the director, Love Affair isn't a dead archive item, but a piece of storytelling waiting for its perfect moment. She remains fiercely determined to revive the script, stating with absolute conviction that one day, when the legal, artistic, and financial alignments are exactly right, the film will finally make its way to the big screen.
The period crime drama was being co-produced by Mahesh Bhatt's eldest daughter, Pooja Bhatt, under her Fish Eye Network banner, alongside Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series. Rather than a small-scale indie venture, Love Affair was designed as an expansive, highly polished period piece. The team had established an active pre-production hub in Ooty and assembled an exceptional ensemble cast:
- Ali Fazal was locked in to portray the naval commander, KM Nanavati.
- Kalki Koechlin was cast as his troubled English wife, Sylvia.
- Chandan Roy Sanyal signed on to embody the iconic real-life defense lawyer, Ram Jethmalani.
- Gulshan Devaiah, Hansika Motwani, and Razdan herself were set to fill out pivotal supporting roles.
Three Weeks From the First Clapperboard
In an exclusive retrospective interaction, Razdan revealed just how close the production came to reality before collapsing behind the scenes. The team was exactly three weeks away from starting principal photography when unexpected financial disputes fundamentally compromised the foundation of the project.While keeping the specific details confidential, Razdan noted that things simply went haywire with the budget for one reason or another. Before the producers could stabilize the financing, Tinu Suresh Desai’s mainstream crime thriller Rustom went into active development.
Starring Akshay Kumar in a fictionalized version of the Nanavati story, Rustom quickly captured the public's imagination, eventually earning Kumar a National Film Award for Best Actor. Facing a competing project with immense corporate backing, Razdan and her team realized the timing was no longer viable, leading them to quietly shelve Love Affair.
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The Human Angle of a Well-Worn Trial
The historic 1959 Nanavati trial where a decorated Indian Naval Commander was tried for killing his wife's lover, marking the last case to be decided by a jury in India—has long been a magnet for Indian storytellers. It inspired RK Nayyar’s Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke (1963), Gulzar’s Vinod Khanna-starrer Achanak (1973), and PN Menon’s Malayalam drama Asthram (1983). Later, Ekta Kapoor also produced the digital legal drama The Verdict – State vs Nanavati, which interestingly cast Razdan herself as Mehra Nanavati.However, Razdan maintains that her shelved screenplay holds an entirely unique creative edge that has still not been brought to Indian screens.
A Unique Narrative Angle While mainstream commercial iterations like Rustom heavily romanticized or focused almost exclusively on the courtroom patriotism of the naval officer, Love Affair was structured closely around the domestic trio. Razdan's script specifically prioritized the psychological perspective of the wife, exploring the isolation, emotional breakdown, and societal fallout of a woman trapped within a historic scandal.
Keeping the Directorial Dream Alive
Despite the ten-year delay and the emotional toll of seeing an active set dismantled at the final hour, Razdan refuses to let the project go completely. She emphasized that the narrative framework remains incredibly close to her heart.For the director, Love Affair isn't a dead archive item, but a piece of storytelling waiting for its perfect moment. She remains fiercely determined to revive the script, stating with absolute conviction that one day, when the legal, artistic, and financial alignments are exactly right, the film will finally make its way to the big screen.
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