IMAGE: Karan Tacker, Shubangi and Anupam Kher. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff
There’s a reason why Anupam Kher directed Tanvi The Great.
It’s because of his niece, Tanvi, who is autistic.
“The character is not treated like there is something wrong with her. I genuinely believe people like my niece Tanvi have super powers and have the ability to do certain things differently,” Kher says at the film’s trailer launch in Mumbai on Monday, June 30, 2025. This is his second directorial after Om Jai Jagdish in 2002.
Kher invited Robert De Niro to a recent screening of Tanvi The Great in New York.
“I spoke to his wife Tiffany and invited her two hours before the premiere was to start. Tiffany said Bob is coming; he will come only for 15 minutes. I said, ‘Oh God, sab chaos tha! It was very strange to sit next to Mr De Niro and his wife.”
“I was watching him. That fan moment never goes because in drama school, I researched his films like Mean Streets and Taxi Driver. He told me ‘Your hair is very good (referring to the wig that Kher wears in the film).’ He loved the movie and stayed till the interval. That was a big thing for me,” Kher says.
IMAGE: Composer M M Keeravani, Resul Pookutty, Shubhangi, Pallavi Joshi and Jackie Shroff. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff
Newcomer Shubhangi plays Tanvi in the film, and calls it a privilege.
“I keep telling everybody that this is my second birth. It’s a very big chance, and I’m still processing everything and everyday that’s happening in my life,” she says.
Television actor Karan Tacker makes his big screen debut with Tanvi The Great.
“It’s definitely nerve-wracking,” he says.
IMAGE: Jackie Shroff, Pallavi Joshi, Anupam Kher, Shubhangi and Karan Tacker. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff
“I have been working for the last 16 years but every time we have a release, it makes me anxious. My hands and feet get cold,” says Karan.
“I remember when sir (Kher) called me about a year-and-a-half ago, and narrated the concept to me, and then on the very first day when he played the music, I was sold. I told him, I just want to work with you. Today, I feel very happy and moved to see the trailer.”
Pallavi Joshi spoke about the film’s premiere at Cannes.
“Cannes ka experience hamara bohot achha raha because we were all together and relaxed and did not have to learn any script. We also knew that we had a good film on hand although we hadn’t seen it yet,” the actress says.
“When we watched it at Cannes, we had same emotion — we were laughing and crying at the same time. Hats off to Anupamji for making that happen, not just in one or two scenes but throughout the film.”
IMAGE: Jackie Shroff and Anupam Kher. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff
“When I heard the song, tears were flowing down. I cry a lot. I don’t cry in front of anyone but I do cry in front of you, Mr Keeravani. You gave us the music, it’s an honour to be on this stage with you,” Jackie Shroff says.
“I didn’t come from any school, but after living with Anupam sir, I got to learn a lot.”
IMAGE: Resul Pookutty, Kausar Munir, Anupam Kher and Shubhangi. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff
Sound designer Resul Pookutty feels more such films should be made.
“This film is not melancholic or about disability. This film is about the celebration of life. It’s an uplifting film. Tanvi The Great is the need of the hour,” he says.
“As a film enthusiast, a film-maker and a person who has been working in this field for the last 25 years, I feel this film will be a turning point for movie cinema because it’s a film the director totally believed in.
“The corporate said, numbers are not working, these people can’t bring in money or people to theatres. But eventually, what makes people come to theatres is the story. That’s what this man (Anupam Kher) has done.”
IMAGE: Shagun Sodhi and M M Keeravani. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff
Watch: M M Keeravani gives everyone a special peek into the film’s soundtrack by singing his favourite songs.
Video: Afsar Dayatar/Rediff
