Cult film Shaukeen gets a modern makeover

The well-worn story of an older man making a fool of himself in pursuit of a younger woman makes a comeback with the forthcoming remake of the 1982 cult classic Shaukeen.

The director Abhishek ­Sharma's comedic remake The Shaukeens features Annu Kapoor, Piyush Mishra and Anupam Kher in the roles originally played by Ashok Kumar, Utpal Dutt and A K Hangal. Lisa Haydon and Akshay Kumar reprise the roles of Rati Agnihotri and Mithun Chakraborty, although this outing has a different twist. While the three older men play "shaukeens", which translates to admirers, or enthusiasts, who obsess over the female character, she competes for the attention of a man who is her own age.

Kher, Kumar and Haydon were in Dubai recently to promote the film.

“Try not to think of it as a film about three lecherous men,” says Haydon. “It’s good clean fun. These three men are not lechers. They are ‘shaukeens’… For Ahana they are like father figures who enter her life, take her places and pay attention to her. We all need someone to give us validation and respect. That’s what these three are for Ahana.”

The superstar Akshay Kumar, who has also been back in the capital shooting scenes for his upcoming thriller Baby, plays himself in the film.

“This is the first time I am playing myself in a film and it was fun!” says Kumar, laughing. “What you see in the film is the real me. It’s what I am like in real life, but just with the added character quirk of being an alcoholic … which I am not in real life. That was just a trait added to give the character an extra dimension.”

“This is our tribute to the cult classic,” says veteran actor Anupam Kher. “A great amount of credit goes to the writer who adapted the film to make it relevant for today’s audience. The second amazing thing about the film is the cast that the director has managed to collect. For the first time ever, five actors from the National School of Drama share the screen.”

•The Shaukeens will be released in cinemas on Thursday