Jugjugg Jeeyo director Raj Mehta on tackling divorce in the film: The female gaze came in organically

Even as Varun Dhawan, Kiara Advani, Anil Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor’s JuggJug Jeeyo is inching closer to the Rs 85 crore box office mark worldwide, several sections of the audience criticized its makers for making light of a serious topic such as divorce and loveless marriages.

In a recent interview, the movie’s director Raj Mehta, however, maintained that he wouldn’t change a thing about how the film is made as he always intended to present the content through humour. The movie revolves around two couples who are stuck in loveless marriages and yet only the woman in the older marriage thinks about ending the relationship.

Comparing his film with Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, which was also bankrolled by Dharma Productions, Raj said that he appreciated the “mature” take on the subject in Karan Johar’s film, but he had tried to balance both humour and emotions while telling the story of JuggJug Jeeyo. “This is a subject that can become heavy, so I wanted to treat it with humour,” he said, adding this was also the most challenging aspect while writing, shooting and editing the movie that released in theatres on June 24.

The filmmaker also defended the tasteless jokes between Anil and Varun’s characters about their wives, saying that in real life people have these conversations. “So, I don’t think it was wrong because it was about what they were going through in their life,” he said, adding that it also helped the film in its second half that has a strong female perspective.

Also read: JugJugg Jeeyo review: Neetu Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Varun Dhawan, Kiara Advani deliver wholesome entertainment without getting preachy 

The director says that his idea was to only tell a story and female gaze came in organically. In terms of how the screenplay is structured, the filmmaker said that the women’s perspective in the film that comes in the latter half also helped the audience understand the aspect better.