The Diplomat’s John Abraham: ‘I still struggle to sell my films because…’

After spending nearly half his life in Bollywood, one would expect that actor John Abraham has it easy when it comes to mounting and releasing his films. But that, he says, is not the truth. John, who like many others, does nationalistic films, albeit ones that are rooted in reality and do not cater to a certain formula, told Republic World that to this day he struggles to sell his films.

John Abraham on why it is important for him to tell good stories

John has just brought his latest, The Diplomat to theatres, a task that as not easy, given that convincing a studio that he has a good film in hand is a tough task. The Diplomat is the fourth film that John has co-produced, after Vicky Donor, which no one wanted to touch, Madras Café that was expected to fail and then Parmanu. 

Also read: 5 John Abraham movies to watch on OTTplay Premium 

“The point is that my films do not follow a commercial formula. There is no song and dance – I don’t have a heroine dancing. Most of the time my wife dies at the start of the film and I continue from thereon. Maybe no one likes to see my face so much. I have a problem selling these films, but I hope we get braver as a community. Like the south is very brave; they follow their conviction and make those films. We need to get braver,” he says.

The actor-producer says that he has to fight for every penny, which is fine, because he co-produces his films. In doing so, he does not load the film with his cost, as his intention is to tell good stories.n But his idea of a good story may not necessarily be a good story for a studio. “They don’t have faith in films like The Diplomat,” says the actor, adding that when a film fails to perform at the box office, he walks away with nothing.

Also read: Revisit John Abraham’s versatile performances through these gripping films on OTT 

Among John’s upcoming films is a project called Tehran, based on the story of the attempt on the life of an Israeli diplomat in 2013, when India and Iran had a gas pipeline being built. “My character goes to Tehran to find out what’s happening. It’s not just geo-political, but also a beautiful human story. That space is so exciting and I want youngsters to really see that and understand that India is a cool country,” he signs off.

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