War Chhod Na Yaar: Debut director attempts India’s first war comedy

Working with a debut director on a war comedy for the first time in Bollywood could’ve spelt risk for many actors. But for Jaaved Jaaferi, Sharman Joshi and Soha Ali Khan — the cast of War Chhod Na Yaar — director Faraz Haider’s script was a winner from day one.
“Even though Faraz has worked with Dibakar Banerjee, this is his first directorial outing. Of course, there were apprehensions, but the script convinced us that this story must be taken to the audience,” says Soha, who plays a journalist in the film.
The narrative moves from her perspective as she goes to the Indo-Pak border to report a story. From there, it takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the love-hate relationship between the two countries that share more than just boundaries, food, Bollywood and a penchant for corruption. Sharman plays an Indian Army officer in the film, while Jaaved plays a Pakistani one.
Says Sharman, “We want people to think about their cliched perception of the Indo-Pak relationship. Playing an officer was incredible. Once you don the uniform, you truly begin to understand what they experience.” Adds Jaaved, “I’ve known Faraz for a few years, so expectations were high from him. But his script was good.”
Talking about the story, Faraz says, “The war with Pakistan is an extremely sensitive as well as emotional issue. That’s why it was important to handle it well as a comedy. It took me six months to pen it.”
War Chhod Na Yaar, produced by AOPL Entertainment Pvt Ltd, releases October 11.