family matters

  once upon a time, a brother and a sister decided to tell stories on celluloid—of urban youth, alienated characters and the celebration of the carnivalesque Hindi film industry. Farhan and Zoya Akhtar, as the son and daughter of screenwriting stalwarts Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani, have the power of the word in their blood. They have each written and directed some of the most interesting films of the last decade or so. Zoya's next, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, casts Farhan (along with Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol, Katrina Kaif and Kalki Koechlin) in a film about a road trip across Spain. In a Vogue conversation, the two discuss what it takes to keep running the family business.
  On growing up together
Zoya: It was quite normal. We're just a year apart. We had our good moments, but we fought.
Farhan: Yeah, I think that it is pretty much a part of growing up, right? Siblings fight. We never hit each other. Not that I remember.
Z: Initially we did, when we were younger. We stopped when he got bigger. F: LWhen I was youngerj Zoya was the only person who could see through all my bullshit. Everyone else would buy into anything I said. I used to lie quite well. And she was hugely responsible for me stopping these constant fabrications. It's annoying as a kid, when your sister becomes a misaal of honesty.
On their storied inheritance
Z: [Storytelling] definitely has something to do with genetics. I mean, just the compulsion to write. For a lot of people it's alien. But when you're growing up, and you see your parents sitting in a room and writing, or you walk in on them discussing a script, you just learn. And we were privileged to work with Adi Pocha. The biggest thing I learnt from him was discipline. You have ideas, but to put them to paper and learn structure, to get over the fear of the blank page—both of us learnt that from him. F: Even to somehow inculcate the discipline of patience within yourself. You know there's a thought and you're not able to put it down. You don't say, 'It's not happening so, chalo, bye-bye, see you.' You have to actually sit there day in and day out; write, delete, write.
  On the art of film
F: The most important thing to me is the story. Entertainment is what makes us laugh, makes us feel good. But you can be entertained by a good drama, a tragicomedy. I think entertainment is about involving your viewer with whatever kind of story you're telling. Z: We're so used to being told this is the beginning, middle and end, that we tend to look for that when we watch a film. But sometimes you stumble across something that's just in another zone. It's a light journey, but the visual imagery is the medium. As a viewer, I want to like every film I'm going to watch. I want to spend the next two or three hours engrossed. F: You're not a forgiving viewer! You're going in with the expectation that you want to like this movie; you'll actually end up a lot more disappointed. Z: But I want to like every movie. Otherwise why bother watching it?
On working together
Z: llf you work with someone close to youl you take certain things for granted, you're more familiar in your tone. F: And there are fewer surprises. I've worked with her as an actor in both her films, and I find that she is very specific about what she wants. Even if it's someone doing just a one-dialogue scene, Zoya is very specific about what she wants from that person.
Z: I think he's a really good dramatic actor—that's not to say other actors are not better. They may be better actors, but I feel like I have to work with him the least. He gets me the quickest, and if I'm confusing him, he'll tell me. F: Also, I'm available and have a flexible schedule [laughs].
On Zindagi No Milegi Dobara
Z: I went to Barcelona with some girlfriends three years ago and fell in love with the city. I wanted to shoot a film there. Then, after Luck by Chance, we started writing; I wanted to write this road movie. Weirdly, I'd forgotten Spain, and it was set in Mexico because I really wanted to go there. Then the story developed in such a way that it needed things that only exist in Spain. F: When you see the film, you can't imagine it anywhere but Spain. The country, the setting, everywhere we go in the film, is integral to the stoiy and the emotional growth of each character.
On their first ambitions
F: A pilot, then a cinematographer. I was really into still photography. Somewhere I knew I would be involved with film. Z: A veterinarian. When I was in college [in the early '90sj the movies were bad. I wanted to write, but I didn't see myself fitting in. I considered law, journalism. F: She wouldn't have had a future in law or journalism because she can't lie.
On Farhan, the actor
Z: I thought Farhan would be an actor. I was surprised when he started as an assistant cinematographer. But I think he's good at both.
F: I told you she tells the truth. Stop testing her. She's not going to lie!