Entertainment

IIE DIGITAL: Karan Razdan, who has worked across various fields of cinema as a writer, director and producer, recently opened up about one of Bollywood’s most ambitious shelved projects, Time Machine. The film, which was planned with Aamir Khan and Juhi Chawla in lead roles and was set to be directed by acclaimed filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, remains one of the industry’s most talked-about unfinished projects.

In an interview, Karan Razdan shared several unknown details about the film’s storyline and revealed why the much-awaited project could never reach the big screen. According to him, Time Machine was a unique science-fiction drama where Aamir Khan’s character accidentally travels back in time and finds himself witnessing the era of the Mahabharata.

Explaining the plot, Razdan said the protagonist does not know how to operate the time machine and ends up travelling into the past. After arriving there, he hears the sounds of a battlefield and discovers the legendary war of Mahabharata taking place. He even comes face-to-face with Lord Krishna, who explains the situation to him. The character is left stunned after realising that he has travelled into one of the most significant periods of Indian history.

The writer revealed that the emotional inspiration behind Time Machine came from a personal moment shared between him and Shekhar Kapur. While working together on Dushmani, both filmmakers had lost their parents within a short span of time. During a conversation, they expressed their wish to meet their deceased parents once again, which eventually inspired the idea of a story revolving around time travel.

Razdan said he completed the story, screenplay and dialogues within three months. The project gained momentum as Shekhar Kapur brought legendary music duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal on board, while Anand Bakshi was also approached for lyrics. The film’s narration was reportedly given to the entire cast, including Aamir Khan and Paresh Rawal, and everyone was excited about the ambitious concept.

However, despite the strong creative team and promising storyline, Time Machine remained shelved. Razdan revealed that several producers, including Manmohan Shetty, Ramesh Taurani and Karan Johar, showed interest in developing the project.

Talking about Karan Johar’s involvement, Razdan claimed that he had sent the script to Dharma Productions but was disappointed with the offer he received. He said he was informed that he would be paid ₹25 lakh for the script, which he felt was far too low considering the scale and potential of the project.

Expressing his disappointment, Razdan questioned the value offered for such an ambitious film and said that Karan Johar did not even meet him personally during the discussion. He added that since Shekhar Kapur was also attached to the project, meeting the creators directly would have been a matter of basic professional courtesy.

Razdan further revealed that filmmaker Firoz Nadiadwala also showed interest in making Time Machine. He gave a detailed narration at Rakesh Roshan’s residence in the presence of Hrithik Roshan, but the project could not move ahead due to uncertainty over the director. Shekhar Kapur had reportedly suggested that Razdan should not direct the film as his involvement as a writer would be crucial during production.

The writer also mentioned that Rajkumar Santoshi’s name was considered for directing the film, but he disagreed as he felt the project did not match Santoshi’s filmmaking style.

Years later, Time Machine continues to remain one of Bollywood’s most fascinating unfinished projects. With advancements in technology and the growing popularity of large-scale visual storytelling, Razdan believes the concept still has the potential to be revived and could become a major cinematic spectacle if made today.