Speaking to Sunny Malik, the 52-year-old actor opened up about why the script needed to change, why a soundtrack of the film is so important and much more…

The Race franchise was associated with Saif Ali Khan and Abbas-Mustan. Since you’ve come on board, it has all changed. How did all come about?
I don’t think Abbas-Mustan were a part of the film by the time I came on board to play the lead character. Remo D’Souza was already supposed to direct the third film in the franchise when I was approached. I really liked the script and the genre but I wasn’t sure of it. I was just not convinced whether I can fit into the character. I’ve been a part of films like Hum Aapke Hain Kaun and Race is a completely different genre for me. We had several discussions and we changed it into a family film. Once, we made the necessary changes, we got our cast together. 

 
Why make the changes at all when the franchise was quite successful?
It’s a completely new film with new characters. I basically want children to come and watch the film. Anil Kapoor and Jacqueline were a part of the previous films but they are not playing the same characters anymore. The original movies were meant for an older audience. I wanted the film to appeal to all audiences including families.  

How was your experience filming for Race 3? 
I had a great time and really enjoyed being a part of it. I also got a chance to work with my friends Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol. We filmed in Abu Dhabi and the local government was extremely supportive and helpful throughout our schedule. The most important part for me was that I liked the script. It’s basically become a Hum Aapke Hain Kaun where the family don’t get along for reasons that are correct in their head. The film has really funny moments but keeps you engrossed as well. It has action, drama, comedy, a lot of style and a big budget which is visible. We needed to make Race 3 bigger because Race and Race 2 were made on a large scale and we just had to make a product that is loved up by the audience. Jacqueline and Daisy worked really hard on the movie too and performed some incredible stunts.

Each song released is composed by a different music director. That is very similar as to how soundtracks are made in Hollywood.
I’ve used multiple music directors in the past too. Sometimes one music director manages to provide you with a complete soundtrack like Himesh Reshammiya did for Tere Naam. There have been instances with my films where Sajid-Wajid directed the music but we got Himesh to do one song, which went on to become a super hit. There are so many great music directors who’ve made some great songs. I like to keep them aside and use them in films where they best fit into. This way I have a couple of options. I believe that there should be about six songs in a film and all of them should be blockbuster tracks. It doesn’t make sense to me for example, if you have three mediocre songs in a film, that would mean 15 minutes where the audience is getting bored. The film starts dipping too. It’s bad for the final product which is why we have to be really careful with songs these days. Another example is Agneepath, starring Hrithik Roshan and Priyanka Chopra and the hit song Chikni Chameli in the film. The song featuring Katrina Kaif comes in towards the end of the film but it created more excitement for the audience at the cinema, building up to the climax. Even our promotional strategy is based on our soundtrack. We want people to like the songs and audiences tend to come and watch movies with good songs in it. 
 

Race 3 is also the first in the franchise to be co-produced by the lead actor. Why is that important for you?
If you truly believe in a film, then why not produce it and work towards creating the best out of it? We are producing Loveratri with Ayyush Sharma and Warina Hussain, which was extensively filmed in London. We’ve also just announced a film with Zaheer Iqbal, the son of my childhood friend with a really nice script that we’ve finalised.