Shekhar Kapur finds the perfect balance of romance and comedy and culture in What’s Love Got to Do with It?
How do you find lasting love in today’s world? For documentary-maker and dating app addict Zoe (Lily James), swiping right has only delivered an endless stream of Mr. Wrongs, to her eccentric mother Cath’s (Emma Thompson) dismay. For Zoe’s childhood friend and neighbor Kaz (Shazad Latif), the answer is to follow his parents’ example and opt for an arranged (or “assisted”) marriage to a bright and beautiful bride from Pakistan. As Zoe films his hopeful journey from London to Lahore to marry a stranger, chosen by his parents, she begins to wonder if she might have something to learn from a profoundly different approach to finding love.
Directed by award-winning filmmaker Shekhar Kapur (Elizabeth) and written and produced by Jemima Khan (Impeachment: American Crime Story) What’s Love Got to Do with It? stars Primetime Emmy® Award nominee Lily James (Pam & Tommy), Shazad Latif (Star Trek: Discovery), Shabana Azmi (Halo), Academy Award® and BAFTA winner Emma Thompson (Matilda), Sajal Aly (Yakeen Ka Safar), Asim Chaudhry (Black Mirror: Bandersnatch), Jeff Mirza (Eternals) and Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan as himself.
Check out our interview with Shekhar:
Director’s Statement – Shekhar Kapur
Love and intimacy – the most used and yet the most misunderstood words in our vocabulary, and yet we search and search for a true experience of these words. That’s what I found exhilarating in Jemima’s script. The opportunity to explore these words in depth yet contain them in a romantic comedy.
And then, as I always do, I work with my actors as each one of us explores what these words mean to us. It’s been an incredible journey … and now it’s over to you, the viewer. To join us in our tears, our laughter, and our search. For yourselves.
