Filmmaker Luv Ranjan says small but well-loved movies have always co-existed with the biggest of blockbusters and his new project “Vadh 2”, a niche drama fronted by veterans Neena Gupta and Sanjay Mishra, is one such film.Ranjan decided to come up with the second part of the movie, with a fresh story but the same cast, after the success of the 2022 original.“Even if it (‘Vadh 2’) is niche, there is space for niche cinema. In the history of Indian cinema, the biggest of blockbusters have co-existed with the smallest of loved films across genres, like 40 years back, we’ve seen Amitabh Bachchan’s larger films releasing alongside Amol Palekar’s movies.“If we keep doing only one kind of cinema, then it will become boring. The success of a film is not determined by its size or its star cast today. You can never tell what is going to work and not work in the blockbusters,” Ranjan, who has produced films like “Malang”, “Chhalaang”, and “Kuttey” among others, told PTI in an interview.The filmmaker does not believe that the theatrical business is dying as audiences get used to OTT platforms.“When we talk about theatrical business not doing well, we make it sound like 10 years back everything that was released in theatres was raking in crores and creating huge profits.“If you count the number of hits which used to happen earlier, the only difference is that the bigger hits create big numbers. And when you start comparing other films to them, small successes seem smaller,” Ranjan said, citing the example of hits like “12th Fail” and “Manjummel Boys”.Ranjan is synonymous with directing hit rom-coms like “Pyaar Ka Punchnama”, “Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety”, and “Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar”, but through his production house, Luv Films, he explores genres he wouldn’t necessarily direct himself.He collaborated with Vishal Bhardwaj on “Kuttey” and produced Mohit Suri’s thriller “Malang”. Ranjan said he sees production as a way to facilitate stories he loves as an audience member.“I’ve been a huge Mohit Suri fan. If you ask me, can I direct ‘Malang’? I don’t think I can. But as a producer, I wanted to tell that story,” Ranjan said.“Vadh 2”, set to hit the big screen on February 6, is written and directed by Jaspal Singh Sandhu.Unlike standard franchises that carry a storyline forward, “Vadh 2”, Ranjan said, is a thematic sequel.“We’ve not carried the characters forward; we’ve just maintained the world and the tonality. Sanjay ji and Neena ji are playing new characters in a new setup. The core of the franchise remains the philosophical distinction between ‘hatya’ (murder) and ‘vadh’ (slaughter).“We are using the same actors and giving them new characters to give another message. We have basically created a new demon to show another evil in the society, and how a common man fights against it.”What’s next for Ranjan as a director?While rumours swirl regarding a potential reunion with Kartik Aaryan for a new rom-com, Ranjan is tight-lipped about it.“I’m still writing it,” he said.