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 Vinay
Shukla was one very lucky director, when his debut film Godmother
took the box-office by its horns. Shabana Azmi’s performance
was undoubtedly superlative, but the overriding fact was that she
had a good script and a good director, so what if he was a first
timer. Since then, Vinay Shukla has remained low-key, only to emerge
now with a film which promises to be intriguing and dramatic. The
challenge he had before him was steering the fortunes of debutante
Esha Deol and actors Aftab Shivdasani and Sanjay Kapoor. And presenting
Jaya Bachchan in a role written with only her in mind...
What
is the USP of Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe?
There are a lot of special things about this film. The fact that
it has become the debut film for Esha Deol. It is an intriguing
and dramatic film. Sanjay Kapoor is playing a negative role for
the first time, and Jaya Bachchan is doing for the first time after
voluntary retirement the strongest role in mainstream cinema; she
did Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa, but that wasn’t mainstream. Here
the garb is conventional, she represents the typical image of the
Indian women, except that she is from the upper strata but her values
are middle class. So she is the docile compassionate mother, but
as the story progresses you realise that she is a very strong woman.
You write your own scripts, did you always have Jaya in mind?
Yes, I had no doubt about that and when I narrated the story, she
liked the role. Jaya and I are both are FTII products and were batch
mates — I was in direction and she in acting. In fact, my first
exercise in the institute had Jaya starring in it.
Esha’s role, is believed to be unconventional.
I don’t think any heroine so far in popular Hindi cinema has
been introduced the way Esha is being introduced. It’s a complex
role and she has done an admirable job. There’s a mother-daughter
relationship between Jaya and Esha. Both Esha and Aftab are students
of NIFT and he falls in love with her but she doesn’t respond
and he starts wondering what is wrong. He goes to her house and
tells her mother (Jaya), ‘I don’t know how to put my views
across to your daughter, but I would like to marry her.’ He
has done that scene very, very well. Very genuine. Esha refuses
to marry Aftab, and Sanjay has something to do with it, he doesn’t
allow them to meet — he’s the wall. He’s the mysterious
aspect.
Was it wise for Esha to do a complex role as her first film?
If you have the talent, why not exhibit it in the first film. What
happens is that you have a lot of young girls coming, all very beautiful.
There should also be a lot of talent. We had the story and the characters
and Boney thought it would be interesting to have Esha. It just
happens to be Esha’s debut film. Sanjay too has given an outstanding
performance. People will discover an hitherto unknown side of Sanjay
Kapoor.
What prompted you to write Koi Mere Dil Se Pooche?
The story is borrowed from a Telugu film, called Pehli. Boney had
the rights of the story. I have only taken the story not the treatment.
The characterisation and denouement are different.
Your first film as director Godmother pivoted around Shabana Azmi.
In Koi Mere Dil Se Pooche, which is your second, you have Jaya Bachchan
in a pivotal role. How did you manage that?
It is not by design, but I just happened to work with two very senior
actresses, Shabana and Jaya. The only thing I am particular about
is that the story should have some kind of knot that you would like
to unravel, and that the characters should be credible and dynamic
such that I should in one way or the other be able to relate.
Godmother and this film are commercial films, but not typically
formula. There has been such moves in recent times. Would you say
a trend is emerging?
I think finally Hindi cinema has come of age. Over the years, our
progress has been slow, producers have not been enterprising in
the choice of subjects. I am glad that someone like Aamir was convinced
about the Lagaan script and made it into a film. Hats off to the
team of Ashutosh and Aamir.
Is the paucity of interesting subjects because of a lack of financial
support?
Yes. I feel that stories abound. If there are no writers, there
is still an abundance of good literature. You narrate a good subject
to any producer and he will tell you to include some commercial
elements. Even production office boys become writers. There may
not be writers standing in front of you, but you have to look for
them. There has to be the willingness to explore for good subjects.
India constitutes different cultures and is rich in regional literature.
Why are we looking for writers only in Mumbai. Except for a few
from film families, all of us making films have come to the city
from the regions. Producers/directors don’t think of taking
gambles. Now you have people who are willing to experiment. The
primary requirement is a willing producer.
Your characters are real. How do you manage to do that?
It is observing human behaviour that allows me to add that dimension
— I do an exercise with myself: I try to see my characters
in real life, their attitude, reaction, etc. Characters for me don’t
come alive on camera, they exist off the camera as well. Most directors
fail to impress a character on the audience, because they have no
existence in reality.
Do you prefer topics that are unconventional? Yet Godmother was
a commercial success...
Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe’ is a mainstream film, but the story
and treatment are not conventional. I am not capable of doing a
conventional film. The moment you make a plot plausible, it’s
not mainstream. Out of 10 producers six will say ‘glamour,
masala cum hai’. If you have a strong story and strong characters
talking in the language the audience is familiar with where is the
problem? If there is a freshness in my films, I owe it to my alma
mater.
—P
W
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