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 Ram
Gopal Varma is one of our most prolific filmmakers. He has a knack
of redefining genres and relaunching careers. With his latest offering
Company, he has once again tapped the underworld for inspiration
and the hungry public are eagerly awaiting this blood-and-gore feast.
Presenting a talk with the director.
Is
Company a sequel to Satya?
No, it’s different from Satya and the difference lies in the
fact that while Satya was a film about a man’s progress in
the underworld, in Company, the underworld itself is the hero.
The
title is pretty intriguing?
I believe that the underworld is like any corporate entity. Like
other business concerns it too has its ups and downs, promotions
and demotions. Only when one gets fired, the bullets are for real.
You did a lot of research for Satya, reportedly even met people
from the underworld...
(Cuts in) Let me clarify that I have yet to meet someone connected
with the underworld. The information I collected with Satya was
primarily from crime reporters, newspapers and police officers.
Is Company the product of the left-over material you accumulated
while researching Satya?
To an extent what you’re saying is true. I wasn’t fully
satisfied by Satya. I felt there was a lot that still remained to
be said. I wanted to project a bigger, broader picture of the underworld
and my earlier research certainly helped me put together a better
story.
 People
claim that Company mirrors the life of real dons.
That’s just a rumour. As I had said earlier, in my film the
underworld is the protagonist. I’ve not attempted the biography
of a don.
You have seasoned stars like Ajay Devgan and Manisha Koirala in
your film and raw talent like Vivek Oberoi and Antara Mali. It was
an inspired bit of casting.
Ajay’s character is a very serious man and his persona suited
the role. Vivek Oberoi starts out as a fresher in the film but goes
on to reach a certain status in the underworld. His looks and intensity
matched that of Chandu’s. For Ajay’s consort I wanted
a sophisticated woman and Manisha suited the bill perfectly. Antara
had impressed me in Mast. I wanted to give her a bigger role then
but it didn’t happen. In Company she’s playing Vivek’s
girlfriend and I was able to exploit her talents properly this time
around.
Vivek’s look in the film reminds people of Amitabh Bachchan
in Deewar
I certainely didn’t have Mr Bachchan in mind when fleshing
out Vivek’s character. In fact, nothing about Chandu was deliberate.
His stubble, his rolled up sleeves, the beedi on his lips all developed
as the film progressed. If people find some similarity between Chandu
and Vijay it’s just a coincidence.
Mohanlal
has a reputation of being choosy. How did you convince him to accept
your film?
He just heard the story and agreed to be a part of my
film. I wanted a South Indian to play the cop and couldn’t
think of a better person than Mohanlal for the job.
The film’s music has an unconventional feel...
I didn’t try to be different for the heck of being different.
I used the talents of music director Sandeep Chowtha, lyricists
Nitin Raikar, Jaideep Sahni, Taabish Romani and singers Altaf Raja
and Sowmya Roah. I like their work so I signed them and they’ve
given me what I was looking for.
Urmila Matondkar was not originally in the film...
(Interrupts) I just felt that she would be able to add something
positive to the film so I approached her for the title track.
Urmila is your lucky mascot. No film of yours is complete without
her.
Urmila is a fine actress and a finer human being. I’ve been
associated with her professionally and personally for a number of
years. Whenever I feel that she can do justice to a role I cast
her. May be it’s because most of my films in which she’s
starred have been hits which is why she’s made out to be my
lucky mascot.
Would you say that your films have provided the audience with an
alternative to mainstream cinema?
I’m always trying to create something new. People say my work
is pathbreaking but I’m only following my creative instincts
and not doing a public service by going off the beaten track.
Your films have an undercurrent of violence. In today’s troubled
times, people fear that a film Company would glorify violence.
I don’t
believe that people are drawn to violence after watching films.
Some of the most horrendous acts of violence were carried out in
the 19th century. Were they influenced by films? In my view, films
only intrepret what’s happening in society. The violence in
my film is negligible compared to the real-world carnage being carried
out at this very moment.
Your proteges, E Niwas and Rajat Mukherjee have carried forward
your baton but haven’t been as successful as you have been?
It
would be wrong on my part to comment on the box-office fate of their
films because I too have given flops like Daud in the past. I don’t
have the magic formula. If they are consistent in their efforts,
sooner or later they too will enjoy success.
Despite having a large fan following in Mumbai you are rarely in
the city and keep flitting off to do regional cinema.
I
have been living in Mumbai for the last five years. I haven’t
made a single regional film in the period. I don’t socialise
a lot and perhaps that’s what gives people the impression that
I’m not comfortable working here.(Laughs)
What other projects are you currently working on?
Right now I’m making a film called Road with Vivek Oberoi,
Antara Mali and Manoj Bajpai. Like the jungle in Jungle, the road
this time will be the central character of the film. I’ve also
got some other projects in the planning stages.
—Devesh
Sharma
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