Glitterati

SAMARJIT DASGUPTA

The fighter pilot discovers his vocation
Shoots for the last schedule of Magic Mantra Vision’s Pyar Ki Dhun have been completed. The film has two heroines, debutantes, Swati and Hena. Also in the cast are Milind Soman, who essays the lead role and Prem Chopra, Smita Jaykar and Satish Shah. Producer-director Samarjit Das Gupta talks about the film...

You were in the Indian Air Force. Tell us about your experiences as a fighter pilot.
I was on the front in the 1965 and 1971 wars with Pakistan. In 1965, I was in the bombing squad and we bombed Mianwali and Peshwar. In the 1971 war I was at the Eastern front and participated in the attack on Dacca, Barisal, Jessore and Chittagong.
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What made you turn to filmmaking?
I was always interested in the medium of films. I took premature retirement from the Air Force in 1992 from the rank of Group Captain, which is equivalent to a Colonel of the Army. I took a crash course in filmmaking at the British Film Institute. I made documentaries on atomic energy. I also made a telefilm School Bus which was telecast six times on Doordarshan and Star Plus. It is a film on the psyche of adolescents. I also directed an English film Distant Point with Paul Thomilson as co-director. It is a film on atrocities committed in Stalin’s Russia. We erected the sets of Siberia in England and shot the film there.

Tell us about Pyar Ki Dhun
The film is a modern emotional story about the relationship of mis-matched couples. It is a journey of the two young girls between the East and the West. It has comedy and high voltage action. The film also has a message on love: if you love someone, let your love free. If it comes back, it is yours. If it doesn’t it never was.

You started the film in December and you’re completing the shooting in March. What’s the secret of your quick work?
I have a background with the defence forces. I also specialised in management. I attended a course at the College of Defence Management at Hyderabad. I have been a guest lecturer at several management institutes. We planned the entire shooting schedule for the film and went strictly according to the programme.

Where did you shoot the film?
We started the film in London on December 19 and there we did a schedule of 45 days. This is the only Indian film which had such a long shooting schedule in England. We did the shooting at the prime spots of London, like Piccadily Circus, Regent Street, Oxford Street, Traffalgar Square and University of London

What’s the highlight of your film?
The scenes of the millennium night celebrations in London. We did the filming from a boat on Thames River with Parliament House and Big Ben as a backdrop.

You’ve roped in Javed Akhtar to write the lyrics?
Yes, Javed’s an old friend. We studied together at a Bhopal college. Javed came to Mumbai to make it films. He also wanted me to come with him. I could not as my father was opposed to the idea. So I joined the IAF. Now I have realised my ambition. Javed’s meaningful lyrics and Shantanu Moitra’s melodious music is another highlight of the film.