SUNNY DEOL & BOBY DEOL

No place to hide!
The spotlight’s on Sunny Deol at the moment. As it’s always been, on the eve of every Deol-release. Only, this time, there’s an extra glare to the spotlight and an extra sheen to the expectations. For Sunny’s not just starring in Dillagi. As debutant director, he’s invested his heart and soul in it. And the whole world’s waiting to sit in judgement...

Almost every actor dreams to become director some day. Those who’re serious about it, do take the plunge, but never before they’ve quit acting for good, or their career’s hit the doldrums, or been shipwrecked.

But not Sunny Deol. As an actor he’s still at the peak of his career. And his fan following still runs into the millions.

So has the Sunny gamble come too early? "My hand was forced," Sunny confesses candidly. "I took up direction out of sheer compulsion. It was do or die, and I opted for the former."

Well, no prizes for guessing why. Sunny’s obviously alluding to the London fiasco, the film that was to pit the Deol siblings together for the first time. That film, of course, had to be shelved subsequently, and Sunny decided to launch Dillagi, instead. He realised from the start that if the film had to see the light of day, he’d have to direct it himself. And direct it, he did.

His hand may have been forced, but Sunny confesses he was always interested in direction. "I had to become director, someday, although I’d never foreseen it would happen so soon. I wasn’t sure I had it in me. I’d even planned to take a break from acting for a while, and go abroad to study film direction, perhaps. But those dreams were not to be. Ready or not, I had to do it now. And I’ve done the best I possibly could," he says.

What was Sunny’s first experience as a director like? Again, Sunny’s candid as ever. "It’s been both thrilling and never-racking at the same time. Everything was new to me, and there was no knowing what surprise would present itself on which front. Not that things didn’t work out much more smoothly than anticipated. But I was always prepared for worse," he says.

So what is Dillagi all about? Is it a love story, family drama or plain, no-holds-barred entertainer? "I wouldn’t call it a love story," comes the reply. "It’s more of a family drama. It isn’t an entertainer either, at least not in the strict sense of the term. Every film may be made with a view to entertain, though they may be melodramatic, even loaded with emotion. Suffice it to say Dillagi is a honest film, one with no pretensions."

Is it loaded with action, then? "No, certainly not in the way you think," Sunny points out. "It’s a slice of human life, in all its many facets. There’s adventure, romance and comedy, action, too. It’s a complete film, every which way."

What was it like to direct Bobby? "Bobby’s like a kid to me, still is after all these years. I guess that’s how elder brothers feel in every close-knit home. He didn’t have any hassles doing my bidding. In our family, we’ve been taught to respect and obey our elders. At times, I guess, he did resent the fact that I didn’t specify just what it is I wanted him to do. But he quickly came round to relishing the artistic freedom I thus gave him," he answers.

Dara Singh plays the Deols’ father in the film. Why on earth didn’t they sign papa, Dharmendra, himself for the role instead? "I’ve always wanted us all to do a film together," Sunny concedes. "But it will have to have a meaningful, worthwhile role for an actor of papa’s calibre. This one didn’t, as it was centred more on the brothers."

Unlike most other films, Dillagi has quite a few music directors pooling in their resources. Why? "Well ideally, I’d prefer to work with one music director, or at the most a composer duo. But here again I was compelled to approach more people, because we felt our first choice wasn’t quite measuring up. We eventually took each song to the person we thought could handle just such a situation best. It’s worked well in our case. Jatin-Lalit have been marvellous. As have the others," claims Sunny.

Any remarkable incident from the making of the film? "The entire film has been one big learning experience. That’s what I cherish about it the most," replies Sunny.

Personally, what does Sunny enjoy more, acting or directing? "Acting, of course, provided I’m free, once in a while, to heed my own directorial impulses, make my own kind of cinema, however good or bad. As an actor, you’re a free bird. All you do is do the director’s bidding. But as a director, you’re the make-or-break man. The entire unit looks to you for direction. And there’s no place you can hide. It can be quite scary, too, you know!," he says.

Now that Sunny himself has turned director, will he take to back-seat driving while acting in other people’s films? Will he be meddlesome and interfering, now that he’s made a film, himself? "See, I’ve always been an involved actor, giving more than I’m paid to. But I know what constitutes involvement and what interference. I do have arguments, sometimes, but I never push to have my own way. It’s up to the director, whether to take up a suggestion or not. I believe films are a director’s medium," says Deol.

Sunny has worked with a lot of new directors in the past. But, having had a bad experience with Gurinder Chadda in London, is he against the idea now? "Of course not. I see no harm in working with newcomers. And I’m not the sort who’d turn negative after one bitter experience," he promises.

Apart from acting and direction Sunny has his hands full at the moment, having to look after Sunny Super Sound Studio and his family’s distribution and related businesses. All of this, virtually singlehandedly. How does he find time for it all? "I don’t," says Sunny, breaking into loud laughter, at his own expense. "If I were indeed managing it all well, I wouldn’t have to do so much running around," he adds, by way of explanation.

So which will his next project as director be? "None in the immediate future, at any rate not if I can help it," he answers, smiling.

Among his forthcoming attractions as actor, are Champion, Farz and Gaddar. But even these will have to wait till Deol treats himself to a well-earned, much-postponed vacation.

The busiest souls need breathing room, too, after all.

Alok Mathur