‘I Like the Formula’

Was it tough to get Saif to deliver a rustic accent?

He has said his dialogues very well. I didn’t have to break my head over it as I thought I would. Only the body language sometimes became a problem. The way he would put his hands in his pocket or hold a cigarette — I had to make sure woh westernpana nahi hona chahiye. But it’s always interesting to make an actor do new things. Had I worked with an actor who has a vernacular image,it wouldn’t be as exciting.

Your films are a mix of realism and entertainment. How much are you influenced by the Hindi films you have grown up watching?

I have always loved Vijay Anand,Raj Khosla and Bimal Roy films. They are aesthetically correct,have great songs and make for excellent entertainment. That balance is always nice. Moreover,my stint with Shekhar Kapur (he was an assistant director in Bandit Queen) and Mani Ratnam (he wrote the screenplay for Dil Se…) helped. Films such as Sholay,Ganga Jamuna,Mother India and Pakeezah — where the landscape became a character — also influenced me. Earlier we used to make stories for characters who were unique,flamboyant,large-hearted,robust,macho and feminine. I don’t see these people in society anymore. We live in an age of lost hope. Characters who don’t lose and fight authority are interesting to watch. The realism is important. Small cultural details — body language,how someone is holding a glass of water or greets a friend — become important because they shape the characters. And it doesn’t always have to be small town,which has become a big cliche. Every city except Mumbai in India,even Chennai,Kolkata or Delhi,is in the small town bracket these days. Dil Chahta Hai was the most rooted urban film I have seen. I didn’t live that South Bombay life,but I had friends from those circles,and I could instantly connect to it.

In one of Bullett Raja’s trailors,the hero is introduced with references to Sudama,Bheem and Raavan. How much does mythology affect your films?

Mythology reflects in my writing. It has a bit to do with my mother being a Sanskrit professor. We worship Hanumanji every day. Our Hindi film heroes,in many ways,are our superheroes. They are always righteous in a certain way,they are against the authority and can’t be controlled yet they will keep their word. Bullett Raja is like that. He is like a wild horse,like the iconic characters Billy the Kid,Butch Cassidy from the American Western classic films.

Bullett Raja seems closer to formulaic,heartland blockbusters we have seen lately. How do you deal with the formula?

I like the formula. Vijay Anand made all kinds of film — from romcoms like Tere Ghar Ke Samne to thrillers like Johnny Mera Naam to a profound experience like Guide. I also want to do it. I don’t want people to bracket me as an arty filmmaker.

Academy award-wining filmmaker Asghar Farhadi in a session at the recent Mumbai Film Festival said that Indian films are losing their Indianness. What is your opinion?

It’s true. When art cinema came to India,it was actually aping the Eastern European films made post WW II,following a period of gloom,alienation and hopelessness. That neo-realism was never our attitude. Our cinematic idiom was still Bimal Roy. The other kind of arty,slow-paced cinema is nice but it’s more suited for workshops and it’s not inherently Indian. We are loud people,our culture is on the face. We aren’t subtle at all and we should not be ashamed of it. I’ve seen that students or filmmakers fresh out of film schools are ashamed of Hindi cinema,which is not correct. I started watching Godard,Truffaut,Bergman when I was in Class X. I knew I was watching something important.

Your role as Ramadhir Singh in Gangs of Wasseypur has become a cult. Do you intend to act often?

I didn’t expect such a response. I’m not an actor. I won’t ever take up deeply investing roles or where I have to test myself for a “performance”,I will only do roles my friends give me,which aren’t that difficult to perform.

You once wanted to make Hamlet. What happened to it?

I have done the play as a student,but while attempting the film adaptation,Sridhar Raghavan and I realised that it’s difficult to crack it. Hamlet’s internal conflict,that comprises the heart of the story,appears fake,and is not suited to cinema.

What about Milan Talkies?

Milan Talkies is my first out and out love story. We are still in the process of casting for it. I have been working non-stop for the last three years and I badly want a break. Then I will write and see what comes up.