Gritty love

He recounts the first day of shooting,scheduled for the night,when their EP,(executive producer) Shyam informed them that the local gang lord was coming to meet Ravi Kissen. The actor who plays the antagonist,Teeta Singh is a superstar in the area and has hordes of fans.

“Ravi was not shooting that night and the don was very restless on not being able to meet him. Halfway through the shoot,my EP tapped me on the shoulder and whispered that the don wanted a role in the film. As I turned around to tell him that I never cast any actor on recommendations,I saw his chalk white face! He squeezed my hand and requested me to cast the don. Looking over his shoulder,I saw this six feet plus man with about a dozen young bodyguards. I quietly gave him the go ahead,” said the director with a smile.

The don was given the task of dragging dead bodies in the sand. His new silk-kurta was soiled with sand and blood but with child-like delight,he happily went about dragging four men with his bare hands. “Suddenly,shooting in the area became a lot more easier. Later we came to know that he wanted to ‘buy off’ the dummy automatic rifles and LMG that the action department had,for his kids to play with!”

Issaq,a gritty love story stars Prateik and two new girls and is scheduled to release in June/July.

geety.sahgal@expressindia.com