Bollywood’s Best Bet

Even as he readies for the response to his ambitious cop thriller Khakee, he is committed to five more films which will go on the floors in quick succession. Then there are the verbal promises to do a second round with Sunny Deol, Aamir Khan and Salman Khan. Actors like Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan are also waiting their turn to work with him.

Such is the importance of being Rajkumar Santoshi that when Amitabh Bachchan decided to relaunch ABCL, and son Abhishek’s thus far jinxed career, he chose Santoshi over the likes of the Chopras, the Johars and Ramgopal Varma. Thus Ranveer was announced with much fanfare on the Big B’s 61st birthday bash in October last year. Says Bachchan senior, ‘‘Picking Santoshi was a matter of personal choice. I’ve always admired his work, especially his versatility. I feel he can do justice to both me and Abhishek.’’

It’s not box-office success that attracts them to the low-key player who has now upstaged prolific directors like David Dhawan and Vikram Bhatt. Of his nine releases (not counting Khakee), three have been commercially successful. Most have been critically acclaimed, with the exception of disastrous Lajja and China Gate.

Yet, starring in a Santoshi flick certainly ups a hero’s chance of snagging a national award (think Sunny Deol in Damini, Anil Kapoor in Pukar, Ajay Devgan in The Legend of Bhagat Singh). And lest you forget, sitting prominently on his office table in the Mumbai suburb of Andheri, is a book titled National Film Awards in Retrospect.

With such an impressive following, isn’t the pressure killing? ‘‘Not really,’’ quips Santoshi, glancing at a family portrait of his wife Manila with nine-year-old son Ram and five-year-old daughter Tanisha. ‘‘More than pressure, it’s the responsibility. I am extra conscious about the faith people have in me. When I was casting for Khakee, nobody had heard the script. But they all signed up.’’

Fine, but we wonder why nearly every other director wants to make a film on the same subject as Santoshi. It’s happened recently with Khakee and previously with The Legend of Bhagat Singh. ‘‘Now that I’ve announced Prithviraj Sanyukta, let’s hope they don’t make five films on the same subject.’’ he grins. Perhaps that’s a dig at now on-now off friend Sunny Deol who has also expressed his desire to make a costume drama on the same subject? But Santoshi doesn’t rise to the bait, just says he’s made up with Deol. ‘‘Sunny and me are talking about working again. It’s my responsibility now to choose the right subject which does justice to both of us.’’

Prithviraj Sanyukta is a sweeping love story about Rajput warrior Prithviraj Chauhan and stars Ajay Devgan (Santoshi’s hot favourite, he has four films with him) and Aishwarya Rai. ‘‘I’ve been toying with the idea for 10 years but it’s only now that I am ready to begin,’’ says the director.

Good friend Devgan swears by Santoshi’s control. ‘‘He’s not just an amazing director, but also a wonderful dialogue and screenplay writer. He has a great sense of drama. And people don’t know but he’s a great actor too. He acts out the scene and can perform the same in 10 ways.’’ Devgan says he doesn’t keep tabs on the number of Santoshi films he is doing, ‘‘I don’t ask him what role he is giving me. If he feels I suit a part, he knows I am on.’’

Santoshi is also a popular choice because of his versatility. Previous offerings range from the love story (Barsaat), comedy (Andaz Apna Apna) and action flick (Ghayal) to the social drama (Damini) and historical (The Legend of Bhagat Singh). ‘‘The choice of subject depends on my frame of mind. I need to be inspired and want to push myself to do difficult things.’’

That explains why he’s researching the Mahabharata so hard. ‘‘I want to make a great film on a great epic.’’ Cost is no bar. Trade analysts say producers always give Santoshi what he wants. Agrees the director, ‘‘A Rajkumar Santoshi film has no budget. I made Damini in one crore but for Mahabharata, I might need up to 100 crores.’’

Yet producers say Santoshi is rarely unreasonable. ‘‘He doesn’t ask for the moon,’’ says Boney Kapoor who was mister moneybags in the Rs 20-crore flop Pukar. ‘‘The reason why Pukar went overboard was because I, as a producer, became overindulgent. I would give my right and left hand to work with Santoshi again.’’

Adds guru Govind Nihalani, “He’s a passionate film-maker who has complete control over his craft. His flair for drama, specially in confrontational scenes is laudable.” Nihalani feels that The Legend of Bhagat Singh is one of the most accomplished films of all time in Hindi cinema.

For all the glitz and glamour in his movies (there’s almost always a high-profile item number that zooms up the charts), Santoshi maintains that his first love is the guy on the street. ‘‘The day-to-day problems of the common man; his pain, anguish, joys and desperation are something I relate best to.’’

It’s his way of saluting his humble beginnings. His is the classic rags-to-riches story, of a lower middle-class boy in Thane, on the outskirts of Mumbai, who couldn’t afford film school, but also couldn’t shake off the magic of cinema. ‘‘I just latched on to Govind Nihalani. I assisted him in four films and then started with Ghayal,’’ he reminisces.

That humility is still around. ‘‘Even today if my driver has gone for lunch and I have an appointment, I don’t hesitate to take an auto rickshaw.’’