Tribute to teacher, ode to married woman

Pratim D. Gupta

Call it gimmick or genuine, the producer in Vidhu Vinod Chopra has been able to raise a storm with one simple “step-motherly” remark. Mumbai tabloids and websites have gone to town with screaming headlines like “Parineeta runs into trouble”. Director Pradeep Sarkar, though, has insisted throughout: “Nothing’s gone awry — everything’s going as per plan.” And hadn’t that happened, the film’s stars wouldn’t have landed and left the city as per the original schedule.
Those present on the sets that day argue it was Parineeta’s core team that was more at fault in its dealings with the local technicians. And the problem was sorted out before it could cause damage or delay.
While the real story stays hidden, it’s better to delve deep into the mind of Chopra, the visionary. The man, who started off making “Sound of Music and Godfather in the same Bollywood movie” in Parinda, is now one of the strongest pillars in tinsel town. While his western breakthrough project hasn’t quite materialised, he has guided some of the brightest new directors of the country.
When Chopra came to Calcutta to promote Munnabhai MBBS, he had confessed he wanted to make a film in Bengal. “That has always been my big dream. Ritwik Ghatak taught me film-making at the Pune institute and he used to teach me in Bengali. I didn’t understand a single word initially but he chose not to speak in any other language. Those three years were so Bengali that I always wanted to come here and make a film. And here I am making Parineeta…”
He doesn’t even regret not directing it. “I just want to write and produce films now. I want to help out talented film-makers to realise their dreams.”
Chopra has always got the best creative talent to come together in one film. Even for Parineeta, he’s got Munnabhai director Rajkumar Hirani as the film’s creative producer. “There is so much creative energy involved. I believe in the fact that we have to all come together to pursue and achieve excellence in cinema. If there is a conflict of thought, I always have the final say.”
Hirani thinks likewise: “It is never a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth. When many creative people converge for one single project, it only blossoms, it never gets affected.”
Sarat Chandra has always been close to Chopra’s heart. “When I was a little boy in Kashmir, I grew up reading him,” he recalls. “I read Devdas. I read Parineeta. This film, I owed to Saratbabu. He is the Shakespeare of Bengal... We haven’t even announced the film in Mumbai. We met the press for the first time here in Calcutta,” he added, stressing the Bengal bonding bit. Chopra doesn’t deny the fact that he could have shot the film in Mumbai. “But we had to do it here in Bengal. I think this is the first time an entire Mumbai team has come here to shoot for 57 days. We have been shooting round-the-clock. Sometimes for 12 hours, 16 hours and even 18 hours a day.”
Director Sarkar and the main cast of Sanjay Dutt and Saif Ali Khan look at Parineeta 2004 as a return to a bygone period in history and a recreation of the old days. Chopra, though, looks at the film differently. “Parineeta is about the married woman. In today’s times, love and marriage have become very important concepts. That’s what Parineeta explores, relating love with marriage. The story of the film is relevant even today. We could have set it in modern times but I wanted a little period feel. So 1962 is the year in the film, when Bengal was going through a very torturous period.”
The casting for Parineeta, Chopra confesses, happened on its own. “Sanjay has to be there in all my films. He is like family to me. As for Saif, it has been a revelation. When he came to the office he was slated to do another role. He just said, ‘I can do Shekhar’. And I saw the rushes and he has truly done an incredible job.”
But what’s happened to Vidhu Vinod Chopra, the director? “I am writing Yagna. It should get underway by middle of next year. Amitabh Bachchan plays one of the main roles. Sanjay is there too. The rest of the casting is being done. We are also writing Rajkumar Hirani’s next film and once the scripting is over, we’ll be able to talk more.”

Bally-ho! Munnabhai meets Chhote Nawab

Pratim D. Gupta

Amader Munnabhaike dekhbo…” From Byculla to Bally, Versova to Victoria, there is no stopping the fan following of the deadly Dutt. After the Saifs and Dias got the Parineeta party rocking, first in Siliguri and then by the Strand, it was time for Sanju Baba (there’s no escaping the “Baba” bit, plastered on the door of the make-up van or a permanent fixture on the lips of all those surrounding him) to set off the Diwali crackers.
Having arrived in the city on Friday night, Sanjay was slated to face the arclights for the first time on Saturday afternoon at the Rajbari in Bally on the banks of the Ganga. That was after Saif shot in the morning for a small but important sequence.
“In the novel, this particular episode comes in the opening pages when Shekhar (Saif) talks to his mother about meeting a prospective bride and how the discussion switches to Lalita (Vidya Balan),” explains one of the production assistants in director Pradeep Sarkar’s team.
The shot, taken in the extended garden, is okayed after a couple of takes and Saif returns to the comforts of the AC make-up van.
Knock, knock…
“Who’s that?”
“Baba.”
Sanjay and Saif are locked in a warm hug as the two meet for the first time on the sets of the Vinod Chopra production. Then, they beat a quick retreat into the van.
The camera and the props are shifted to the front half of the palatial white building, as two vintage cars are put in place.
Sarkar looks relaxed as he discusses the exact placement of the camera for the particular shot. “Working with Sanjay is really a dream come true. I had directed the Chhan chhan song in Munnabhai but didn’t really get to work with him. He has really matured so much. Sanjay is the only actor who can make you cry even in a song sequence. He is just too good.”
Unlike the leading ladies of the film who spend hours inside the vanity van, Sanjay takes less than 15 minutes to slip into the green kurta, get into the gold and look more of his Vaastav self. Saif also makes a quick costume change — from a white kurta to a pastel shade shirt.
The shot is ready to be canned. Scene 60 — Gurcharan (Achyut Poddar) is lying ill inside the building. The house doctor comes out after checking him. He is accompanied by Girish (Sanjay) who pays the doc his fees and discusses the situation. Shekhar walks in and gets inside the house to check on Gurcharan.
Familiar face on Tolly telly, Tapas Chakraborty, plays the doctor and is expectedly excited about the shoot. “Can you please click me with Sanjay?” he asks one of the lightmen.
After a couple of rehearsals, the cameras roll. The first take goes wrong with Saif rushing in a touch too early. The second take is not even completed with Sanjay reacting to Saif’s cue and turning his head. The third take is “NG (not good)” with Chakraborty’s frame blocking that of Sanjay.
In a mini-break that follows, Sanjay lights a Marlboro, Saif his Camel and the two share a joke before they get back in front of the camera. “Working with Saif is a whole lot of fun,” says Sanjay, with the two having shared the frame before in Nehle Pe Dehle.
Saif wants to go for the Indo-Pak cricket match and has even got himself tickets. But football is his first love as he still nurses a sprained ankle that he helped himself to during the friendly IIFA soccer match in Singapore.
Another take with a slight change in dialogue and character position follows and this time Sarkar is happy. The Sanjay shooting sojourn in Calcutta is off the mark and the Parineeta juggernaut rolls on despite problems like the missing truck, union strike and the mob mania…

Moments of magic, melody and melancholy

They came, they shot, they conquered. The Parineeta shooting schedule in Siliguri was a one-of-a-kind experience which saw everything from unalloyed fan adulation to sheer production passion. Pratim D. Gupta was there to capture the action as it happened

Day 1, Saturday, 30.10.2004
Time: 2.37 pm
Location: Tindharia station
Storyboard: Shekhar (Saif Ali Khan) is on the toy train to Darjeeling. He is sitting in the last coach and reminiscing about his lady love Lolita (Vidya Balan, not in the frame). He has a guitar with him and is singing Dharti saji… (sung by Sonu Nigam, composed by Shantanu Moitra). Most frames have him looking out through the window.
Lights, camera, action: The huge Saif fan following has landed up at Tindharia making the moving of the train almost impossible. They want photographs and autographs. Saif is on a Shakespeare trip, reading Hamlet and sipping his orange juice even as he waves to the crowds every now and then. Director Pradeep Sarkar wants the frame to be just right: “Nutty (cinematographer Natarajan) thoda left pan kar.” Bhavani is the production guy who is in charge of the train. So whenever there is a possible chance to move, Sarkar will shout: “Bhavani, let’s move.” The train chugs towards Rongtong and Sarkar cans some shots but the light doesn’t hold up beyond 5 pm and they have to wrap up.
Freeze frame: She is in her early 20s and all she wants is Saif. She has a camera with her to preserve the memories for posterity. But there is a technical problem — she doesn’t want to click just her star but also fit herself in the frame. She walks up to the train and asks a policeman to capture her as she goes and stands below the window Saif’s leaning on. At least one dream comes true…

Day 2, Sunday, 31.10.2004
Time: 12.23 pm
Location: Elephant Hill, Rongtong station
Storyboard: Shekhar’s really excited now and stands at the door of his coach in the train and waves out to nature even as he sings. The camera movement is really complicated as the jib swings from right to left with the train coming in. The closer the train comes, the lower the camera goes and almost brushes past Shekhar as it leaves him.
Lights, camera, action: Nutty is using a striking golden yellow filter to get that rich texture in the frame. Sarkar is sitting in the middle of Hill Cart Road on his special director’s cane mora keeping a close eye on the monitor. His wife Panchali, also the executive producer of the film, joins him and the two admire their previous shot as it is played back on the monitor. “We have been trying to get this shot right from the morning. And finally, bhagwan ne daan de di,” says Nutty. Sarkar is all smiles as Saif goes down the hill to board the train for the shot. After five takes, the shot is okayed.
Freeze frame: The policemen are on the edge as they use lathis to keep the vehicles moving on Hill Cart Road. They however lose the plot themselves when Saif walks by. “Dada, amra to uniformey parbo na, ekta autograph ene deben,” was one policeman’s plaint.

Day 3, Monday, 1.11.2004
Time: 8.42 am
Location: Sukna station
Storyboard: Shekhar arrives at the station. Even as he gets into his jeep, Gayatri (Dia Mirza) surprises him by popping out of the rear seat. She plays the daughter of Shekhar’s father’s business partner. She is slated to marry Shekhar and is obviously in love with her man. Shekhar has no idea of Gayatri coming to the station and is pleasantly surprised.
Lights, camera, action: Dia’s Siliguri sojourn has taken off on an unlucky note with her catching a viral infection in the eye. The eye is swollen and painful. She is asked to wear sunglasses. The road opposite the station is crammed with people — all eyes on the Saif-Dia duo. A make-up move by Saif or a yawn from Dia is being cheered loudly. The particular shot needs a lot of co-ordination from the junior actors as all of them are required to move in the foreground and background at a certain pace and in a certain direction. Sarkar isn’t happy with the way Dia is popping up from the back seat. Neither is she. As many as 12 takes are needed to get the shot right.
Freeze frame: Saif is passion personified as he walks up to the monitor and suggests to Dada (Sarkar) that Dia should take a pause between the two dialogues “Surprised?” and “Aren’t you here to see me?”. Sarkar makes the necessary changes and once the shot is canned to everyone’s satisfaction both Dia and Saif watch the shot again on the monitor and discuss how they should act-react in the next shot.

Day 3, Monday, 1.11.2004
Time: 2.14 pm
Location: Between Sukhna and Rongtong stations
Storyboard: A part of the song sequence on the train has Shekhar sitting in the dining car and actually seeing flashes of Lolita in the seat in front of him. For the particular shot, Lolita’s face is in the foreground and Shekhar’s smiling face in the background. There are also a couple of lines of the song in the female voice.
Lights, camera, action: After being in the hotel and vanity van for the greater part of the first three days of shooting, Vidya Balan finally gets to face the cameras at Siliguri. She is wearing a red-and-white tant sari and loads of jewellery to go with the Sarat Chandra look. She has a quick lunch and heads straight for the train. Nutty has an equally brief lunch as the coach is turned into a dining car with very ethnic tableware, cutlery and crockery. Sarkar is very excited and actually sings and directs Vidya how to emote while lip-syncing the song. The cameras roll as soon as Bhavani gets the train to move from the tracks.
Freeze frame: The production people believe Vidya Balan holds the key to the film with her playing the title role of Parineeta. So they are planning to launch the actress in a grand way before the release of the film since very few people beyond Bengal are aware of the Bhalo Theko debut. The actress on her part has worked a lot on herself and has prepared religiously for the role. So it is not surprising to see her break into the song as soon as she boards the train for the shot. Saif too is rehearsing the lines as if there’s no tomorrow.

But tomorrow there is, and that too, in Calcutta when the whole team parks itself for a month-long shoot.

'Shooting a film is like waging a war'

During a longish break during the shooting of Parineeta on Sunday, SAIF ALI KHAN spoke to Pratim D. Gupta, over breakfast in the forests, near Sukna station at Siliguri

Everyone’s talking about you shooting on a toy train where your mother (Sharmila Tagore) shot 30 years ago. How do you feel about it?
It’s strange. This place takes me back to a different time altogether when my mother was shooting in Mud Island for some film, possibly a Bengali one. There was this still photographer shooting her pictures and bringing to her the shots. She was looking so nice…

The shooting’s been tough here with such maddening crowds…
Shooting a film is like waging a war. It’s like a race against time, against money. And you don’t even know what you’ve got till you are finished with the shoot. Sometimes you are on schedule, sometimes you are behind… Yes, it’s exciting.

What made you sign Parineeta?
The film is produced and directed by such passionate people. Knowing their love for cinema, I had to do it. There is another personal reason. I was offered another role (now being played by Sanjay Dutt) but I wanted to do Shekhar. And after I met the director, he was convinced I could do it. So we went ahead…

You’ve never played a Bengali before…
Yes, this is my first Bengali character. But then again, I do not use a Bengali accent in the film. It is, after all, in Hindi and I am a half-Bengali anyway. So I am just being myself. (Pause) I am finally working with a Bengali director for a Bengali subject. Something my mother has done so many times.

How much of Shekhar is there in Saif?
Shekhar is educated abroad like me. I am playing a part of his whole character. I am trying to figure out the politics and the kind of person he was. There is no similarity between us really although Dada (director Pradeep Sarkar) feels I am typecast. I am just putting myself in the situation, trying to understand it and react accordingly. At times you can recall certain experiences of your own life and try to link it to the plot and at others you just have to imagine.

Have you read the Sarat Chandra novel?
The film is an adaptation of the original story. It was set in 1913. This one happens in 1962. Yes, the story does come very close to the original. But being an adaptation all the same, I didn’t read the novel. Neither did I see any of the earlier film adaptations. I didn’t want any outside influence.

Your thoughts on working with Vidya Balan…
We haven’t shot together yet. We did some testing in Mumbai. She is very talented. In fact, I am a bit nervous because she’s really worked hard and rehearsed a lot. She knows the script backwards.

And Sanjay Dutt?
We worked together before for a film named Nehle Pe Dehla. This, of course, is a completely different film. Sanju is a fantastic actor. I know him personally and am very fond of him.

Any special tips from your mother?
She did not teach me how to act. She told me to think of the camera as a beautiful woman looking at you. You have to do everything to make a good impression. You also can’t let her know that you are looking at her. You have to keep in mind how you would like her to look at you. Finally, you have to make her find you irresistible. I thought it was a beautiful way to explain how to face the camera. It was special to me.

What is the difference between the Saif Ali Khans before and after Dil Chahta Hai?
There was always this sense of frustration at not being able to respect oneself any more as an actor. After pursuing a career for almost 10-12 years, there was this burning desire to succeed. I wanted to fit the roles, play the parts, change, develop and learn a few things. Also, I feel I am working with more focused directors and producers. What’s more, the films have started to reflect our generation and that is something that comes very naturally to me.

On what basis do you say “yes” to a film?
A lot of factors. The script selection is important. The vibe that I get from the makers is another thing. What’s the concept of the movie, who’s making it… I also look at what is appealing to others. I do not want to ram concepts down other people’s throats. Mainstream cinema is for public viewing — they are paying to watch us. We have a large responsibility to the audience. And when I want to be experimental I do a small film like Being Cyrus for almost no money.

What worked for Hum Tum?
It was not a regular Bollywood movie. The dialogues, the attitudes… everything was patterned differently. In fact it was devoid of drama, consciously. Then there was animation involved. The film was very cleverly projected and marketed. Today, commercial cinema is a mixture of knowing what to make and for whom. The art aspect is what to make and the business aspect is for whom. So the producer is now the king. While the director is the main guy who has to make the film happen, the producer has to choose the canvas the film deserves. Vinod Chopra, Aditya Chopra, Karan Johar, all have different attitudes but they do know how to handle a film.

Do you feel far more confident now?
I feel a lot more responsible. Sometimes I feel confident, sometimes I am as nervous — it’s up and down really. And now, I have got used to this up-and-down process. I don’t react to them anymore. Then again, may be I do…

So many things are written about your personal life. How do you react?
I have stopped reading what’s being written. You shouldn’t judge others if you know what the truth is…

Lead role for cops in Parineeta Scene II

Pratim D. Gupta

Siliguri, Oct. 31: Saif Ali Khan stole the show on Day I of the three-day Siliguri stint for Parineeta. On Day II, local police tried to take the top slot.
The rifle and lathi-wielding personnel outdid the Bollywood-bitten mob in their enthusiasm to keep them at bay.
An officer said: “We were told by the higher authorities last night that we were not up to the mark on the first day and the shoot was hampered. Today, we decided not to allow anyone in the vicinity.”
It was an action replay of the Main Hoon Na shoot in Darjeeling last year as policemen resorted to shoves and threats. “We are asking everyone to clear out. If they are not complying, we are having to use force,” said Bagdogra circle inspector Prodyut Chandra Das.
The man of the moment did not mind the power policing though. Playing protagonist Shekhar in the adaptation of the Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay classic, Saif munched fruits and read Hamlet between shots. “It’s just a different vibe today. No one’s fooling around and everybody’s like let’s do it..,” he said.
The comfort level, however, clashed with his celebrity status. Saif added: “There will be crowds… It does feel good when someone in the crowd tells me ‘hey, that’s our didi’s (Sharmila Tagore) son’.”
The police did clear the tracks for director Pradeep Sarkar and crew to can shots of the moving toy train at Sukna and Rongtong stations.
“This was always going to be a very difficult sequence to shoot and a lot of risk was involved…. feels good to see we’re being able to achieve what we had set out to do,” said Sarkar, even as he okayed a take at Elephant Hill.
Hill Cart Road was cordoned off and there was no glimpse of the star ladies either. Vidya Balan, who plays the female lead, Lalita, was not on location — unlike yesterday when she was confined to her vanity van — Dia Mirza was tucked away in her hotel room.