Director Rajkumar Santoshi has once again brought his film with Sunny Deol on screen through ‘Bantwara 1947’. From converting Asghar Wajahat’s original play into a film, an exclusive conversation with him on sequel culture and box office trends… How different is the lead character of ‘Bantwara 1947’ from your old heroes? In my films, there is often a character who tolerates things up to a point, tries to understand, but then a moment comes in front of him where he decides that he cannot remain silent anymore. The struggle in ‘Ghayal’ was very personal. There was a question of justice in ‘Damini’. In ‘Ghatak’ there was a fight against the system and power. Sikandar Mirza’s struggle in ‘Partition 1947’ is related to the safety, respect and humanity of another human being. So there is definitely rebelliousness in him, but its context is different. He’s not just fighting his battle. The question before him is that when something wrong is happening to another person, will you remain a mere spectator? What major changes were made to the film from the original play? Sikandar Mirza’s character has been made more active. In the original play he is present amidst the events, but in the film we had to make his journey more pro-active. The language of theater and cinema is different. A long dialogue, performance and situation on stage can together convey the character’s state of mind. Therefore we saw that Alexander was not just a witness to the events. His decisions move the story forward. How was Sunny Deol’s larger than life image used in this story? In my films the character comes first, the star’s image second. Sunny’s screen presence and intensity is very strong, but that intensity cannot be used in the same way in every film. If you just repeat the pattern of his old films every time, the character will not look new. In ‘Bantwara…’ we definitely made Sikandar active, but for him only physical aggression was not enough, emotional control was also required. What is the common similarity in your films despite different genres? Genre to me is just a way of telling a story, not the purpose of the story. ‘Damini’ is a courtroom drama, ‘Ghatak’ is an action drama, ‘Lajja’ is a social statement and ‘Khakee’ is a crime narrative, but somewhere in all these there is a question that when the question of a person’s dignity, his rights or justice comes to the fore, what does he do? I find interesting characters who have the option to compromise, but ultimately don’t choose the easy path. At a special moment something changes within them. Perhaps this is the common theme of my films. Has nostalgia become a big commercial tool for sequel films today? Nostalgia definitely works, but a film cannot run solely on it. The audience wants a new story. I never chose a film just by looking at trends. I take interest in a subject only when I understand it and find something worth saying about it. For me the story comes first. After that there is star, scale, trend or franchise. There is a lot of discussion about ‘Andaz Apna Apna 2’. What are the chances of it being made? ‘Andaz Apna Apna’ did not become memorable just because of two-four characters or its title. His screenplay, dialogues, comic timing and his entire comic rhythm together make him special. If we ever want to carry that spirit forward, just bringing back the old characters won’t be enough. It is more important that there be a new story which has the same comic energy. The audience doesn’t just want a copy of the old film. He wants a new film, but it should also have a feel for that world.
Source link
[ad_3]
इंटरव्यू: राजकुमार संतोषी बोले- ‘घायल’, ‘दामिनी’ से ‘बंटवारा 1947’ तक मेरे लिए कहानी पहले है, कभी ट्रेंड फॉलो नहीं किया
