पीपल वाले पीर की फिल्‍म 'जेड प्‍लस'

पीपल वाले पीर की फिल्म

वरिष्ठ फिल्मकार चंद्रप्रकाश द्विवेदी अपनी नई फिल्म जेड प्लस के जरिए एक नई इबारत लिखने की कोशिश कर रहे हैं.

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जेड प्लस उस मोहल्ले से निकली है जिसमें वेलकम टू सज्जनपुर, सारे जहां से महंगा, वार छोड़ ना यार, तेरे बिन लादेन जैसी फिल्में बसती हैं. अपने आस-पास की घटनाएं, आस-पास की राजनीति, वहीं का समाज, वहीं की छुद्रताएं, वहीं की उदारता. सौ करोड़ रुपये के नशे में डूबी, चमचमाती कारों, शानदार बिल्डिंगों और विश्वास से परे दृश्यों से इसका दूर-दूर तक लेना देना नहीं है. फिल्म के निर्देशक चंद्रप्रकाश द्विवेदी एक बार फिर से एक अनूठी टीम के साथ सामने आए हैं. पुराने राष्ट्रीय नाट्य विद्यालय के साथी, चाणक्य और पिंजर के सहयोगी और साथ में मोना सिंह और आदिल हुसैन जैसे कुछ नए साथी.

जेड प्लस की कहानी मौजूदा भारत के एक छोटे से गांव में बसने वाले आम आदमी और इस देश की शीर्ष राजनीति के आपसी संबंधों की कहानी है. कहानी इस मायने में जरूरी है कि देश की राजनीति बुरी तरह से उन्हीं लोगों से कटी हुई है जिनसे उसकी सारी ताकत आती है. साथ ही कहानी छोटे-छोटे कई ताने-बाने को भी उधेड़ती है. मसलन जो सरकार सांप्रदायिकता के खिलाफ लड़ने का दम भरती है वह अपनी सरकार बचाने के लिए किस हद तक सांप्रदायिक हो सकती है कि अपने सारे राजनैतिक कौशल और कामकाज को किनारे रख कर दरगाह पर चादर के भरोसे हो जाती है. इतना ही नहीं जब वह राजनीति अपने दिखावे में संवेदनशील होना चाहती है तब ऐसा काम करती है जिससे उसकी साख और समझ दोनों पर सवाल खड़ा हो जाता है. वह गांव के एक पंक्चरवाले को जेड प्लस सुरक्षा मुहैया करवाती है. सरकार की यह नेमत गांव के गरीब पंक्चरवाले की जिंदगी में किस किस्म की उथल-पुथल ले आती है उसी उठापटक और असमंजस का नाम है जेड प्लस. अपनी छवि के विपरीत और इस समय में जेड प्लस की जरूरत पर डॉ. द्विवेदी कहते हैं, ‘भारतीय समाज के लिए पिछले कुछ साल बेहद उठापटक भरे रहे हैं. एक समाज के स्तर पर, इस पर कई तरह के प्रश्न खड़े हुए हैं, लेकिन साथ ही यह समय समाज में आई चेतना और जागरुकता का समय भी रहा है. समाज के हर हिस्से में देश के नए स्वरूप को तय करने की ललक उठ रही है. इसके नतीजे में हम देख रहे हैं कि देश एक बड़े बदलाव से गुजर रहा है. आम आदमी की इच्छाएं और महत्वाकांक्षाएं राजनीति में जगह पाने लगी हैं. सामाजिक मंचों से लेकर टेलीविजन तक पर इन बदलावों की सुगबुगाहट है. लेकिन भारत का सिनेमा इससे एक हद तक अभी भी अछूता है. मेरी कोशिश है कि इन बदलावों और आम आदमी को फिल्मों में भी जगह मुहैया करवाई जाय.’

डॉ. चंद्र प्रकाश द्विवेदी के पिछले कामकाज की बात की जाए तो वह प्राचीन भारतीय इतिहास और साथ ही सामयिक भारतीय साहित्य से गहरे तक प्रभावित रहा है. चाणक्य हो, उपनिषद गंगा हो, पिंजर हो या फिर रिलीज के इंजार में बैठी मोहल्ला अस्सी. खुद उनके शब्दों में, ‘लोग अपने आस-पास की चीजों से ज्यादा आसानी से जुड़ते हैं. मैं भी उन्हीं का हिस्सा हूं. मुझे भी भारतीय साहित्य और इतिहास की वो कहानियां गहराई तक प्रेरित करती है जिन्हें हम पीढ़ी दर पीढ़ी सुनते पढ़ते आ रहे हैं. इसके अलावा मुझे इस मायने में भी अपने काम से एक सुख मिलता है कि एक नए माध्यम (फिल्म) में इन चीजों का दस्तावेजीकरण हो रहा है.’ तो क्या जेड प्लस का भी ऐसा ही कोई साहित्यिक-ऐतिहासिक संबंध है? वे बताते हैं, ‘इस कहानी का प्रवेश चंदा मामा और बेताल पचीसी जैसी कहानियों की तरह मेरे जीवन में हुआ. मेरे एक मित्र हैं राम कुमार सिंह. राजस्थान के हैं. उनकी रचनाओं के लिए उन्हें राजस्थान साहित्य अकादमी का प्रतिष्ठित रागे राघव पुरस्कार मिल चुका है. उन्होंने कुछ साल पहले मुंबई इंटरनेशनल फिल्म फेस्टिवल के दौरान मुझे जेड प्लस की कहानी मेरा समय काटने के लिए सुनाई थी. जिस अंदाज में और जिस रस के साथ वे कहानी सुना रहे थे उसने मुझे पहली बार में ही कहानी का मुरीद कर दिया. मेरे आग्रह पर उन्होंने पहले कहानी का ड्राफ्ट भेजा और फिर कुछ दिन बाद कहानी का कॉपीराइट भी मुझे सौंप दिया. तो आप कह सकते हैं कि फिल्म का और मेरा इतिहास और साहित्य से जुड़ाव अभी भी कायम है.’

रामकुमार सिंह से कहानी के अधिकार मिलने और फिर उसके फिल्मी कहानी में तब्दील होने की कहानी भी लंबी और दिलचस्प है. इस कहानी से डॉ. चंद्र प्रकाश द्विवेदी के व्यक्तित्व के कई और पहलू भी सामने आते हैं. मसलन रामकुमार जो कि राजस्थान के उसी फतेहपुर से आते हैं जो इस फिल्म की पृष्ठभूमि है. लेखक और निर्देशक दोनों के बीच फिल्म के संवादों को लेकर अपने-अपने आग्रह थे. डॉ. द्विवेदी फिल्म को नई कहावतों और मुहावरों के जरिए कम्युनिकेशन सेंट्रिक बनाना चाहते थे न कि डायलॉग केंद्रित. इस समस्या से निपटने के चक्कर में फिल्म के ड्राफ्ट पर ड्राफ्ट बनते गए. अंतत: 23वें ड्राफ्ट के बाद स्क्रिप्ट अपने असली रूप में सामने आई. आज जब वे पीछे मुड़कर देखते हैं तो पाते हैं कि उनके पिछले कामों में भी सुधार की बहुत गुंजाइशें हैं. वे कहते हैं, ‘मैं यही सीख पाया हूं कि स्क्रिप्ट लेखन असल में लिखना और फिर उसे बार-बार लिखने का नाम है. पिंजर की स्क्रिप्ट मेरा पहला ड्राफ्ट था और वही आखिरी ड्राफ्ट था. आज अगर मुझे इसे लिखने को कहा जाय तो मैं इसमें तमाम फेरबदल करूंगा. मोहल्ला अस्सी के कुल चौदह ड्राफ्ट बने. और अब जेड प्लस 23 ड्राफ्ट के बाद सामने आ पाया है.’

अपनी कहानियों की तरह ही द्विवेदी अपने पात्रों के मामले भी बहुत सावधान रहते हैं. एक बार फिर से उन्होंने संजय मिश्रा, मुकेश तिवारी जैसे पुराने साथियों को जोड़कर फिल्म के मोटी मोटा मिजाज का संकेत लोगों को दे दिया है. बिना किसी बड़े नाम और तड़क भड़क के उन्होंने बाकी सबकुछ दर्शकों के ऊपर छोड़ दिया है. इस बार उन्होंने दो नए साथी भी ढूंढ़े हैं जिनका जिक्र करना जरूरी है. पहला नाम है फिल्म के मुख्य कलाकार आदिल हुसैन का यानी फिल्म का असलम पंक्चरवाला. यह सुझाव उन्हें उनकी पत्नी मंदिरा से मिला. हुसैन की अपनी फिल्मी यात्रा उन्हें जेड प्लस जैसी फिल्मों का स्वाभाविक दावेदार बनाती है. इससे पहले विशाल भारद्वाज की इश्किया के अलावा इंगलिश विंगलिश और लाइफ ऑफ पाई में दर्शकों का पाला उनसे पड़ चुका है. आदिल हुसैन के शब्दों में, ‘शायद कोई दूसरा निर्देशक मेरे भीतर के उस एक्टर को नहीं देख सकता था जो विटी है, ह्युमरस है, जो कॉमेडी कर सकता है. डॉ. साब ने मेरी उस क्षमता को पहचाना और मौका दिया. उनके साथ मेरे बेहतर तालमेल की एक वजह यह भी रही कि हम दोनों ही छोटे शहरों से आए लोग हैं. शरारत और बदमाशी तो उनमें भी है लेकिन छोटे शहरों वाली मासूमियत उनके भीतर अभी भी बची हुई है. इसके अलावा अपने काम पर उनकी पकड़ का कोई जवाब नहीं है. एक-एक शब्द और डायलॉग वे जिस तरह से चुनते हैं वह उनके काम के लिए उनका समर्पण दिखाता है. इसीलिए वे एक एक शब्द को बनाए रखने पर जोर देते हैं, बिना उसे बदले.’

‘हम दोनों ही छोटे शहरों से आए लोग हैं. शरारि और बदमाशी िो हम दोनों में ही है लेककन छोटे शहरों वाली मासूकमयि उनके भीिर अभी भी बची हुई है’

द्विवेदी की दूसरी नई पसंद हैं एक्टर मोना सिंह जो फीमेल लीड कर रही हैं. इस नाम का सुझाव भी मंदिरा ने ही दिया था. पर सुझाव से उनके जुड़ाव तक की कहानी बड़ी ही दिलचस्प है. मोना के बिजनेस मैनेजर ने पहले मंदिरा से निर्देशक का रेज्युमे मांगा. इस पर मंदिरा ने उनसे निर्देशक का नाम गूगल पर सर्च करने के लिए कहा. किसी तरह से मोना डॉ. द्विवेदी से मिलने को राजी हो गईं. मोना को कहानी बताने से पहले उन्हें मैनेजर को यह भरोसा देना पड़ा कि उनके पास फिल्म और मोना सिंह को निर्देशित करने की पूरी क्षमता और योग्यता है. खैर बात आगे बढ़ी और मोना सिंह फिल्म करने के लिए राजी हो गईं. शूटिंग के पहले ही दिन फिल्म के संवाद को लेकर मोना और डॉ. द्विवेदी के बीच कुछ बातें हुईं. डॉ. द्विवेदी ने मोना के सामने जयशंकर प्रसाद की एक कविता कही और उसे मोना से दुहराने या लिखने को कहा. इसके बाद उन्होंने गुलजार का एक गीत सुनाया और उसे मोना से लिखने को कहा. बात मोना को समझ आ गई. इसके बाद उन्होंने फिल्म के किसी भी संवाद में एक भी शब्द का हेरफेर करने की जिद नहीं की.

फिल्म को एक मोटे दायरे में देखें तो यह समाज के सबसे निचले और सबसे ऊंची पायदान पर पहुंचे आदमी के बीच का अंतर है, उनके बीच के विरोधाभास हैं, और पूरी कहानी के दौरान मौजूद एक ब्लैक ह्यूमर है जो अपनी पूरी कड़वाहट और गड़बड़ियों में भी दूसरों को हंसने का मौका देती है. और साथ में जेड प्लस सत्ता में बैठकर ताकत की कैंची चलाने वाली उस राजनीति की कहानी तो है ही जो खुद की जड़ें भी काट चुकी है.

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‘सिनेमा अाज भी मेरे लिए जुनून है’ 

पिंजर जैसी बहुचर्चित फिल्म के निर्देशक  डॉ. चंद्र प्रकाश द्विवेदी अपनी नई फिल्म जेड प्लस के साथ एक बार फिर से दर्शकों के सामने हैं. फिल्म के प्रोमो रिलीज से पहले  अतुल चौरसिया के साथ हुई उनकी बातचीत

क्या अब मान लिया जाए कि डॉ. चंद्र प्रकाश द्विवेदी इतिहास के पन्नों से बाहर निकल चुके हैं?
नहीं, इसमें भी आपको देश के 67 सालों के इतिहास की झलक मिल जाएगी. जो राजनैतिक उथल-पुथल इस पूरे समय में देश ने देखी है, और वह जिन वजहों से हुई है उसकी झलक इसमें दर्शकों को मिल जाएगी. यह एक राजनैतिक-सामाजिक व्यंग्य है. मेरा यह भी मानना है कि देश का जो भी साहित्य लिखा जाता है वह कहीं न कहीं उसके इतिहास का दस्तावेज होता है. हमारे प्राचीन शास्त्र भी यही कहते हैं कि नाट्य शास्त्र भी इतिहास की श्रेणी में रखा जाता है. नाट्य के जरिए हम अतीत की अनुकरणीय घटनाओं का उल्लेख करते हैं. मैंने इतिहास की जमीन नहीं छोड़ी है. इसमें भी मैं गाहे बगाहे इतिहास को छूते हुए निकल जाता हूं.

अपनी फिल्म जेड प्लस के बारे में कुछ बताएं. 
जेड प्लस राजनैतिक व्यंग्य है. एक मिली-जुली साझा सरकार जो सांप्रदायिकता और भ्रष्टाचार से जूझ रही है. सरकार के घटक दल किसी भी समय समर्थन वापस लेने को तैयार बैठे हैं. और ऐसे समय में सरकार का एक सहयोगी दल एक ऐसे विचार के साथ सामने आता है जो बेहद दिलचस्प है. उसका दावा है कि सरकार अगर राजस्थान के फतेहपुर में पीपल वाले पीर की दरगाह पर चादर चढ़ाती हैं तो उसकी सारी समस्याओं का अंत हो जाएगा. मरता क्या न करता की तर्ज पर प्रधानमंत्री पीपल वाले पीर की दरगाह पर चादर चढ़ाने को राजी हो जाते हैं. फतेहपुर पहुंचकर प्रधानमंत्री की मुलाकात एक पंक्चर वाले से होती है और उसके बाद एक प्रधानमंत्री और पंक्चरवाले के बीच बातचीत और घटनाओं की जो दिलचस्प कड़ी तैयार होती है वह राजनीति की विद्रूपताओं और उसके समाज से कटाव की कहानी को एक मनोरंजक अंदाज में रखती चली जाती है.

हमारी राजनीति में जो भ्रष्टाचार, संप्रदायवाद या अवसरवाद जैसी गहरी और बड़ी समस्याएं हैं उन्हें व्यंग्य जैसे हल्के माध्यम से कहना कितना सही हैं. क्या व्यंग्य ही गंभीर चीजों को लोगों तक पहुंचाने का सबसे सफल माध्यम है.
इसके कई कारण है. एक कारण यह है कि व्यंग्य पर हमारे यहां बहुत कम फिल्में बनी हैं. दूसरा राजनीति में आम जनता की रुचि नहीं है. समाज की जिन कड़वी सच्चाइयों की बात आप कर रहे हैं वह व्यक्ति अखबार टेलीविजन के जरिए हर दिन देखता रहता है. इसलिए जब वह थिएटर में जाता है तब उसे कुछ नया चाहिए होता है. और जब आप अपने कहने की शैली बदल देते हैं तो लोगों की रुचि बढ़ जाती है. हर दिन हमारे संपादकीयों में कड़े प्रहार होते हैं. शरद जोशी और हरिशंकर परसाईं इसीलिए सफल रहे क्योंकि उन्होंने एक अलग शैली में चोट की. उन शैलियों में अगर हास्य जुड़ जाए तो वह ज्यादा कारगर होता है. गंभीर बात को गंभीर तरीके से कहना तो आम बात है. लेकिन उसी गंभीर बात को हंसते-हंसते कह दिया जाए और आपका काम भी हो जाए तो यह किसी भी फिल्मकार की सबसे बड़ी सफलता है.

आपका अब तक का कामकाज देखें तो हम पाते हैं कि वह इतिहास और साहित्य के साए में रहा है. प्राचीन भारतीय कथाएं भी आपको बहुत आकर्षित करती हैं. चाणक्य से लेकर उपनिषद गंगा तक सारा कामकाज इसका सबूत है. आपने एक बार महाभारत बनाने की कोशिश भी की थी. ऐसा क्यों हैं.
मुझे लगता है कि ये सारी कहानियां टाइम टेस्टेड हैं. समय ने इन कहानियों को अच्छी तरह से परख लिया है. नाट्य शास्त्र में इस बात को मजबूती से कहा गया की ऐसे चरित्र जिन्हें हम जीवन मंे देख सकें और जिनसे कुछ पा सकें, जो हमारे आस-पास का हो, तो वह लोगों को आसानी से समझ आ जाते हैं. आचार्य हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी ने लिखा है कि ईश्वर ने हमें दो आंखें आगे दी तीसरी आंख क्यों नहीं दी. क्या उसने गलती की. नहीं उसने गलती नहीं की है असल में हमारी तीसरी आंख हमारा इतिहास है. यह इतिहास की ताकत है. इतिहास हमें इतनी ताकत देता है कि हम वर्तमान की समस्याओं का उत्तर अपने अतीत में खोज सकते हैं. इसीलिए इतिहास मुझे आकर्षित करता है. अगर हम सांप्रदायिकता की बात करें तो मुझे लगता है कि हमने हमेशा इस मसले को कालीन के नीचे छुपाने का काम किया. कभी भी इस पर ईमानदारी से बात नहीं की. फिल्मों में भी हमने इस पर बहुत छिछले तरीके से चर्चाएं देखी हैं.

साहित्य और इतिहास पर फिल्म बनाने की परंपरा पश्चिमी फिल्मों में बहुत गहरी और लंबी रही है. इसके विपरीत भारतीय फिल्म जगत में यह परंपरा बहुत कमजोर दिखती है. आपको और एकाध और लोगों को छोड़ दें तो हमारे यहां ऐसे नाम और फिल्में कम हैं.
बिल्कुल, इसका कारण यह है कि हमारा समाज ऐसा है कि इसको अक्सर शब्दों तक से आपत्ति हो जाती है. यहां जितनी ऐतिहासिक फिल्में बनती हैं उसको लेकर कोई न कोई विवाद हो जाता है. कल जो शब्द प्रचलित थे वे आज नहीं हैं. लोग थिएटरों पर पत्थरबाजी करते हैं. इससे निवेशक को लगता है कि वह चला था कुछ और करने हो कुछ और रहा है. इतिहास को लेकर हमारे यहां भय है. एक और गंभीर समस्या यह है कि हमें अपने इतिहास को लेकर गर्व नहीं है. उससे एक तरह का डिसकनेक्ट है. एक वजह यह भी है कि हमें ऐतिहासिक विषयों में बड़ी सफलताएं नहीं मिली हैं. पश्चिम में देखें तो उनकी ऐतिहासिक फिल्मों को बड़ी सफलताएं मिली हैं. क्लियोपेट्रा को देखें तो पहली को छोड़कर बाद में बनी दोनों फिल्मों को बड़ी सफलता मिली. तीसरी बार जो सीरीज बनी वह सर्वश्रेष्ठ थी. इस तरह के प्रोजेक्ट लगातार चल रहे हैं वहां. हमारे यहां ऐतिहासिक पात्रों को लेकर ज्यादा रुचि नहीं है. इसके अलावा एक कारण यह भी है कि इतिहास पर फिल्में बनाने में लंबा वक्त लगता है और काफी अध्ययन करना पड़ता है. लोगों को लगता है कि इतना समय लगाने के बाद विवाद हो तो इससे अच्छा है कि कम समय में कुछ और कर लिया जाए.

आप अक्सर कहा करते हैं कि आपको विदेशी साहित्य और इतिहास की बजाय भारतीय कहानियां ज्यादा रास आती है.
मैं सारे बिंब भारतीय समाज से ढूंढ़ता हूं. मैं हमेशा कहता हूं कि मैं अपने दिमाग के द्वार हमेशा खुले रखता हूं. मैं सिनेमा कम देखता हूं. जब तक मुझे विचार प्रेरित नहीं करते तब तक मैं फिल्म नहीं बनाता हूं. अभी भी मैंने सिनेमा को जुनून के स्तर पर ही बनाए रखा है.

आज से दस या बीस साल बाद जब हम मुड़कर देखेंगे और डॉ. चंद्र प्रकाश द्विवेदी की समीक्षा करेंगे तब हम पाएंगे कि एक बड़े फिल्मकार के हिस्से में कुल तीन-चार फिल्में ही दर्ज हैं. यह किसकी असफलता होगी?
कुछ हद तक यह मेरी असफलता है. और कुछ हद तक समाज ने इस तरह के काम को स्वीकार नहीं किया है. मैं ऐसे कई लोगों से मिला हूं जो चाणक्य को रिफरेंस के तौर पर इस्तेमाल करते हैं. श्रीलंका में बुद्ध के ऊपर एक फिल्म बन रही थी तब उन्होंने चाणक्य को बार-बार देखा. इसी तरह से पिंजर का इस्तेमाल रिफरेंस के तौर पर लोग करते हैं. यह कम सफलता नहीं है

Vishal Bhardwaj: I’m not anti- national, but I’ll comment on what’s anti-human

Anshul Chaturvedi,TNN | Sep 30, 2014, 12.00 AM IST

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Handling a confrontational story set in Kashmir means walking a tightrope between catering to jingoism and risking the 'anti-national' tag. Vishal Bhardwaj explains how he balances that in Haider.

After you finished Haider, and started the phase of promotions, three Kashmir-centric events of a fairly high visibility happened. One, the floods, and the relief operations, within which you had episodes such as Yasin Malik's asking people to not take the Army's help. Two, Bilawal Bhutto declaring that he would "take Kashmir back" - yet again proving that the easiest way for a politician to trend online is to make one grand declaration on Kashmir. Thirdly, Nawaz Sharif and Modi speak at the UN General Assembly and the usual expected statements on plebiscite and exported terror are exchanged. Kashmir perspectives tend to be very fixed - 'traitors', 'motherland', 'terror', 'brutality', 'saviours', and such catchphrases start playing in all debates. How do you view or consume these developments differently after having spent this much time understanding the Kashmir story?

Actually, it's important to see it in its reality. What I have attempted to do is observe the life of a common family in Srinagar. And my film is set in a period, in 1995, when militancy was it at its peak. What a middle class family in Kashmir goes through in a time of conflict. How a family that doesn't belong to either side, that wants to live a normal life, how that family gets sucked into all this is my story. Politics is a backdrop, a very strong backdrop, but finally I am exploring the story of a family. Mujhe jo lagta hai, ki jo abhi tak hamari filmein mostly Kashmir pe bani hain, humnein almost always baahar se jaa kar dekha hai. We haven't seen it from the other side. What is the viewpoint of the people who have lived over there, what they have gone through - that has not been taken up. Sometimes we see it from the view of an intelligence officer, sometimes from the viewpoint of a journalist, sometimes it could be the story of a South Indian lady who is attempting to find her husband. That is the way the filmmaker likes to access what he thinks he can actually be closest to. I did not want to do that. Which is why I hadn't taken this up earlier, even though I'd wanted to make a movie on Kashmir for many years.

Why?
Because it's a conflicted state. It is a human tragedy. And a filmmaker is always interested in reflecting the times he lives in. For the past 25 years, I have grown up in the shadow of these conflicts - first Punjab and then Kashmir. Punjab finally stabilized, and perhaps people expected Kashmir to, as well, and there is a thought ki militancy ki age hoti hai, 10 years, it will finish. But it has been more than 20 years and the militancy in Kashmir is not finishing. I read the book by Basharat Peer, his memoirs of growing up in the 90s, and I found a lot of insight in that. So I took him up as my co-writer, we adapted Hamlet to that, and that's how my Kashmir film finally came into being.

Suppose you were called to take part in a TV debate on Kashmir, and asked to comment on local people being asked to boycott help from the Army by the likes of Yasin Malik amid very heated opinions. What would you say?

I don't think these questions were there in the first two or three days when the situation was really bad. They began to come up later. When things are really tough, I don't think it is about who is an Armyman and who is a separatist. It is about the basic value of human life and of saving that life. I think that sort of debate is an afterthought. I am not sure of who said what, but I think it was an afterthought, that question. In reverse, I remember seeing TV and Mirwaiz Umar was on TV and they were somewhere in Kashmir University, I think, and they were saying we need more boats. And at that time I think it was very insensitive on the part of a journalist who asked Mirwaiz, now do you feel gratitude towards the Army? I mean, what a time to ask that! Isn't it insensitive for us to ask that? Dekhiye hum aap ke liye kitna kar rahe hain. Aap unko apna maante hai na? Phir ehsaan jataane ki zaroorat kyun? And the thing is that the Army, which is actually doing the work, is not making a show of doing a favour. The Army has blinders - it keeps out of politics, does its work and goes back. Problem shuru hoti hai when politics enters areas such as flood relief and then the media tries to sensationalize things. These are times to win people over, not score points. And from what I have seen, there is a lot of respect for the Army there, it has done a lot of work.

READ: Haider: Vishal Bhardwaj took months to compose Bismil

You are setting the story in 1995, and you are shooting in Kashmir for that story in 2014 - when it has moved ahead about two decades. How much of a change did you notice from 1995 when you spent time in Kashmir now?
Elections have happened many times since then. Militancy is much lesser than what it was at its peak. And the common Kashmiri is fed up. Their business has been very badly affected amid all this. I think they want to live a normal life - yeh mujhe laga.

When a filmmaker makes a movie where the concept of 'Hindustan' has a key role to play, isn't it easier to make something like a Gadar - no shades of grey, the hero effortlessly uproots handpumps and wins against everyone because he's a hot-blooded patriot? If a movie, in trying to tell both sides of a story, has shades of being 'anti-India', it's likely to cause angst as well as censor troubles.How do you walk that tightrope? How does a creative individual work his way around the jingoism of the mass audience?
I'm also an Indian, I'm also a patriot, I also love my nation. So I won't do anything which is anti-national. But what is anti-human, I will definitely comment on it. That is what I have done in the film as well. I am definitely not anti-national, I am only against what is anti-human. I have had not a single objection raised to any scene, any dialogue in my film being cleared (by the CBFC).

Surely you would have expected some objections, given the nature of the topic?
Yeh toh hum assume kar ke chalte hain. Aajkal ki film is the easiest punching bag. Anyone wants publicity, all he has to do is file a PIL against a film. Meri toh koi film release hoti hai toh mujh pe chalees cases hote hain. Jin previous films mein kuch controversial nahi thaa un mein bhi hua, is mein jab release hogi tab pata chalega kitne hote hain!

Are we getting increasingly hyper-touchy and sensitive, or is it that publicity-seeking by slamming cinema is becoming an art form?
Dono hi cheezein hain. A film is the easiest way to gain publicity.

Aren't societies supposed to get more evolved and mature with time? Why is the reverse happening here?
I really don't know, but so many basics aren't taken care of in our system. The begging mafia exists at every traffic light in our country. Isn't the government aware that most beggars don't beg for their individual needs but are controlled by a mafia? Isn't the government aware that if you have to buy a flat, you have to pay 40 to 50% in black? Everyone knows that. What is being done about it? A person like me, if I have to buy a flat, I have money only in white, what do I do? I have to turn my white into black to make the purchase, I have to consult a CA who will tell me how to turn white money into black! Disgusting! Hamara yeh attitude hai na, ki jahaan tak hamara personal kaam nikal raha hai, society gayi tel lene. If giving a hundred rupee bribe gets me a berth to sleep at night in a train, we will all give it, I will also give it. This is part of our psyche. We are getting to be a morally corrupt society. Maybe the next generation will be able to change something, I can't see it happening very soon. These are just my personal views, though.

You've said earlier that "I needed a place with a political conflict" as a setting for this movie. Punjab has also had a bloody and violent phase. Naxalism is today rated as a greater internal security threat than Kashmir. Did it occur to you to place your Hamlet in either of these locations?
Naxal topic tha mere dimaag mein kaafi time tak. Prakash Jha nein in the meantime own kar liya Naxalism ko (laughs). Many movies got made on it. And then the risk is that audiences can begin to respond like "arey yaar ek aur aa gayi", they can get put off.

You also said that we have not made any mainstream movie on Kashmir in all these years. Isn't that true of most of our political questions and our political personalities? We have not made any mainstream movie on Nehru, we have not made any mainstream on Patel - if we did, we would have had to explore the questions of accession, plebiscite, wouldn't we?
Banane kahaan dete hain, bataiye? Indira Gandhi par nahi banni chahiye film? What a graph! What a beginning, middle, end! Bananey denge? Nahi bananey denge. Phir hoga ki jaise woh chahte hain, waise... Take Nehruji ki story. Kitni colourful life hai, kitni committed life hai. Aadmi swaraj ke liye fight kare toh kya colourful nahi ho sakta? Lekin you can't make a film like that - yahaan toh laathi utha kar maarne ke liye pehle taiyyar rehte hain!

But even the movies that are made - do our audiences consume them? I recall meeting Laxmi Sehgal in Kanpur when Benegal's 'Bose: The Forgotten Hero' released, to ask her what she thought of her portrayal in the movie. She hadn't seen it - it wasn't running in a single theatre in the city! Why don't movies on political issues or political biographies work here?
See, there's another side to it. Nobody knew the Tamil actor of Roja - but the film was a huge hit. I don't think it's always about whether it is political or not. It has also got to do with the storytelling. Aap mazedaar film banaiye pehle. Is kism ki filmein - yeh laddoo ke andar kadwi dawai chhupa ke dene waali baat hai. Upar se laddoo lagna chahiye. Jaise munh mein poora rakha, jab ab thook bhi nahi sakte - tab...! Woh laddoo toh lagna chahiye na. Agar chamcham nahi hai, chandi ka warq nahi laga hai, toh phir Kanpur mein nahi lagegi film! Mainstream mein reh kar yeh karna is a very difficult task - but that's the only way to reach people.

Aapki Kashmir ki dawai Shakespeare ke laddoo mein hai?
(Laughs) Ji, main Shakespeare ke kandhe pe rakh kar goli chalata hoon!

What's the identity crisis a filmmaker like you faces when he has to balance Box Office returns and your sensibilities - how much dawaai, how much laddoo?
These questions come up, in every film. But I don't do things for others. I make the film for myself. Mujhe kal sharm nahi aani chahiye isko dekhne mein. If I have a doubt about that, that's when I put a stick out and stop it. And I hope that some others will relate to my sensibility. And there must be enough people who share that sensibility for the producers to come back and put money in my movies. I make myself the audience. If I will look back at something I have done five years down the line aur mujhe sharm aayegi - main woh nahi karta.

My Point of View… : DEEPIKA PADUKONE

Deepika Padukone is a noted film personality based in Delhi. She has written this note on her FB page. 

Deepika Padukone

There is only ONE sign that a woman wants to have sex and that is that she says “YES”.

The reason I write the above line is because we all know that in India we are so desperately trying to make a change in the way sections of our society think in order to move towards a happier world devoid of inequality, rape, fear and pain.

I am not naive about my own profession; it is one that requires lots of demanding things of me. A character may demand that I be clothed from head to toe or be completely naked, and it will be my choice as an actor whether or not I take either. Understand that this is a ROLE and not REAL, and it is my job to portray whatever character I choose to play convincingly.

What my concern is and I am stating it clearly so it is not misconstrued or confused with Shahrukh’s 8-pack or any other woman’s or man’s anatomy. I have spoken out against an ideology that such regressive tactics are still being employed to draw a reader’s attention at a time when we are striving for women’s equality and empowerment. In a time where women should be applauded for making headway in a male-dominated society,we blur the lines between REEL and REAL life and dilute all our efforts by making a one-year old back sliding piece of news a headline. Digging out an old article and headlining it “OMG: Deepika’s Cleavage Show!” to attract readers is using the power of influence to proliferate recessive thought.
When an actresses inner wear decides to do a “peek-a-boo”,she most definitely did not step out with the intention to do so.So instead of zooming in,circling it and pointing arrows at it, why don’t we give her some ‘respect’ and let it go instead of making it ‘headlines’!? Are we not human?Yes we marvel,envy and drool over a male actors 8pack abs in a film,but do we zoom in on the mans ‘crotch’ when he makes a public appearance and make that ‘cheap headlines’??!!

I have no issue celebrating my body and I have never shied away from anything on-screen to portray a character. In fact my next character portrayed is a bar dancer (sorry Farah for the spoiler!) who titillates men as a means to support her livelihood. My issue is you propagating the objectification of a REAL person,and not a character being played. Sure,dissect my characters if you wish-if it is of so much interest then discuss the character’s cup size and leg length if it is relevant to making the role convincing. All I am asking for is respect as a woman off-screen.

It is not about breasts, penises, or any other body part being reported. It is a matter of context and how out-of-context the reportage is just to sell a headline. And more so during a time in dire need of an attitude shift towards women.

For me this topic ends here. Everyone is entitled to an opinion. I have little interest to take this further as it might get more attention than it deserves and might be further misconstrued and twisted to sell more undeserved headlines.

Having said that, please may we show love,dignity and respect to each other.

Live well, laugh often and love much.

Deepika Padukone

छठ पूजा - प्रकाश के रे

November 19, 2012

प्रकाश के रे बरगद के संपादक हैं.

- कातिक में अईहअ ए परदेसी बालम घरे होता छठ…
-कातिक में आईब ए प्यारी धानी हमहूँ करब छठ…
(-परदेस में रहने वाले मेरे प्रिय, कार्तिक माह में आ जाना, घर में इस बार छठ की पूजा हो रही है…
-हाँ, कार्तिक में घर आऊंगा मेरी प्यारी, मैं भी छठ का व्रत करूँगा…)

बिहार, झारखण्ड, पूर्वी उत्तर प्रदेश और नेपाल की तराई में मनाया जाने वाला सबसे पवित्र और महत्वपूर्ण पर्व है छठ. साल में दो बार – चैत्र (मार्च-अप्रैल) और कार्तिक (अक्टूबर-नवम्बर) में- होने वाले इस पूजा के अवसर पर दूरदराज़ के नगरों-महानगरों में रोज़गार के लिये गए लोग अपने घर लौटते हैं और पूजा में भाग लेते हैं. दीपावली के छः दिन बाद होने वाले छठ के महत्व का अंदाज़ा इसी बात से लगाया जा सकता है कि लोग किसी और त्यौहार या अवसर पर घर भले न जाएँ, लेकिन इस पूजा में शामिल होने की पूरी कोशिश करते हैं. यही कारण है कि छठ के समय इन क्षेत्रों को जाने वाली रेलगाड़ियों में जबरदस्त भीड़ होती है और लोगों की सहूलियत के लिये विशेष गाड़ियाँ चलानी पड़ती हैं. तमाम कठिनाईयां सहकर भी लोग यात्रा करते हैं और चार दिन के इस पर्व में भागीदारी करते हैं. मैं हर साल इस अवसर पर अपने शहर डिहरी-ऑन-सोन पहुँचने की कोशिश करता हूँ और सोन नदी के किनारे सूर्य देव और छठी मैय्या की पूजा के विहंगम और व्यापक दृश्य का साक्षी होने की कोशिश करता हूँ.

मेरे अनुज माँ और मौसी को अर्ध्य दिलाते हुए

छठ का पर्व सिर्फ़ इन समाजों की गहन निष्ठा के कारण ही विशिष्ट नहीं है, बल्कि इस पूजा का स्वरुप भी इसे अन्य धार्मिक अनुष्ठानों, आयोजनों और त्योहारों से भिन्न पहचान देता है. किसी भी अन्य पर्व में पवित्रता और सादगी पर इतना ध्यान नहीं दिया जाता जितना छठ में दिया जाता है, फिर भी चार दिन की इस पूजा में कर्मकांडों, पुरोहितों और मंदिरों की कोई भूमिका नहीं होती. पूजा के पहले दिन व्रत करने वाले स्नान कर कद्दू-भात का भोजन करते हैं. घर के एक कोने में पूजा और प्रसाद के लिये नारियल, केले आदि वस्तुएँ रखी जाती हैं और वहीं पर व्रत करने वालों का भोजन और प्रसाद पकाया जाता है. इस दिन को ‘नहाय-खाय’ कहा जाता है. अगले दिन ‘खरना’ किया जाता है जिसमें उपासक उपवास करते हैं और संध्या में गन्ने के रस में खीर बनाते हैं. घर के उसी हिस्से में इस खीर के एक हिस्से को हवन में डालते हैं और शेष को व्रती खाते हैं और परिवारजनों तथा सम्बन्धियों में प्रसाद-स्वरूप वितरित किया जाता है. उपासक अपना भोजन और प्रसाद की सामग्री स्वयं तैयार करते हैं और घर के उस पवित्र कोने में अन्य सदस्यों के जाने की मनाही होती है. खरना का खीर खाने के बाद निर्जल उपवास शुरू होता है. प्रसाद के रूप में गन्ना, अमरुद, नारियल, केला आदि फलों के साथ हाथ से पिसे हुए गेहूं के आटे में गुड़ मिला कर ठेकुआ पकाया जाता है. इन वस्तुओं के प्रति पवित्रता के भाव का अनुमान छठ के इस गीत से होता है:

केरवा जे फरेला घवद से ओह पर सुगा मड़राए,
उ जे खबरी जनईबो अदित से, सुगा देले जूठीआए,
उ जे मरबो रे सुगवा धनुख से, सुगा गिरे मुरछाए….. 
(छठ पूजा के लिये प्रयुक्त होने वाले केले के गुच्छे पर तोता घूम रहा था. मैंने तो भगवान आदित्य से शिकायत कर दी कि केले को तोते ने जूठा कर दिया. भगवान ने उसे धनुष से मारा और तोता मूर्छित होकर गिर पड़ा…..)

लेकिन इसका अर्थ यह नहीं है कि छठ के व्रती में दया और करूणा नहीं है. इस गीत में आगे गाया जाता है-

डेहरी में सोन नदी का घाट

उ जे सुगनी जे रोयेले वियोग से
आदित होईं न सहाय, देव होई न सहाय…..
(तोते के वियोग में उसकी प्रेयसी रो रही है. हे भगवान आदित्य, उसपर कृपा करें…..)

पूजा का तीसरा दिन सबसे महत्वपूर्ण दिन होता है. संध्या के समय व्रतधारी और उनके परिजन नदी, तालाब या पोखर की ओर प्रस्थान करते हैं. परिवार के पुरुष माथे पर एक बड़ी सी टोकरी (दौउरा) में पूजा की सामग्री और प्रसाद लेकर चलते हैं और व्रती गीत गाते हुए चलते हैं:

कांच ही बांस के बहन्गिया
बहंगी लचकत जाये
होईं न बलम जी कहंरिया
बहंगी घाटे पहुंचाए…..
(कच्चे बांस की बनी हुई बहंगी लचकती हुई जा रही है. हे प्रिय, कंहार बन इसे घाट तक पहुंचा दीजिये…..)

आमतौर पर हमारे शहर और कस्बे गन्दगी के लिये जाने जाते हैं. लेकिन छठ के अवसर पर सब कोई, चाहे उनके यहाँ छठ की पूजा हो रही हो या नहीं, अपने घर के आसपास सफाई करवाता है जिसके कारण पूरा शहर गंदगी मुक्त हो जाता है. जो परिवार किन्हीं कारणों से छठ का व्रत नहीं कर पाते, वे अपने घर के सामने खड़े हो कर अगरबती या फल व्रतियों के दौउरे में डालते जाते हैं. धीरे-धीरे व्रतियों और लोगों का हुजूम सोन नदी की ओर बढ़ता है और नदी की रेत पर अपना घाट बनाता है. गन्ने को चारों ओर खड़ा कर छत्रनुमा रूप दिया जाता है जिसके नीचे सूप, दौउरा, दिया, अगरबती, प्रसाद आदि रख दिया जाता है.

वैसे तो डिहरी-ऑन-सोन की आबादी महज डेढ़ लाख की है लेकिन सोन नदी की व्यापकता के कारण आसपास के गाँव के व्रती भी एकत्र होते हैं. यह शहर भारतीय रेल की ग्रैंड कॉर्ड (दिल्ली-हावड़ा सेक्शन) पर है जिसे देश की जीवन रेखा भी कहा जाता है. प्राचीन धार्मिक-सांस्कृतिक शहरों- बनारस (120 किलोमीटर) और गया (90 किलोमीटर) के बीच बसे इस कस्बे से होकर जी टी रोड भी गुज़रती है. यहाँ सोन नदी की चौड़ाई का अनुमान इस बात से लगाया जा सकता है कि नदी पर बने रेल और सड़क पुल दुनिया के सबसे लम्बे पुलों में से हैं. कस्बे के लोग सामान्यतः नज़दीक के गावों से हैं जिसके कारण उनके सगे-संबंधी भी छठ के लिये डिहरी आ जाते हैं. सड़क और रेल मार्ग से जुड़े होने के कारण और सोन नदी के विलक्षण दृश्य के आकर्षण से दूरदराज़ के रिश्तेदार भी पूजा में सम्मिलित होते हैं.

छठ का पहला अर्ध्य (स्थानीय भाषा भोजपुरी में अरग कहा जाता है) डूबते सूरज को दिया जाता है और उसकी असीम कृपा के लिये कृतज्ञता व्यक्त की जाती है. वैसे तो दुनिया कि कई संस्कृतियों में सूर्य की आराधना की जाती है लेकिन छठ में पहली पूजा डूबते सूर्य की होती है और उससे प्रार्थना की जाती है कि वह कल सुबह अपनी पूरी गरिमा के साथ पुनः आए. नदी में स्नान के बाद व्रती अर्ध्य के तौर पर गाय का दूध चढ़ाते हैं. इस प्रक्रिया में किसी पुरोहित की आवश्यकता नहीं होती है. कोई भी परिजन व्रती की सहायता कर सकता है. मंत्रोचार की जगह व्रती लोकभाषाओं के गीत गाते हैं:

हम तोहसे पुछिले बरतिया ए बरतिया से केकरा लागे
तू करेलू छठ बरतिया से केकरा लागे

हमरो जे बेटवा कवन अईसन बेटवा से उनके लागे
हम करेलीं छठ बरतिया से उनके लागे…..
(हे व्रती, मैं आपसे पूछता हूँ कि यह छठ का व्रत आप किसके लिये कर रही हैं. व्रती कहती है कि मैं अपने बेटे के मंगल के लिये छठ व्रत कर रही हूँ…..
गीत में आगे सारे परिजनों का ज़िक्र आता है.)

सूर्यास्त के बाद शहर के व्रती घर लौटते हैं लेकिन दूरदराज़ के लोग नदी घाट पर ही रात बिताते हैं. अगले दिन सूर्योदय से पूर्व व्रती फिर घाट पर जाते हैं और सूर्य देव से उगने की प्रार्थना करते हैं. नदी में स्नान कर दूसरा अर्ध्य दिया जाता है. इस पूजा की विशिष्टता यह भी है कि यह व्रत जितना सूर्य देव के लिये है उतना ही छठी मैया के लिये भी. गीतों में, प्रार्थनाओं में सूर्य और छठी मैया एक ही विराट छवि के दो रूप बन जाते हैं. छठी मैया का रूप कभी धरती का है, कभी नदी का, कभी शक्ति का, कभी देवी का. अर्ध्य के बाद लोग प्रसाद ग्रहण करते हैं. इस पूजा में प्रसाद मांग कर खाने की परंपरा है. घर लौट कर व्रती भोजन ग्रहण करते हैं और इस चार दिन के उत्सव का समापन होता है. 

डेहरी में सोन नदी का घाट

छठ का व्रत एक बार फिर साबित करता है कि लोक धर्मों स्थानिक होते हुए भी शास्त्रीय धर्मों की सीमाओं से कहीं बाहर तक विस्तार रखते हैं. छठ शास्त्रीय धर्मों के कर्मकांडों, विधियों और मान्यताओं की परवाह नहीं करता है. इस पूजा की सादगी उसकी पवित्रता को उदात्त और गहन बनाती है. उसके विधान लोक-स्मृतियों में दर्ज़ हैं और उसकी स्थानिकता उसे सार्वभौम स्वरुप देती है.

लोक पर्वों और त्योहारों की शुरुआत का अनुमान पौराणिकता और ऐतिहासिकता से नहीं लगाया जा सकता है. छठ भी ऐसा ही एक पर्व है. वेदों में सूर्य को समर्पित ऋचाओं का होना और महाभारत में द्रौपदी द्वारा सूर्य पूजा किये जाने के वर्णन से बस इतना कहा जा सकता है कि सभ्यता के प्रारम्भ से ही मनुष्य प्राकृतिक अवयवों की पूजा करता आ रहा है. महाभारत की कथा के अनुसार ऋषि धौम्य के कहने पर द्रौपदी और पांडवों ने सूर्य की आराधना की थी. यह भी मान्यता है कि सूर्य और कुंती के पुत्र कर्ण ने छठ व्रत किया था और वहीं से इस पूजा का आरम्भ हुआ था. महाभारत के अनुसार, कर्ण अंग देश (वर्तमान में बिहार का भागलपुर क्षेत्र) के राजा थे. लेकिन यह अवश्य समझा जाना चाहिए कि छठ व्रत के दौरान किसी कथा या कर्मकांड की अनुपस्थिति, हिन्दू धर्म के शास्त्रीय स्वरुप से विलगन, तथा उसकी विशिष्ट स्थानिकता और सामुदायिकता उसे सभ्यता के आदि धर्म से जोड़ती है. छठ पूजा की पौराणिकता का आग्रह इस पूजा के साथ अन्याय होगा. आजतक इस पूजा के विधि-विधान का कोई मानक तैयार नहीं किया गया है और न ही उसे लिखित रूप दिया गया है. दरअसल ऐसा किया भी नहीं जा सकता है क्योंकि इस पूजा में सूर्य को जल या दूध का अर्ध्य देने और छठी मैया का गीत गाये जाने के अतिरिक्त अगर कुछ है तो वह व्रतियों और उन समाजों में इस अवसर को लेकर उत्कट सम्मान, पवित्रता और सादगी है. देश के एक हिस्से के कृषक समाज के आदिम धर्म के इस रूप को उसी रूप में हमें स्वीकार करना चाहिए तथा इसे पौराणिकता और ऐतिहासिकता की छाया से बचाना चाहिए. देश के अलग-अलग हिस्सों में प्रचलित जीवित परम्पराएँ हमारी इसी ज़िद्द के कारण संकट में हैं.        

Dr. chandraprakash dwivedi and zed plus

As Dr. Chandraprakash Dwivedi returns to the turnstiles with a political satire, the director known for his period sagas, talks about the contemporary politics and his ideological concerns

One evening when journalist and writer Ram Kumar Singh came home Dr. Chandraprakash Dwivedi offered him wine and being a teetotaller that he is sat with a glass of juice. But as Singh’s drinking session went on and on he decided to tell Dwivedi a story that he had written and was planning to turn into a novel.

“We became the proverbial Vikram aur Betal! It was about a guy who fixes punctures and how his life changes when he gets to meet the Prime Minister of the country. Ten minutes into the story, I asked him to stop and told him to mail me the entire story and promised him that if I find it suitable I will turn it into a film,” narrates the master storyteller. Twenty three drafts later the duo emerged with “Zed Plus”, a socio-political satire that is going to end the drought in Dwivedi’s career, who is often described as a creative genius who somehow doesn’t make it to the box office.

“My canvas tends to be huge and we have not reached a stage where a well-researched script and creative experience is enough to get the finances. I was working on “The Legend of Kunal” but was again facing issues with the scale and finance. So I thought am I restricting myself by waiting for these expensive projects to materialise. Why can’t I take a contemporary subject and make it on a canvas that I can afford.” With a friend and wife as co-producers he completed the shoot in 52 days flat.

From the English title and the Hinglish dialogues to the setting of a Muslim household, Dwivedi gifted himself a number of challenges. “But there is a connect with the past,” he avers. “If ‘Chanakya’ was about the making of a nation, ‘Pinjar’ was about breaking of the nation, ‘Mohalla Assi’ is about how our centuries old values changed with advent of liberalisation, ‘Zed Plus’ looks at what has become of our polity through a satire. “It starts with how a coalition government is under pressure of its allies and all the mathematics comes to nought. Around this time the Prime Minister gets a call that if he goes to a village in Rajasthan and pays a visit to the dargah of a sufi, his government can be saved. So with no options left, the prime minister whose government is fighting communalism goes to the shrine and by chance comes across a puncturewallah, Aslam. Now Aslam says something to the PM and the meeting between the lowest common denominator and the top man of the country results in Aslam getting Z plus security. It changes his life for good and bad.” For a man who answers the nature’s call in the open, the security cover becomes an invasion into his privacy.

“Without taking names of any government schemes eventually the Z plus security becomes a metaphor for the growing lack of communication between the dispossessed and the marginalised and those in power. It is happening because our leaders don’t have their ears to the ground. People might watch it as a comedy but when they will go homes the layers will unravel in their mind.”

For a man who devotes years to research, Dwivedi accepts the Muslim household was a new turf for him. “Thankfully, Ram Kumar comes from Fatehpur where the story is based. So the mood was there in the writing itself. I also come from Rajashan and understand the cultural ethos of the region.”

Talking about the cast which has Adil Hussain and Mona Singh in the lead, Dwivedi says, “I noticed Adil in ‘Ishqiya’ and felt how he missed my radar. He told me that he approached me at the time of ‘Pinjar’ but by then I had cast Manoj. I had no recollection of that meeting. When he read the script he was surprised that I cast him in a role which requires impeccable comic timing because none of his film roles had used his talent at comedy. I could sense it in his performance in ‘English Vinglish’ but there was very little on the surface. He told me that for six years he earned his livelihood as a stand up comedian.”

Dwivedi, a doctor by education, is often seen on the right side of the ideological divide in the realm of arts. He says some cultural symbols have become associated with a political party and organisation. “But it doesn’t mean that nobody else can use them. I have faced unnecessary flak because of this mindset for a long time. Mahatma Gandhi said that if all the Upanishads and all the other scriptures happened to be reduced to ashes, and if only the first verse in the Ishopanishad were left in the memory of the Hindus, Hinduism would still live for ever. But it didn’t make him a communal person. Dara Shikoh translated it to Persian because it had value for humanity. When I made ‘Chanakya’ and showcased saffron flags in it, I was branded as rightist. I don’t know what other colour I could have used.”

Similarly, he says when “Pinjar” released some critics called it a rightist view of Partition.

“There cannot be only view of one of the biggest events that affected a big chunk of humanity. There was a scene where a RSS worker was depicted as helping out in a refugee camp. It is a historical fact that the organisation did contribute during the tragedy. Years later when ‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’ showed a similar scene nobody felt offended. People tend to forget that ‘Mohalla Assi’, which will soon see the light of the day, is based on the novel of Kashinath Singh, a known leftist and Ram Kumar Singh also has leftist leanings. To me the authenticity of the story and expression is paramount.”

Perhaps his Sanskrit-ised Hindi creates that impression. “May be. Many years back during a function former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee told me that once on a visit to England, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi introduced him to her counterpart Margaret Thatcher as the man who gives excellent speech in Hindi. Vajpayee said it made him think that if somebody introduced Thatcher as the lady who is a fine orator in English would it have made sense. It shows we are conscious and apologetic about our culture.” Ready to give Narendra Modi a chance, Dwivedi says he is yet to prove himself on the national stage but what has impressed him is his courage to talk about the cultural symbols without mincing words. “He calls Ganga as mother which is true for it is the lifeline to millions of Indians and is a symbol of our composite culture. Ustad Bismillah Khan connected with it with as much devotion as a panda in Varanasi.”

‘Kashmir is the Hamlet of my film,’ says Vishal Bhardwaj on Haider

‘Kashmir is the Hamlet of my film,’ says Vishal Bhardwaj on Haider - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/kashmir-is-the-hamlet-of-my-film/99/#sthash.H6OuvnMw.dpuf

‘Kashmir is the Hamlet of my film,’ says Vishal Bhardwaj on Haider - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/kashmir-is-the-hamlet-of-my-film/99/#sthash.H6OuvnMw.dpuf

‘Kashmir is the Hamlet of my film,’ says Vishal Bhardwaj on Haider - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/kashmir-is-the-hamlet-of-my-film/99/#sthash.H6OuvnMw.dpuf

Written by Harneet Singh | New Delhi | Posted: October 5, 2014 1:00 am | Updated: October 5, 2014 9:13 am

Vishal Bhardwaj on Haider, how he nearly reimagined Hamlet as an espionage thriller, composing songs at airports and learning how to tell a story without words.

Haider is your third adaption of a Shakespearean tragedy, after Maqbool and Omkara. Where does Shakespeare end and Vishal Bhardwaj take over?

I don’t really know how to answer this. Haider is an extension of what I have attempted in Maqbool and Omkara. Haider doesn’t begin like he (Shakespeare) begins his play. I’ve turned his third act into the first act. As a filmmaker, I wanted to make Hamlet in Kashmir. In my film, in a way, Kashmir becomes Hamlet.

What was it about Kashmir that made you set your Hamlet there?

It was the political turmoil and the 25 years of tragedy of Kashmir that compelled me. Our way of looking at Kashmir has either been cosmetic — only for shooting songs — or rhetoric, where we show a man in a phiran, holding a Kalashnikov. Haider is the first film where we see Kashmir from the inside. I don’t think we have made a mainstream film about the issue. If this was Europe, we would have made 200 films on Kashmir. Hollywood is still making films on the Nazi era. Every year, there is a film on World War I. Now, they are telling stories of Iraq, even television has Homeland. They have a take on “human conflicts” lekin hum log toh chori se baaz nahin aaye hain (but we have still not gotten over the theme of theft). Hum abhi bhi thieves ki filmein bana rahe hain (We are still making films about thieves). The human conflict in Kashmir drew me. I’ve set Haider in 1995, when militancy was at its peak. I wanted to observe the human tragedy that a regular middle-class family went through. What happened to the families that didn’t move away? What happened to the mother who was a teacher, the father who was a doctor, the uncle who was a lawyer? Till now, we have heard points of view from this side or that side. We know the two extremes but the tension is always in the middle — what about the people hanging between the two extremes of the rope?

How did the collaboration with journalist-author Basharat Peer, who co-wrote Haider, work out?

My wife, Rekha, was reading Basharat’s memoir, Curfewed Night. One night, I saw her crying while reading it. She said, “Hila diya mujhe iss book ne (This book shook me).” I had just returned from the US and was severely jetlagged, so I didn’t read the book. But Hamlet was very much on my mind. In fact, I was developing the play as a contemporary espionage thriller with author Stephen Alter. We wrote a 30-page synopsis, which I sent to Gulzarsaab to read. He liked it, but asked me, “Where is the tragedy of Hamlet in this thriller?” He was right. What more could I tell about a RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) agent? How much do we really know about the real life of an agent? The Official Secrets Act is so stringent that it’s tough to tell an authentic account of a RAW agent. I was heartbroken, but Hamlet was still on my mind. That’s when I remembered Basharat’s book. I contacted him and we started work. The authentic feel in Haider is because of him. There are so many little things in the film which only an insider could bring in. If Basharat was not a part of the film, it wouldn’t be made or it wouldn’t be made this way.

You worked with Tabu after a decade since Maqbool. Is it easy for a director and actor to pick up the chemistry from where they left it?

There is always chemistry between people. The actor-director equation comes in later. If the friendship remains, then you can take it from where you left. Tabu se mere jhagde bhi bahut huye… saalon baat bhi nahin hui… par phir ek din baat shuru ho gayi. Hamari dosti aisi hai. (Tabu and I had a lot of fights… we didn’t speak to each other for years… but then one day we started talking again. Our friendship is such). With some people you just work professionally, like Saif (Ali Khan) — I did Omkara with him and that’s about it. With Tabu and Irrfan, it’s friendship.

But do you ever miss working with a particular actor? Like Gulzarsaab once told me that he missed working with Sanjeev Kumar.

I miss Priyanka Chopra, both as an actor and as a person. When we work together, it feels as if main apne school ke bachpan ke kissi dost ke saath kaam kar raha hoon (I am working with one of my childhood friends from school). I also miss Irrfan, whose sense of cinema is at another level. Sometimes, an actor takes a performance to another level, and as a director you miss him the most.

Which actor surprised you the most?

Pankajji (Kapur). He took Abbaji’s role in Maqbool to another level. The small gestures he added to his performance, the little things he did, the way he got Abbaji’s walk, he stunned me. Pankajji is the kind of actor who takes from your work, adds his own brilliance to it and shows how great your work is.

How do you strike a balance between writing, directing, producing, composing and singing? What do you enjoy the most?

I’m always shifting gears in my head. I’m thinking about something or the other all the time. I enjoy my music the most. It gives me peace and is my greatest love.

Do you start composing while writing a film or after you have written it?

It begins during the writing. In Omkara, all the songs were composed while writing the script. There is no regimented process of how I make music. Mere saare gaane yunhi chalte phirte bante hain (All my songs are composed just like that). Sometimes, they are made because I want to use them cinematically at a crucial moment in a film, like the lullaby Jag jaa ri gudiya in Omkara, which Omkara sings to wake his wife up. I knew that he would sing it again during the climax, so I needed to compose a lullaby. In Haider, I needed the grave-diggers song, so I made Aao naa. I wrote some lines, but Gulzarsaab only retained Aao naa and changed the rest. You’ll be surprised to know that Gulzarsaab and I have never composed a song, sitting at a place. All our songs have been written and composed at airports or in cars. Most of the times, he is standing in a queue saying the lines, while I sing it back to him on the phone. I will never forget how we made Ibn-e-batuta for Ishqiya. We were standing in a long queue waiting to board a flight. By the time we got to the bus, we had the mukhada ready. Inside the plane, we made the antara, and by the time we landed, we had the entire song.

Which song has been the toughest to compose for you?

That would be Haider’s Bismil. It took over four months to compose. I recorded it in Srinagar, Mumbai and London, but I couldn’t get what I wanted. This is ‘The Mousetrap’ (the play within the play) of Hamlet. This is when Haider re-enacts the murder, but I had to do that while retaining the poetic flavour. It was tough.

How do you sustain your creativity?

By taking as many trips to Landour (near Mussoorie) as I can. Once I’m in Landour, I don’t do anything. I just walk and meet Ruskin (Bond). I want to shift there permanently. Now, there is no compulsion to work from Mumbai because all you need is a computer to work from anywhere.

How do you view your growth as a filmmaker?

I’ve learnt how to convey without words. Earlier, my films were too verbose. In Haider, I have used a lot of silence. I even keep my background music minimalistic.

Is there a filmmaking rule you have had to unlearn?

In filmmaking, less is more. The more you try to explain, the more you mess it up.

If you were to throw a dinner party and invite five of your favourite characters, who all would you call?

Maqbool’s Abbaji, 7 Khoon Maaf’s Susanna, Kaminey’s Guddu, the witch from Makdee and Omkara. I can already see Abbaji and Omkara coordinating and planning something. I can see the witch and Susanna sizing each other up.

Do you follow the work of your contemporaries? Do you have any favourites?

I don’t keep a track of anyone as such, but some of the recent films that I loved are Ship of Theseus, Dibakar Banerjee’s short film Star in Bombay Talkies and The Lunchbox. I also really liked Dibakar’s Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! as well as Anurag Kashyap’s Black Friday and Dev.D. Anurag really surprised me with Dev.D. When he first told me he wanted to do a modern adaptation of Devdas, I tried to talk him out of it.
To me, Devdas’s is a boring story. What does this guy do the entire day? Just drink and cry? That’s boring.

What would your Devdas be like?

My character would become a gangster in love and not sulk in booze.

You have so many scripts ready. Some of those were announced, too, but never took off. Do you have any plans to revisit them?

Jo filmein bante bante reh jaati hain (The films that never get made), they are your unhealed wounds. They don’t bother you when you are occupied with other things, but when you are alone, they pinch you. Out of all my earlier scripts, I would love to make Barf and Dream Sequence.

aditya chopra interview

The movies have been his school, his playground. As far back as you can remember, Aditya Chopra, has been a watcher, scurrying to the cinema halls to see every new release, preferably on the first day itself. Any image that moves on the screen tickles his appetite for more. When he was a kid, like Oliver Twist, Aditya Chopra, has been a watcher, he would ask for more.

Ehave shifted, bag and baggage, into the Siri Fort auditorium, zipping in and out of movies, be it from Hungary, the Honduras or the Hebrides.

The first-born son of Yash and Pam Chopra is also a stickler when it comes to following the principles he believes in.He refuses to compromise his convictions.Perhaps that accounts for the honesty of thought in his debut feature, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, which evidently sprung from his stead-fast regard for unsullied family values

Although you have known Aditya aka Adi even since he was a sprightly teenager, the 24-year-old has avoided sitting himself down for a formal interview. Even if you've threatened him, periodically, that you'll quote his everyday statements anyway, he's been as elusive as the neighbourhood kid who rings the doorbell and bolts from the spot. On the FilmfareAwards night - following his triple triumph with trophies for the Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Dialogue - he senses that you'd feel disappointed if he doesn't show up for the post-function photo shoot. Just for that, he turns up, whizzes before the eye of the still camera.And a few days later, agrees to a conversation conducted in a mattress-lined ante-room of the Chopras' Juhu bungalow.

Here then is a replay of the Q and A with the director who, without doubt, is the hottest property in showtown:

First of all, let me ask you why have you shied away from interviews?

I don't know. I probably just want to stay away from the media as far as possible.A film should speak for itself.And now that my film has spoken so well for me, I can't better that. Basically, I'm shy. I'm media-shy definitely.

What is your first distinct memory of the movies?

That's very difficult for me to pin-point today. I'm told that I would hang out on the sets of Kabhi Kabhie... I must have been four then... with a viewfinder.Usually, shootings are considered to be quite boring but I would love every minute of the experience... subconsciously maybe those days have stayed with me.

This may sound weird but till I was 10-years-old, I thought that everyone... the entire world... did nothing but make films. I was sure that film-making was the only profession in the world.I was quite startled that some of my friend's fathers were into business... into making iron and steel etc. etc.I must have been quite heavily into films to think that way.My brother, Uday, who's one-and-a-half-years younger than me was brought up in the same environment... but he wasn't as obsessive about the movies as I was.

I don't remember seeing the camera for the first time or anything like that.I just remember the movies.It didn't matter who was acting in a movie or who had directed it. The Hindi feature film per se was the biggest high for me.

At times, haven't you felt that some of the films are senseless... that they're foolish?

No, no, not at all.Frankly till a certain age, I liked every film.I couldn't tell the good from the bad. It was only when I was 14 or 15 hat I could pass any sort of judgement.I actually hated one film I saw.And the first time I realised that a film could be good was when I saw Deewar. After that I became somewhat more discerning, I started noticing films more closely.

What were you like as a schoolkid?

I was a sports fanatic. I'd play football and every game I could handle. I wasn't a bad student though, I always ranked among the top 10. I think I was a balanced kid - when I had to study, I would concentrate on my text books with all my heart.And during the vacant hours I'd read books... fiction books which narrated stories with some craft and style... like the books of Jeffrey Archer, Sidney Sheldon and Ayn Rand.Earlier, of course, I was crazy about Enid Blyton's Famous Five and the Hardy Boys series.

I believe you wrote a script revolving around a bank robbery when you were in the fourth standard in school?

Oh that! I wasn't in the fourth standard... I think I was in the seventh standard.I must have been 11 or 12 then.It wasn't a full-blooded script as such, it was an attempt at a thriller about a man who kills someone and loses his memory.And then he becomes a police officer and is assigned to investigate the murder he has committed himself.(Laughs) It was just an attempt to form some sort of a storyline.And who knows? Perhaps, I could still make it into a film some day...
Have you ever written any short stories?

Not really. Occasionally, I' ve just jotted down some points. Often, ideas just float around in my head. Physically, the first time I actually got down to writing was with Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. I never thought I could actually sit down and write but I did.

Earlier, I'd merely suggest a story idea to dad. The germ of Darr came from Dead alm,an Australian film about an obsessed lover. I thought such an idea would end itself to an interesting film... the kind of film which hadn't been made by dad before. Only the climax which was set on the sea in Dead Calm was similar in Darr... apart from that, everything else was different.

Your father has seen extreme highs and lows with success and failure. Were you affected when the Yash Chopra banner was going through a low phase?

I was too much of a kid when Silsila, Mashaal and Faasle didn't do well. As a child, I was cushioned against the hard blows. Our lifestyle didn't change - we'd still go out on vacations, we'd eat the same kind of food and wear the same kind of clothes. I knew that dad was in a depressed frame of mind but he didn't let Uday and me get affected by what he was going through. Mum handled the situation beautifully.

However, I was directly affected when Lamhe didn't do well commercially. It was the first film I'd worked on... assisted on from scratch. Before that, I'd come into Chandni only halfway through. Those days, Lamhe was the film closest to my heart. When it bombed, it shook us up a lot. Perhaps that's why the success of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge did not send me on a great big high... I did not get swayed because I know that even today a Lamhe is possible.

Have you become aware of the negative aspects of the film industry... of the fakeness and the put-on attitudes?

A while ago, I didn't believe this was true of the film industry at ll. I thought film people were essentially good. But when I came in contact with the film industry, I did sense its negative aspects... which is true of every field. Fortunately, I've worked only with good, positive people. I've consciously tried to keep away from the negative side. I don't socialise much. If I don't come to know the industry too closely, it's just as well. Most of my close friends are from outside the industry... and I think it works better that way.

Directors often get emotionally involved with their artistes. Have you found this a problem?

It helps if you don't get emotionally involved. If you get too close to your artistes... to anyone as a matter of fact in your day-to-day work... you may realise that you don't like them. And I can't work with people I don't like. That's why I've chosen not to get too close.

Aren't you pretty close to Shah Rukh Khan?

I can't claim to be his best friend. But I can sense that there is a mutual respect for each other's work... which is a good thing.

Tell me, did you or your parents have any other career options for you?

No, my decision to be associated with the movies was taken very, very early. I didn't have even half-a-doubt that I would become a film-maker. Mum was keen that I should go abroad for further studies... in business management or whatever. But since I was sure that it was Hindi films for me, I felt the years abroad would have made me somewhat westernised. That stint would have removed me from the Indian way of thinking which I wanted to hold on to at any cost.

But aren't you a bit westernised?

Not at all... well maybe I'm a blend. Like my film... or the character of Raj... my exterior may seem westernised, but my inner thoughts and beliefs are absolutely Indian.

Would you say that you cut your teeth by assisting on Lamhe and Darr?

As I said, I came in half-way through Chandni. Gradually, I became well-versed with what goes on. I was also involved in one major schedule of Aaina. I didn't concentrate on the technical side of things though. Direction can't be taught, you have to acquire whatever you can by observing the entire process of film-making on the sets.

So far, I' ve paid more attention on character development and performances. I have to become more proficient in camera angles and the lenses which must be used for particular shots.

After the apprenticeship, were you ready or did you have to be goaded to direct a film independently?

I had to be goaded. Because I'm lazy, I don't like working. I have to be pushed. I guess the fact that I'd nurtured the idea of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge for two to three years, set me off on the road.

The original intention was to do a love story as an English language film. I wanted to show the international audience that India isn't a country of snake-charmers. Rather I wanted to acquaint them with how we Indians live, love, think and react today. Maybe I could still do this kind of international project some day.

After Darr, I was trying to find a story idea for dad. When I told him the basic premise of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, he didn't react immediately. But while I was narrating it to him, the visuals started evolving in my mind... so I thought, okay I'll give the story a shot myself. Something about it excited me. I felt it could be an absorbing love story through which I could say a few things that I wanted to.

What are the few things that you wanted to say?

The primary aim was to make a very honest love story... a love story that would make it at the box office. I wanted to make a film which I would to make a film which I would enjoy seeing. In that way I was being selfish - I was making a film for myself. A wholesome film which I wouldn't mind seeing again and again.

On a broader level, I was also trying to get something out of my system. I'd be quite troubled while watching those love stories in which the boy and the girl elope. I'd wonder how can they just cut themselves off from their parents who've done so much for them? How can they be so callous? They have no right to break the hearts of their parents. I wanted to say that if your love is strong enough, then you will come together... your parents will be convinced about your love ultimately.

I also wanted to comment on the position of the girl in Indian households. In fact, I'm especially proud of the scene between the girl and her mother. I think it describes the situation that Indian women are caught in very clearly. We may be in the 1990s but there are certain things about the Indian family structure that haven't changed at all.

I believe to start with, your dad felt that the mother-and-daughter scene slackened the pace of the film.

It was like this. When I wrote the complete scene and narrated it to my parents and some of the unit members, it was felt that it was a little long and that it would drag. But I shot it the way it was conceived... if it had slowed down the pace, maybe I would have cut out a few lines of dialogue. In fact, quite a few of the scenes were long... I was scared that they might bore the audience. They could have become restless... they could have hooted.

Yes...go on.

Like it was touch-and-go in the case of Shah Rukh's monologue towards the end which I felt was the base of the film. In the last reel, there's just this one man talking. If anyone in the audience had made a noise, the entire scene would have crumbled. But at the first show in the theatre, it was watched in pin-drop silence. And I knew we were through, I knew we had a winner.

But there were some abruptly brief scenes in the film. For instance, Shah Rukh's night out in the Punjab village with Parmeet Sethi and the other boys.

I was aware that the film was quite long. So I didn't want to deviate too much from the main plot. As a result, there were some brief, almost abrupt scenes. I also didn't want to create the character of a typical villain. I just wanted him to be a typical MCP... and not a pitch-black, nostril-flaring villain.

How much difference was there in the film's conceptualisation and final execution?

It turned out to be exactly the way it had been conceptualised... be it the scenes set in London's Trafalgar Square or in Punjab's sarson ke khet. Normally, things can change when you get down to the nitty gritty of shooting. Yet, everything seemed to fall into place at the locations and at the studio. Somebody up there was making it go all-right for me.
What do you have to say about the controversy over the script of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge... following Honey Irani's statements that she was denied credit?

I can answer that question only by saying that ever since I can remember the only thing I ever wanted out of life was to make films... the dream was to make films which were commercially successful and critically acclaimed. But the most important part of the dream was the sense of belonging, the feeling of being part of a group of wonderfully talented people.

Today after the success and appreciation of my film, I should feel that the dream has come true. But I don't. Because there is a doubt about my honesty, integrity and capabilities. As I told you, I've always believed that one's work should speak for oneself. So, I think I'll have to start all over again from the beginning - try and work harder, try and write a better script, make a better film and hope that it will meet with this kind of success and appreciation again. Hopefully then, there won't be any doubts left. Hopefully then, I'll feel that I belong here. Believe me, that's my honest response to your question... and that's all I will ever say on the subject.

Okay... were Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol your first choices for the roles of Raj and Simran?

Initially, I was keen to do the film with newcomers. But I sensed that the key scenes called for a high level of performance. Being new myself, perhaps I couldn't have extracted the kind of performances I needed. Kajol was the natural choice - she's the best... her potential hadn't been sufficiently tapped... I feel it still hasn't been tapped enough.

As for Shah Rukh, he hadn't done a pucca love story before. His negative image even helped me. To start with, the audience feels unsure about the boy - is he a haraami sort of fellow, a mischievous guy? The audience's trust in him was won slowly but surely as the story unfolded.


How did you handle your two lead players?

Their scenes and their characterisations were clearly defined. I just tried to create the right ambience for them... and let them be. I just held the reins in my hand, controlling them, pulling and pushing them according to the requirements of the scenes.

Often, both of them went beyond the script and the direction. I thought Kajol was brilliant in the scenes with Faridaji and Amrishji and also in that close-up when she meets Anupam. And Shah Rukh was outstanding in the climax... the bridge scene where he has to convey a sense of pain and anguish. Actually, I can't really be objective... I feel close to all the scenes.

A romance was suggested between Anupam Kher and Himani Shivpuri. But why was that nipped in the bud?

It was just a cute flirtation. If I had carried it forward, it would have distracted the audience's attention again from the main plot. It wouldn't have been correct to intrude in the romance between Raj and Simran. I did want Himaniji to be part of the group in the last shot, when the train is pulling out of the station. But her husband had passed away and she couldn't be there. If she was present at the schedule, I would have thought about this angle a bit more. It could have been a light touch at the end.

After Hum Aapke... and Dilwale Dulhania... won't elaborate wedding and engagement scenes become a staple of the Hindi movies?

I did not imitate Hum Aapke... Whatever I've shown was dictated by the script. The shaadi backgrounds in both the films were integral to the storylines. It was to catch the feeling of festivity, of celebration. After Hum Aapke... and Dilwale Dulhania, it has been understood that you don't always need to have plenty of action and a frantic pace. If I believe in what I'm saying then so will the audience.

You have stressed the sanctity of the family unit. But is that feasible in this day and age when the joint family structure is splintering?

I think family oneness is the essence of being Indian. To preserve the family unit isn't something rigid, regressive or backward at all. In fact, the west should learn a lesson from our family system. If there has been a splintering of the structure, I would say that these are exceptions to the rule. By and large, a solid family background is the base of every individual in our society. Also, you don't have to live together to feel close to one another. I would say that emotional togetherness and the respect for one's elders in India make us special.

You've touched upon the issue of the Indian settled abroad. Was this deliberate?

No, it wasn't deliberate. I wanted to create the character of a rather rigid father - to enhance his rigidity, I felt that the character of Amrishji could be shown to be far away from his roots. In a sense, he is a displaced person and yet his outlook is very stubborn. Without intending to, I touched upon the issue of the major generation gap that exists between Indian immigrants and theirchildren.

Have you used any moments from your own life in the film?

There's nothing from my life inDilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. But given the situations in the story, I would have reacted just the way Raj did. I put myself completely into the character.

Have you known a Simran?

(Laughs) No! Simran is like a collection of different girls. I've been very lucky to have close friends who are girls. Through them I've learnt how a girl reacts, behaves and thinks. Simran is also a little bit like what I'd want in a girl... how I think she should be. What am I saying? Forget this... please.

Don't get coy now. You tell the entire nation to "Come... fall in love." But have you ever fallen in love?

(Blushes cherry-red) Of course, I have... when I was in the third standard! I fell in love with a classmate because I saw her crying. She wasn't very lovely or anything like that... but I wanted to rush out to her and be nice to her. I felt this is what love is all about. Today, I'm still waiting to define love... to understand it fully.

So when will you get married?

Not for a very long time. What is this? What are you asking me? See, I'll get married when I meet a girl I want to spend the rest of my life with.

Would you go through all that Raj did?

Absolutely... if I love the girl to the extent that Raj did.

You haven't fallen in love to that extent yet?

Not really.

So what does love mean to you today?

(After a long pause... a half-smile) Let me see if I can put it in words... Hmmm... love is the emotion when you feel for and respect a person so much that you put that person above everyone else. According to me, respect is the most crucial part of love.

What do you feel about the sexual permissiveness of the '90s?

(Blushing violently again) Sex is there... it's on everyone's mind. You just have to know when to exercise self-control and not take advantage of the other person.

That people talk about sex, that it has come out into the open is a good thing. Mercifully, we aren't as repressed as we used to be. But when the talk becomes vulgar and excessive, I don't approve of it.

After a mega-success, another director would have announced his next project quickly. Why are you resting on your laurels?

I'm still trying to recover from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. I have to get it totally out of my system. If it still lingers in my mind, I'll end up merely making it all over again. I want to start afresh... and that moment could come next week, next month or next year.

Finally... what do the three Fimfare Awards mean to you?

I feel good, great. But also a bit scared, I don't know if I'll be able to live up to the higher expectations from me now on. The maximum satisfaction comes, of course, with box office success. And after that if you win awards, then you can't possibly ask for more.