Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Raj Kumar Hirani interview



Director Raj Kumar Hirani talks about everything you wanted to know about 3 Idiots

Raj Kumar Hirani is everything you would imagine him to be - warm, friendly and humble. He laughs quite often in the course of the interview. There's a clear weariness in his voice, but his spirit is boyant and his mood is upbeat. You can also sense a nervous excitability, that of a director who has delivered as best as he could and is now waiting to see how the public will react. In the course of the conversation, one thing emerges clearly. He is one director who actually connects with you instantly. He listens carefully, enjoys and heartily laughs at any anecdote you might share with him. All those down to earth qualities are amply evident in his films as we see

You've probably never done so many interviews before!

(laughs): Thanks to Aamir! He's away, so someone's got to do the job.

You had two very successful films behind you – Munnbhai MBBS and Lage Raho Munnabhai. How easy was it to temporarily abandon the Munnabhai series and do something else?

It was very easy. I never wanted to make Lage Raho... When I started working on that idea, it was supposed to be about Gandhi and a small boy. But I got stuck with that script and that's when the concept of Munnabhai meets Mahatma was born. We also could have worked on Mumnnabhai Chale Amerika but somehow the concept of 3 Idiots, which I had in mind was drawing me more, so I made it.


A lot of people believe Munnabhai MBBS was a more spontaneous effort than Lage Raho.., though the latter was probably the more ambitious film. Do you believe the same?


Yes, I personally think Munnabhai MBBS had a better screenplay but
Lage Raho... was a better concept. It was a brighter film and a unique idea. I don't think any other film, anywhere in the world has had a historical figure stepping into today's setting.
And no, it was never about fatigue. I would never make a film if I had nothing new to say. We always knew the laughs would be lesser in Lage Raho. In a film about Gandhi, Munna would not be able to make too many jokes, so we gave many of the lines to Circuit instead.

I believe you stuck to an established star like Aamir Khan for
3 Idiots because you were not happy with some younger actors you auditioned. Were you sure Aamir could pass off as a college student? No apprehensions?


Oh there were apprehension! But you know what the trouble was. I auditioned a lot of newcomers for the four main characters – from Bangalore, Pune, Delhi, even theatre groups. I couldn't find youngsters who were complimenting each other as friends. It was important for them to be in tandem with each other, and yet be different. That is when I thought I should go for established actors. Ultimately, an actor's job is to 'become' a character. Kamal Haasan became a woman in Chachi 420, Ben Kingsley became Gandhi, so it's part of an actor's profile I think. Aamir took it up as a challenge, and once I saw him in his get up on the sets, his look became least of my worries.

It's one thing to 'look' young, but there are other aspects too in playing a youngster. The vulnerability, the body language all has to look convincing, doesn't it?

Correct! That can come only from feeling young from within. Aamir made a lot of efforts. He stayed at the hostel, played with the students. These are small things, but I think it made a huge difference. There are many complex scenes in the film, and I needed seasoned actors for it. I should mention that there is a forth actor in the film, Omi who has done a fabulous job in the film.

I believe the film has two time frames...

Yes, most of it (75 per cent) is their college life, the rest is five years later.

You have Madhavan and Sharman in the film. They were together with Aamir in Rang De Basanti too. Did the casting come about because their camaraderie was already established in that film?

It didn't even cross my mind when they were cast together. It was Rakeysh Mehra who drew my attention to it, when he said, 'you've taken away all my actors!' It was never planned.

You are in some ways recollecting your own college days, and the grueling competition you saw around you. But hasn't the education system changed since then. The government is talking about scraping tenth standard even!...

If it happens, it will be great. I don't think there will be a sense of datedness about 3 Idiots. Yes, the options have increased, that I agree. But the competition is still intense. My neighbour's daughter goes for her tenth standard tuitions at five in the morning!


You tell simple stories using characterisation and dialogues. Some believe your films are not very cinematic, in the sense that you are not into visual story-telling...

It's true my stories are dialogue driven. In 3 Idiots, I've used silences more effectively. As for telling stories visually, there are a lot of people who think a lot about camera placements.... I don't want to take names. But sometimes one gets so engrossed with camera angles, ke emotion hi khatam ho jaata hai. I don't want that.


The other important character is that of Boman Irani. In the 2 Munnabhais even though he was the evil character, he had quirks that made him quite likable. Is that true of his role in 3 Idiots also?

He has many quirks in this film. In Munnabhai MBBS, he laughs when he gets nervous or angry. In Lage Raho... we kept thinking what quirk we should give him. That's when we realised we had fallen in the trap of a formula. We felt that him being a Sardar was quirk enough (laughs). Even with 3 Idiots, we didn't want to specifically do anything, it just came naturally. Boman modelled himself on one of his school teachers. He's sharp, intelligent, absent-minded with a slight lisp. You know, Boman insisted on doing his own shopping for the character. He went to some shops in Dadar from where most Parsees buy their clothes. He bought the cheapest shirts, got a tailor to stitch his trousers which go right uptill his chest. So he has this huge zipper up.

But for a guy who talks about competitiveness and virtues of mainstream education, isn't his look that of an odd-ball?

But that is true of a lot of teachers. I don't mean to be derogatory, but many professors are very idealistic, they preach a lot of things, but they themselves don't step out in the real world. In fact, Boman knew a professor who would always talk about success and how to be ahead of others, but he himself would walk very slowly and was very dull physically. We thought it was a good idea, but dropped it eventually because we gathered it would not look cinematic. We needed him to have energy.

So lot of brainstorming has gone into the role....

Absolutely, I always enjoy talking to Boman. He is such an intelligent actor. When I was making Munnabhai MBBS, there is a dialogue in his introduction scene where he talks about how feelings should not come in the way for a doctor. He says, “If I was performing a surgery on my daughter, my hands will shake” I was not sure whether to keep that dialogue, because it would mean making him sound justified and too believable. He would not be in the wrong and my hero would be less stronger. But Boman said, 'Nothing doing, I should have a point of view. It's your business now how you make your hero stronger' It is from him that I learnt that your antagonist must always have a point of view.

How was it working with Kareena Kareena?

Arre, she was a joy! And so professional. If I'd call her and set an appointment, she herself would call a day before and ask, “So can I come and read those scenes'
When I offered her the film, she was elated. She didn't even want to hear the script. I asked her about it and she said, “One, I want to work with Aamir and second, my mom has asked me to work with you. She said, 'Yeh Sindhi director hai, acchi filmein banata hai' (laughs)

Any jitters about competition from the much-awaited Avatar that releases this week?

No. Time and again it has been proved that two good films can do well. We've had Gadar and Lagaan before, so no worries.

-Sandhya Iyer

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