Year of triumphs and travails
SREEDHAR PILLAI
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`Baba Kalyani,' which is being released today, has Mohanlal playing a police officer after a long time.
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BRAIN OVER BRAWN: Breaking away from the image of the tough cop, Mohanlal plays a soft-spoken officer in `Baba Kalyani.'
It has been a memorable year for Mohanlal. He had seven releases, including `Baba Kalyani,' which opens today. However the icing on the cake was when Mohanlal was voted `the most popular Malayali ever' in a poll conducted by the news channel CNN-IBN.
In an exclusive interview to Friday Review on the location of `Baba Kalyani,' in Kochi, the star opened up and spoke about his triumphs and travails.
How does it feel to be voted as the most popular Malayali?
I believe in unconditional love of the people and I am getting back this love from them. I believe that it is the power of cinema. I have been in the industry for the past 26 years and have entertained the audience through my 280-plus films. I think they are rewarding me by this popular vote. I owe everything to the industry, especially writers and directors like Fazil, Priyadarsan, Satyan Anthikad, Sibi Malayil, Padmarajan and many others who created characters and situations that made me what I am today.
Your strong fan base has helped your films get a good opening. But what went wrong with `Photographer,' which has reportedly failed at the box office.
I believe fans are like your wife. If they don't like something, they bluntly tell you that , and if they like it, they motivate you. As far as `Photographer' is concerned, the story that was told to me was not the final product and the film lagged. I agree it flopped. I have always trusted my directors as I believe that they are the captain of the ship and I have never interfered.
They say that you are not careful about your choice of scripts. Please comment.
I definitely listen to my scripts. Sometimes what looks great during the narration may backfire because the persons involved may not be able to visualise it on celluloid. Many people have asked me why I can't direct a film and my reply to them is that it is a tough job and I don't want to do it. In fact, I have always admired Steven Spielberg as a director because he has provided entertainment to millions. Closer home, I am amazed how some of our directors can conceptualise and click in commercial cinema, which is made up of so many different ingredients.
Now the trend in Malayalam cinema is of scriptwriters turning into directors. What is your opinion about this trend?
I don't want to sound harsh, and hurt anybody with my observations. I strongly feel that some of today's scriptwriters do not understand the nuances of film- making, especially commercial entertainers. A painting that an artist draws should be understood by all who are connoisseurs of art and not the painter alone!
A scriptwriter when he turns director refuses to acknowledge his weakness over the medium. Even the late Padmarajan, whom I consider as a great scriptwriter, was able to convey his story best when he worked with directors like Bharathan and I.V Sasi.
Tell us something about `Baba Kalyani,' written by a scriptwriter who has refused to turn director, and is directed by a person who has given you two of your biggest hits.
(Smiles) Yes, writer S.N. Swamy has withstood temptations to turn director for the last two decades and is still able to churn out hits. Shaji Kailas, within our shoestring budgets for Malayalam films, has come out with technically savvy movies that are racy entertainers. And the team also has Antony Perumbavoor as producer who has successfully worked on my commercial cinema image.
What is `Baba Kalyani' all about? Will it satisfy your fans?
I play a soft-spoken IPS officer. He does not say lengthy dialogues or fight a battalion of villains. Instead, he keeps his cool and goes about his work. As head of the anti-terrorism wing in the State police, he is on the trail of a group of terrorists who are planning a series of bomb blasts in the State. Assisting Kalyani is a circle inspector (Biju Menon) and a sub-inspector (Jagathy).
How is Ramgopal Varma's `Sholay' shaping up?
I think it is going to be a path breaking film. `Sholay' is a classic; I first saw it in New Theatre in Thiruvananthapuram when I was a kid of 14. Later, I saw it many times and slowly it became a cult classic. There is nothing wrong in remaking the film something; it is very common in Hollywood. Of course, it is not going to be a scene-to-scene remake that we are making.
In this modern version, I play the role of Thakur, which was enacted by the late Sanjiv Kumar. I consider it an honour to do the role, though Ramu has made many changes to the character which I cannot reveal at the moment. Last month, I shot for the film in a Mumbai studio and the first scene I shot was the confrontation scene with Gabbar Singh, played by Amitabhji and Ramu filmed the scene in the first take!
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