Bollywood’s maverick director Ram Gopal Varma, who excels in making bullet-spattered gangster dramas, has found a new controversial target.
His cameras are now trained on retelling the brutal terror attacks that targeted Mumbai on November 26, 2008, when a group of nine terrorists held the city hostage for three days, killing more than 160 people.
His film, The Attacks of 26/11, was filmed in 60 days and recounts the bloody rampage that occurred between 9.30pm and 3am until terrorist Ajmal Kasab was captured alive. The film is devoid of established stars, starring newcomer Sanjeev Jaiswal playing Kasab (who was hanged in prison in Pune on November 21 last year) and veteran actor Nana Patekar.
“Everybody knows the timeline of events that happened and the head count of people who died, but I am concentrating on the emotional aspects,” said Varma in an interview with tabloid!, about the film, which was recently screened at the Berlin International Film Festival. Excerpts from our interview with Varma:
Q: What do you want the viewers to take away from The Attacks Of 26/11?
A: Considering the subject matter, it is understandable that viewers are apprehensive about what I would show on the big screen. It’s a positive film which is not anti-community or against any particular group. My hope is that the viewers take my film in the right spirit, the way it’s intended to be taken. Essentially this tragedy is about human beings senselessly killing innocent people. Everybody knows the timeline of events that happened and the head count of people who died, but I am concentrating on the emotional aspects. I want people to condemn and understand what happened behind the scenes of 26/11.
Q: Your motives for sensationalising a grave tragedy are being scrutinised. Your thoughts?
A: It was during the initial phase when I announced my project that my motives were questioned. After seeing my movie, I am confident that all these doubts will be put to rest. A lot of thought has gone into this project. I spent a long time interacting with the policemen who were involved in the incident. I spoke to the survivors and eye-witnesses to get a better idea. I want to make a true representation of what happened rather than suggest thing that did not happen. Anybody who’s interested in knowing what happened on 26/11, then this is your movie. Imagine, a crew of nine people getting off a boat in Mumbai and laying siege to a city with more than 20 million people.
Q: What was the toughest part about reliving the tragedy on the big screen?
A: Condensing the matter wasn’t easy. The film only talks about what happens between 9.30pm and 3am on November 26, 2008 in Mumbai. Obviously, multiple events happened during those hours so my call revolved around what elements to maximise and what to minimize.
Q: You chose a newcomer to play the central terrorist Ajmal Kasab. Did established stars reject your film due to its inherent controversial nature?
A: I had no other choice than cast a newcomer because after the attacks of 26/11, Kasab — who was the lone survivor — became the face of Mumbai terror. Therefore, I wanted somebody who looked like Kasab. Since he’s the antagonist of the film, I wanted the believability factor to be high. That believability wouldn’t have been achieved if I had cast an established actor. Stars bring with them their own baggage. I didn’t even approach any star for this one.
Q: Actor Nana Patekar is an exception. How did he come into the picture?
A: Nana Patekar’s character is based on Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rakesh Maria who was given the responsibility of investigating the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. He was at the court centre when the entire attacks happened. For this role I was clear that I wanted an actor who would exude a certain strength of character and intensity. Nana has that effortless intensity in his face and his voice.
Don’t Miss it:
The Attacks Of 26/11 is slated to release in the theatres today; however due to the sensitive subject matter, it was under review by the National Media Council at the time of going to print.
