I get nervous before a release

It’s a very critical moment for me now: I never get nervous before a screening at a festival, but yes, at the time of a release I do get the butterflies. After all, it’s a question of the box office. No director in the world can say this is what an audience wants. But I think an audience goes to see a film primarily to get an experience of time and space.If that is exciting they will like the film.
I had wanted to release Abar Aranye on May 2: Since the film is a take off from Satyajit Ray’s Aranyer Dinratri and he was born on May 2, I thought that that would be an ideal occasion. But we couldn’t get all the theatres and so had to postpone the release till May 16.
Abar Aranye was a difficult project: We were shooting with so many artistes and busy stars. Add to that the difficult terrains of North Bengal. I would specially like to talk about Shamit Bhanja. He is suffering from a terminal disease but showed remarkable courage in going through those long periods of shoot. It was like an adventure for all of us. The film should appeal to both the generations because it will be a common journey for both.
I know North Bengal like the back of my hand: I love this place for its ferocity and beauty. I shot Dekha here and went back for Abar Aranye. In fact, even for Mr and Mrs Iyer, I showed Aparna (Sen) the spots where she should shoot. There’s a certain strange mix of innocence, mystery and opulence in these places.
Abar Aranye is a very personal film in the sense that all the characters in the script are familiar to me: So are the locations. I remember Shubhendu (Chatterjee) saying, “This is actually a broken bridge, Goutam! Have you recreated it?� I said, “No, I had seen it on an earlier occasion and then incorporated it in my script.�
Choosing the right face for a character is very important: It might be a trend now to bring in Bollywood stars, but I have been doing it for a long time. I have a lot of friends in Mumbai who want to work with me. That’s how Naseer and Shabana got cast in Paar. I have also cast many stars from Bangladesh. If the artiste is visually convincing then half the battle in won.
I took a few tests in Kolkata for the role of Amrita: But I was not happy. When I was writing the script I could visualise Rajatabha, Saswata, Chaiti, Bidipta. But where Amrita was concerned I was drawing a blank. Then a friend called up from Mumbai saying that Tabu was interested. Her aunt (Shabana) had worked with me and this could have been one of her reasons to be interested in my film. I had seen only one film of her’s: Maachis. I didn’t know much about her. Then my wife and daughter showed me some of her stills. They watch films regularly. I felt the pathos I was looking for would be well emoted by her.
I am glad that Abar Aranye will also be released in cities like Mumbai and Delhi with subtitles: The distributors are trying to release it in other cities, too, like Hyderabad and Chennai. A niche audience is being created and this will help revive Bengali cinema. In August, the film will go for the Venice Film Festival and then there will be a European premiere.
My next project could be an English film: Actually, I can’t make up my mind. I have already committed myself to a couple of producers in Mumbai as also in Bangladesh. I haven’t made a co-production film after Padma Nadir Majhi. And not a Hindi film either after Paar. I am very keen to do a period film in Urdu and English. It will be based on the life of Dara Suko. The idea is just taking shape but I haven’t decided on the cast yet.
I prefer to handle the camera myself for all my films: Photography is the most important essence of cinema. It is not a picture postcard to me. When I see an image, there are many overtones. There should be substance in the frame, the backdrop, colours, costumes. That’s why I first see the location and then my wife and I work out the costume colours. There were some very difficult shots in Mr and Mrs Iyer. Aparna was at a loss not knowing how to shoot inside the bus. It had a very low ceiling. I told her, “Don’t worry, we’ll work it out.� Actually, in such situations, it is best to have rigged shots where you create a bus and shoot on wheels. Such facilities are there abroad but here we have to work under many constraints.
susmita.mukherjee@timesgroup.com