Subrat in confession mode

���������������������������We have filmed four murders���������������������������
How did RGV���������������������������s Rakta Charitra come your way?
It���������������������������s not that this is the first time that I���������������������������ve been approached for an RGV film. But the earlier offers weren���������������������������t that meaty.
What is the character like?
I cannot divulge much now.I play AK, who follows Paritala Ravi���������������������������s father like a shadow; lends support to his elder brother and sees him metamorphose into a political heavyweight from a regular college-goer. AK guides him, supports him and acts as his mentor. Earlier, my dates were booked for 18 days; now it has been extended to 30 days. I���������������������������m in both the Hindi and Telugu versions of the film.
What about the look?
I play the archetypal South Indian, eyeglasses and beard. I���������������������������ll be seen in a lungi and white kurta all through.
What���������������������������s it like working with RGV?
RGV knows how to delve into the positive and negative attributes of an actor. He has at least 20 variation drafts for shooting and editing. He keeps improvising on the sets. In one scene where I was supposed to hack Ashish Vidyarthi���������������������������s arm off, RGV came across a picture of Lord Shiva mounted on the wall of the sets where we were filming. Next, all the dialogues were altered to convey meaning to that picture. Some of his earlier films might be done for at the BO, but RGV is unpredictable. He can bounce back any time. He knows all his junior artistes by name and sits his technicians down to articulate all that he wants. He���������������������������s up and about 24x7. It���������������������������s difficult to equal RGV���������������������������s dedication.
Your other film, Madholal Keep Walking, is making waves in the festival circuit...
It���������������������������s an intriguing film, where I play a clerk, who loses his right arm in the Mumbai train blasts. Madholal is an ordinary guy, whose only dream is to knock back foreign liquor when he���������������������������s rich. He lives with his wife and two daughters in a single room chawl in Mumbai. Tragedy strikes and the very fabric of Madholal���������������������������s life is torn to shreds. The end sees him coming out of his inner fears. The film will be screened at this year���������������������������s Kolkata Film Festival.
Didn���������������������������t filming on local trains ever derail you?
Madholal Keep Walking was shot with hidden cameras. Since suburban trains would not be stopped for shooting, the crew had to rehearse for shots and get into running trains. There were no retakes and Jai (Tank) wanted real people in real time. There was a sequence where Madholal���������������������������s elbowed from all sides by daily passengers on the city���������������������������s lifeline. We had a tough time shooting it since people would mistake me for a cripple with one arm tied! At times, sequences would be reshot since five out of the six actors would reach a station leaving one behind. For the most part, we���������������������������d capture the train sounds on mobile phone voice recorders. The dialogues were dubbed later.
You were in Mumbai during the local train blasts...
I was riding a bike on the flyover that stretched over the rail tracks when the blast happened. Within 15 minutes, I saw the city change. In the blink of an eye, there wasn���������������������������t a soul on the streets. People were running pell-mell, screaming for help. I���������������������������ll never forget the face of terror.
Parallel films are coming your way. But what about an outright commercial film?
n Isn���������������������������t Rakta Charitra a commercial enough? We���������������������������ve already filmed four murders! Frankly, I can���������������������������t have the last word on this since I���������������������������m in no position to refuse a good role.
zinia.sen@timesgroup.com