It's 2:30 in the morning Mumbai time, but Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra is energized by the prospect of talking about his latest project, "Delhi 6."
The writer-director of the acclaimed box office hit "Rang De Basanti" aims to put his unique stamp on a theme that has been explored many times onscreen before ' when a young Indian American man returns "home" to India for the first time, what will he find there?
"Delhi 6 is a microcosm of India," Mehra told India-West by phone in a recent interview. "It's one of the oldest cities in India, almost 1,000 years old, and still holds those values and traditions. At the same time, it's in the middle of 'Global India.' It's a crazy dichotomy."
He was in an editing suite, putting the finishing touches on what is one of the season's most eagerly awaited films, to be released Feb. 20.
With music by A.R. Rahman and a cast that includes Abhishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor, Om Puri, Rishi Kapoor and Waheeda Rehman, "Delhi 6" is a story about Roshan (Bachchan), a man brought up in the United States who has to go to Delhi at the request of his aging grandmother (Rehman).
"Roshan is a second-generation Indian with an American passport, who has never been to India," explained Mehra. "When he gets there, his soul is happy ' he feels a kind of attraction that you feel when you go home to your village."
Once he gets there, he meets Bittu (Kapoor), a girl who wants to leave India for the West. "She wants to get out," said Mehra. "Then, electricity happens between them."
"Delhi 6" is more of a character study than a "plot-oriented film," said Mehra. "I see it as a fabric; I try to weave different patterns." Mehra also juxtaposes a staging of the Ram Leela with Roshan's story to add a simpler good-versus-evil motif.
Abhishek Bachchan was the first actor Mehra considered for the role, which was just fine with the actor himself. "He knew I'd understand the role," Bachchan told India-West Feb. 6 from New York, where he was visiting his wife, Aishwarya Rai, on her promotional tour for "The Pink Panther 2."
"I spent a large part of my childhood abroad," he added. Bachchan had earlier spent three years at Boston University, where he studied liberal arts and drama, and found it easy to adopt an American accent. "We discussed the accent I would use in the film," he said. "We put a hint of an American accent in, not too much stress on it."
Bachchan praised Mehra's writing and directorial style ' just enough pressure to craft a good performance, but not so much that the actors are stifled. "His script is so precise, so detailed. But he lets you loose on the set," he said.
Mehra said he first narrated the idea for the film to Bachchan seven years ago. "I really liked his interpretation of it," said Mehra. "He read between the lines. It was I who was scared to touch it. I kept that script under my pillow all those years."
A.R. Rahman introduces new talent Ash King on the soundtrack, which is an effective blend of classic qawaali styles and electronica-fueled dance music. But Mehra says the film's nine songs will be used in the background, not picturized as in typical Hindi films.
"With 'Rang De Basanti,' people accepted that the characters weren't singing," said Mehra. "I think I started a trend. A.R. has done a beautiful job."
To add another layer of realism, Mehra insisted the film be shot in sync sound. "There's no other way," he said firmly.
Knowing that shooting the entire film on location in Purani Dilli itself would be a massive headache, Mehra decided instead to build a huge set 100 kms from Jaipur, and only shot a few selected scenes in Old Delhi.
Since the character of Roshan is of mixed heritage ' his mother is Muslim and his father Hindu ' the film touches on the issue of communal conflict. "There's a caste system and a religious divide," said Mehra. "The film starts getting deeper into troubled waters ' it's a movie about the devil within. We disguise this devil with layers, but we are never able to confront it.
"'Delhi 6' is a black comedy, a social drama, but a family film, too," Mehra told India-West. "I grew up there. All my childhood memories are there. This film is semi-autobiographical ' with the pigeons, the kites, the smells of the food. It's as real as it gets."
http://www.indiawest.com/readmore.aspx?id=901&sid=3
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