Kamal returns with Amar Hain

Kamal returns with Amar Hain

After a long hiatus, the actor who doesn't believe in dubbing, is now ready to create a separate Hindi version of not one, but two of his big-ticket Tamil films

Subhash K Jha

He has just returned from a monthlong shoot of the 100 crore "Vishwaroopam", billed as Kamal Haasan's biggest film yet, and he is already on to his next project, "Amar Hain", a film that takes a dispassionate look at the legitimization of corruption in present-day India.
In typical Kamal Haasan style, the film is being made in two different languages, Tamil and Hindi, and Kamal will direct and play the lead in both versions.
A super-charged Kamal tells us, "It's a script that I wrote two years ago and put aside because it required great intellectual and financial inputs. I think I am now ready on both counts."
One of the country's most versatile actor-directors, Kamal, has earned a reputation for making socio-politically relevant films like "Indian" for instance. "People ask me why I haven't joined politics and when I say, I don't wish to, they turn around and say, 'But there's so much money in it!' So even the common man sees politics as a means to make money," he explains. As such, "Amar Hain" is a film that says it like it is; it isn't judgmental about corruption, it looks at contemporary mores dispassionately," he adds.
The other angle is the invisibility of global crime lords in the era of technology. "In the digital era, everything including crime is on the computer and the phone. That's why we never see global players in the crime game, land in our country. They don't need to, since all their work is digitally manoeuvred. My film delves into all of this," Kamal reveals.
Atul Tiwari, who is writing the dialogues for the Hindi "Vishwaroopam" will also be doing the dialogues for the Hindi "Amar Hain". Kamal says, "Tiwari gets the sur right and that is very important in relocating the language and culture from Tamil to Hindi through the spoken word." He goes on to say, "This is also why I've always stayed away from dubbed films. I prefer to do films in two languages although it's time consuming and costly."
Commenting on "Vishwaroopam", which is almost complete except for the climax to be shot in Delhi, he says, "We shot the main outdoors in New York because the protagonist is based in that city. And then we matched New York with the Grand Rapids in Michigan. No one will be able to tell the difference". The biggest high is the Kathak dance choreographed by the legendary Birju Maharaj to which Kamal has performed. "That's a dream come true. It's a very short piece, lasting a few minutes. But I rehearsed with Birju Maharaj for a month. The looks of approval I got during the final take are my greatest reward," he declares proudly.
When asked to comment on his daughter, Shruti Haasan's hit chartbuster "Kolaveri Di" with Dhanush, Kamal simply chuckles, "The song functions through some sort of secret formula, which I haven't been able to crack. The day I do, I'll have my own "Kolaveri Di"."