Page 70 - July 2018 Magazine
P. 70
arjun rampal:
audiences want to go
to tHeatres
only to watcH a
spectacle
n a quick chat with BT, Arjun Rampal talks about his
upcoming films ‘Paltan’ and ‘Nastik’, how his choice of
Iroles have changed and why it’s tougher today to attract
audiences to the theatres. Excerpts...
Your next is ‘Paltan’, a film that revolves around the Indo-
China War. Even your last project ‘Daddy’ (2017) wasn’t a
typical commercial film. You seem to be at a stage, where
you’re willing to take some risks to make the kind of cinema
that you believe in... because they have a huge fan base and people come to
‘Paltan’ is based on a true incident. My character is based on watch their films. They have cultivated a loyalty among
a person named Colonel Rai Singh. The story revolves around audiences. When a film doesn’t work, the audience has
India and China and because my grandfather was an army rejected it because they haven’t been able to connect
man, I have seen that life very closely while growing up. In with it and that can happen to any actor.
fact, I was referred to as the ARTY boy by the Ladakh Scouts Despite content being hailed, writers are not given their
as my nanaji was in the artillery. And there is no better person due in the industry...
than JP Dutta to make a film about the army. On the other We don’t have a culture of holding workshops for writers
hand, ‘Nastik’, directed Shailesh Varma, is a slice-of-life film. and neither do we encourage script doctoring. Most
I play a cop who is a loner. The people of his town have faith directors write their own scripts. You could be a great
in God, while he is an atheist. The story revolves around the director, but an awful writer and that’s what happens
concept of faith vs doubt. with us. The script is the backbone. Also, everybody
Today, the audiences have various avenues to consume loves a narration and nobody likes reading scripts in our
content. As a producer, does it get tougher to draw viewers to industry. So, the writer has to be an orator who is able
the theatres? to tell the story to the actors. I think that’s one of the
Audiences want to go to the theatres only to watch a spectacle. reasons why writers in our industry are not being able to
It’s a great time to be a producer because all kinds of films realise their full potential. However, things are changing.
are being watched on various platforms. There was a time You are one of the few male actors who didn’t shy away
when people would make a film and it would end up in a can, from playing a supporting role in a film whose narrative
but that’s not going to happen anymore. The availability of is driven by a woman — case in point being ‘Heroine’
multiple platforms is a game changer in the sense that your (2012) with Kareena Kapoor Khan and ‘Kahaani 2’ (2016)
film will see the light of day. More venues to watch indie films opposite Vidya Balan…
need to be created. The ticket prices need to be kept low to I believe in the film’s subject, which I consider to be
attract people to the theatres. It’s better for a film to release the hero. I don’t listen to people who think otherwise.
than for it to not be seen at all. Also, doing a variety of roles helps one grow as an actor.
At the same time, the focus should be on creating good Male actors might not want to play a supporting role in
content and putting out interesting subjects to be lapped up. a film, which is headlined by a female star because they
Today, a film helmed by a big name doesn’t necessarily get the think it could affect their image. Another reason could be
footfall... that they don’t want to break out of their comfort zone. I
When you have a big star, you are guaranteed a certain opening don’t believe in succumbing to an image and I like being
experimental.
70 |DALLAS | JULY 2018 | VOL 154 www.thebmagazine.com
