Vidya Balan and Sujoy Ghosh gave film buffs one of the most gripping thrillers in 2012 and now they are back with Kahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh. And there is a new entrant in the mix, Arjun Rampal. By Team Viva
A poster of Vidya Balan sporting a gritty look that reads “Wanted for kidnapping and murder” was what we all saw in the trailer. It surely piqued the audience’s interest but has left viewers divided over Vidya’s role.
Vidya is shown as a helpless mother looking for her kidnapped daughter, and on the other hand, she is projected as Durga Rani Singh, a woman on the run for kidnapping and murdering.
“It is a very simple story. It is about a mother who promises her daughter that nothing can happen to her as long as she is with her
and what all the mother go through just to keep that promise. This is a story about layered relationships. I have tried to unravel them. It is a new way of storytelling. I hope people will applaud our efforts,” said director Sujoy Ghosh scratching his right palm.
“My right palm is itching, is it good luckIJ Will this bring moneyIJ” he asked. And people laughed at the director cool.
“When you are shooting a suspense thriller, there is intensity in every scene but when you are working with a director like Sujoy, the atmosphere is completely contrasting after the shots. We got along well, thankfully. So it was easy and fun to work with him. Different people take away different things from a film; it’s what you relate to. I think there is something that Sujoy has tried to say and it is very loud and clear and that will strike a chord with people,” said Vidya.
When asked if there is anything she did in the film that she has never done before, Sujoy took the microphone and said, “She slept through the role, literally.”
“Because I was supposed to be in coma, you must have seen that in trailers,” Vidya clarified.
“I have done a little bit of action, like the the accident scene. I have never done that kind of action before. So these small things excite me a lot. That was the only place where I enjoyed the accident,” she added.
Vidya Balan may have a cool and tranquil aura about her, but she is quite emotional.
Arjun told us, “You know one day we had to stop shooting because Vidya cried so severely. Remember the sequence where the child artist Naisha Khanna jumps off the terraceIJ So when these guys were shooting, Vidya couldn’t handle it and started crying. Sujoy called me and told that she cried for half a shift,” he joked.
“It was for half an hour just. That’s Sujoy Ghosh’s exaggeration to you or your imagination,” Vidya smirked.
Was Arjun apprehensive before taking up this film, since it’s predominantly a ‘Vidya Balan’ film, he promptly said, “When I was narrated the script by Sujoy, I just loved the script. I loved all the characters. For me when I choose a subject I don’t look at it like that. For me, it’s about being involved with a good film and for that I have to fall in love with the script film and that’s what happened. Also, of course I will always support women.”
While the actors were answering the questions, director Sujoy Ghosh was enjoying his cheese sandwich.
Talking about Vidya, Arjun said, “I really didn’t know Vidya before this movie. We became friends during this film. We used to meet before socially. I have seen her work in the past and I thought she would be very serious. A girl, who sits in a corner and only concentrates on her character. But when I saw her post shoot, there was a twinkle in her eyes. She has got a little kid inside her. She is a celebration.”
“Arjun is an overall package. His voice, his attitude and his laugh, I just love his laugh,” Vidya said responding on Arjun’s accolade.
The movie is the second installment of the Kahaani franchise and is all set to release on December 2.
Photo: Pankaj Kumar