Writer Kamlesh Pandey, who’s been commissioned to script the Arth remake, on how he plans to give the path-breaking film a contemporary twist
Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 3, 2017)

Mirror (October 21) was the first to report that Mahesh Bhatt has sold the remake rights of his path-breaking 1982 marital drama, Arth, to filmmakers Sharat Chandra and Pravesh Bhardwaj. We have now learnt that the duo has roped in Kamlesh Pandey, writer of Rang De Basanti and Delhi-6, to pen the story, screenplay and the dialogues of the remake.

Prod the writer about the new gig and he says, “It is a challenge to remake a film like Arth which I believe was ahead of its time. It was not only about infidelity, but also about the two women (played by Shabana Azmi and Smita Patil) finding true meaning to their lives. While we intend to keep this basic plot line the same—revolving around a man and two women— their relationships will be treated differently keeping the present environment in mind,” says Kamlesh, adding that the remake will also explore other aspects of the story, like why the affair happened, why a woman has to depend on a man, and focus on the individual lives of the trio.

Arth is a semi-autobiographical film about a filmmaker having an extra-marital relationship with an actress for whom he decides to leave his wife. It delved into Bhatt’s real life relationship with Parveen Babi and featured Shabana Azmi in a National Award-winning performance as the wife, Kulbhushan Kharbanda as his screen alter-ego and Smita Patil as the actress.

Kamlesh, who began writing the story a week ago, reveals that he took up the challenge as he found it interesting to set the subject in today’s times when divorce and live-in relationships aren’t a big deal, especially in metros. “We’ll carve a story which young people can identify with. I don’t believe in shortcuts, so it won’t be a copy of the original. I’d like to retain the original names of the characters but I might change their professions and will take my time over the script,” informs Kamlesh.

Does he have any actors in mind for the lead characters? “I never think of actors while writing the story, it’s not my job. You will be surprised to know that Manoj Bajpayee was signed to play the lead in Rang De Basanti, but when Aamir (Khan) heard the script, he politely asked Manoj to step down,” Kamlesh concludes.