Debutant Vijay Gutte reveals why he chose to adapt a controversial book, refutes rumours of censor trouble
Himesh Mankad (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 17, 2018)

How did you come up with the idea of adapting Sanjaya Baru’s 2014 memoir of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, The Accidental Prime Minister, as your first directorial?
Sunil Bohra (producer) had the rights since 2014 and offered the film to me. I read the book and requested a meeting with Sanjaya Baru. We discussed it for seven straight days and by the end of this marathon discussion, I felt like I was working at the PMO myself (Baru, an ex-journalist and political commentator had been the media advisor and the chief spokesperson of Manmohan Singh during his first term in office from May 2004 to August 2008). I love the way this power game works and since I was always inclined towards politics, my interactions with Sanjaya convinced me that we could turn his bestseller into an amazing film.

What’s National Award-winning director Hansal Mehta’s role in the project?
He’s the creative producer and helped me stay calm. He taught me how to be patient on set and had an important role to play in the casting, which took nine months to lock. Hansal saw the journey through with me.

Was it difficult getting Anupam Kher, who is affiliated to the BJP, on board to play Manmohan Singh?
I gave Anupam Sanjaya’s book and showed him a poster I had conceptualised. He loved it and agreed to do the film on the condition that he liked the script. I worked on it for three months with Mayank Tewari (co-writer) and sent it to him. He instantly came on board.

And Akshaye Khanna?
Akshaye is a thinking actor and being from a family that has been in politics, he understood both the script and the rajneeti. But he took his time to give his nod. He wanted to know minute details of everything that had happened during Manmohan Singh’s tenure. I was careful not to show him Sanjaya’s picture as he was the only character I could play around with. I couldn’t fictionalise Manmohan Singh, Sonia and Rahul Gandhi and others who are public figures, but people don’t know Sanjaya; I could give him a cinematic touch.

Wasn’t the film to open on December 21 with Shah Rukh Khan’s Zero. Why was it pushed to next year?
We were not able to finish the post production as I was working simultaneously on the Hindi and English versions. Also, there is a huge amount of VFX involved. We wrapped up the shoot on October 27 and I thought the final print would be locked in 30 days. That didn’t happen.

Buzz is, the film ran into censor trouble.
I am still locking the final cut after which we will go to the censors.

What if you are asked by the CBFC to get a NOC from Manmohan Singh and other political leaders shown or mentioned in the film?
There is no such law. We can go to the High Court and get the film released without getting a NOC. Did they ask for a NOC from Bhagat Singh during The Legend of Bhagat Singh? Manmohan Singh as a PM was a public figure, so no one can take away my right to make a movie on his tenure.

Following a resurgent Congress’s recent wins in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, won’t it be difficult for you to ensure a smooth release in these states?
These are just assumptions because I don’t know what is going to happen. None of us knew that the Congress would win in these states. If there are problems, we will face them when the time comes.

But it will release in the election year. Doesn’t that make you apprehensive?
Patriotic films release around Independence Day or Republic Day, action films around Eid. Likewise, releasing a film on politics in the year of elections is a well-thought-out decision.

But since the story touches on several scams that took place under the reign of Congress, you’re playing with fire…
Everything happened in the public domain, whether it was 2G, 3G, or the coal scam. There was something wrong which is why the Congress lost the last election by the biggest ever margin. It’s all there in the film but tackled sensitively. And at the end of the day, it is an entertaining film, not a documentary.

What next?
For the last year-and-a-half, I was only focussed on making an honest film. This is the first time a film like this has been made in India or even the world as it’s on people who are still active in politics and will soon go out to ask people for votes. So, I haven’t had the time to think about the next thing.