Showing posts with label Kennedy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kennedy. Show all posts
I remember sitting on Sanjay Gandhi's lap and he offered me biscuits-Rahul Bhat
10:20 AM
Onkar Kulkarni (BOMBAY TIMES; March 31, 2026)
Rahul Bhat, recently seen in Kennedy, is set to take on one of the most complex roles of his career, playing Sanjay Gandhi in political drama Summer Of 76.
The actor who became popular with the TV show Heena and was seen in Section 375 and Dobaaraa, said, “What struck me immediately was the intensity of his personality. Sanjay Gandhi was someone who carried enormous ambition, impatience and conviction at a very young age. When I approached the character, I was less interested in the political label attached to him and more in the human being, the psychology of a young man operating in extraordinary circumstances and wielding extraordinary power.”
Talking about the prep for the role, he tells us, “The preparation involved studying archival footage, photographs, interviews and written accounts to understand not just how he spoke or walked, but how he carried himself in a room. I also had a very early personal memory connected to him. As a little boy, I had met Sanjay Gandhi once. I remember sitting on his lap and he offered me biscuits. My uncle, A K Bhat, (who was known as Bhat saab in Kashmir) knew him closely, so I had seen him around during that time. I was far too young to understand who he was then, so it remained only a faint childhood memory.”
Meanwhile, his last film, Anurag Kashyap directorial, Kennedy, co-starring Sunny Leone, released after a long wait. The actor also got applauded for his role in the film.
About his approach towards picking up the projects, the actor signed off saying, "My focus has always been on the craft and on characters that allow me to explore the darker, more complicated sides of human behaviour. Kennedy is very special in that journey because the character operates in a very internal space, there is a lot happening beneath the surface. It demanded a certain stillness, restraint and emotional control. In many ways it represents the kind of actor I want to continue becoming, someone who trusts silence, detail and psychological depth more than spectacle."
Sunny Leone on mastering Charlie’s unabashed laugh for Kennedy: "Anurag Kashyap sent me videos of two actresses"
11:01 AM
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; February 15, 2026)
Every film finds a home, and Sunny Leone’s Kennedy has found one after a three-year wait. Director Anurag Kashyap’s neo-noir crime thriller is set to premiere on ZEE5 next week, and the actor can’t wait to see the audience’s response to it. After all, Leone considers Kennedy an opportunity of a lifetime. She remembers going into the shoot, eager to be moulded by Kashyap into her character Charlie. Oddly, that included mastering a peculiar laugh.
Recalling Kashyap’s strange demand from her, Leone said, “Anurag sir sent me reference videos of how Charlie’s laugh should be. I saw the videos and thought, ‘How am I going to do this?’ Then I started practising laughing everywhere I went — in the plane, in the car, even mid-conversation with somebody! I remember I was on the set of a song, dressed in glamorous clothes, with 100 dancers around me, and I was practising my laugh!”
That naturally makes us curious about who featured in the reference videos. But Leone isn’t one to spill the details. She teased, “I’ll give you a hint. The reference video was of two beautiful, amazing actresses in Bollywood. [Their] laugh is loud and unabashed, comes straight from the gut and the heart.”
Unabashed is also how many would describe Kashyap. But the actor, who worked for the first time with the director, asserted that he is different from his public image. “We look at his films or an interview and have a perception, but that is not what you get when you meet him.
He is warm. He is like a big teddy bear, and so easy to work with. He makes you feel heard, seen, and values your opinions.”
I don’t enjoy acting. I don’t want to have an acting career-Anurag Kashyap
3:30 PM
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; October 31, 2025)
Behind the camera is arguably Anurag Kashyap’s favourite place in the world. That said, of late, we’ve seen him facing the camera just as much. The filmmaker featured in four releases last year, and will soon be seen in three more — the Tamil action thriller One 2 One, Telugu drama Dacoit: A Love Story, and the Kannada sports drama 8. It looks like the acting bug has bitten him.
“I don’t enjoy acting. I don’t want to have an acting career or be known as a star-actor,” states Kashyap, insisting that filmmaking will always be his true love. “I love making and writing films. The process of filmmaking is in my blood. I am making movies non-stop and I want to continue making them. In my free time, I am also writing,” says Kashyap, whose directorial venture Nishaanchi released in September.
Earlier this year, the director had announced that he had shifted to Bengaluru as he found the Hindi film industry “toxic”. How is Bengaluru treating him? Fabulously, he says. “[When in Mumbai], I was in depression for some time. The transition happened during Kennedy [2023], and I came out of it. Leaving Mumbai changed me a lot.”
He can feel a tangible change, he says. “Bengaluru is beautiful because I am not surrounded by film people or the same conversations that bore me. Here, the conversations are about cinema and not about box-office business. Nobody discusses films, music, and literature anymore [in Mumbai]. The cultural space in Bengaluru is beautiful. I keep acting in South movies and keep looking at scripts to direct. After I complete my acting assignments, we’ll see what happens in 2026.”
I want to tell the newcomers that they must stop being social media wannabes-Rahul Bhat
8:42 AM
With Vikramaditya Motwane offering him Black Warrant after seeing Kennedy, Rahul Bhat says passionate directors don’t cast actors on the basis of their online followers
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; January 22, 2025)
Watching Kennedy at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival with Vikramaditya Motwane, little did Rahul Bhat know it would pave the way for his next with the filmmaker. Today, as the actor is receiving wide praise for his performance in Motwane’s Black Warrant, he recalls how the filmmaker offered him the part.
“When he saw Kennedy in Cannes, he really liked the film. On returning, he offered me Black Warrant. I believe the work I did with Anurag [Kashyap] influenced him,” says Bhat.
The actor worked with Kashyap on Ugly (2014) and Kennedy. Having teamed up with two of the finest filmmakers in the country, did he find any similarity in their vision?
“They have unique voices, but they are creatively the same—from the way they treat their actors, to creating an atmosphere so that there is immense scope for creativity. Also, Vikram bohot mehnat karta hai! When I told this to Anurag, he was laughing. It doesn’t mean Anurag doesn’t work hard, but Vikram is always on his toes,” he grins.
In a career spanning over two decades, Bhat has done only 10 films. Despite limited work and little social media presence, which unfortunately seems to influence casting today, he has Kashyap and Motwane projects on his résumé.
“I want to tell the newcomers that they must stop being social media wannabes. These directors are passionate about their cinema. They don’t care if you are Shashi Kapoor’s grandson or Rahul Bhat. They want to know if you can be trusted to get the character right. You could be their brother or son, but they won’t cast you if you don’t suit the character. They don’t cast you looking at how many paps are clicking you.”
Ashok Saraf began as a banker and so did many other reputed Marathi actors like Vijay Kadam, Vijay Patkar, Shivaji Satam
4:00 PM
Ashok Saraf began as banker, and was honoured with the Maharashtra Bhushan recently. He represents a generation of actors who also balanced passbooks
Gautam S Mengle (MID-DAY; February 4, 2024)
At a Marathi-language comedy show several years ago, veteran actor Ashok Saraf appeared as guest along with fellow actor Sachin Pilgaonkar. The host told Saraf that he was responsible for a bank opening up in his village. How so? “Everyone thinks you have to work in a bank to become Ashok Saraf,” the host quipped, “and that’s all that the youth in my village ever did.”
The 66-year-old veteran was conferred the Maharashtra Bhushan award earlier this week, much to the delight of crores of fans everywhere. And a certain section of actors, too, watched the news with glee—everyone who ostensibly held respectable (albeit homely) jobs in government banks, but slipped out after the teller closed to pursue starry dreams.
For countless aspiring and upcoming actors in the late 80s and early 90s—before banks were corporatised and the system allowed much more latitude—a job at the neighbourhood branch was sought after not just for stability.
“It was like a quota,” says actor Shivaji Satam, who started out at the Central Bank of India in 1973. “Government banks would hire those who excelled at drama competitions, just like sports quota in college or the Railways. And it helped that all of us were fuelled by passion, not minding the dual work, long hours, sudden travel for tours and modest pay.”
Satam shared screen space with Saraf in the 2018 crime thriller, Mi Shivaji Park, and was the face of hit serial CID for years, while appearing frequently in Marathi and Hindi cinema.
“Banks were overflowing with staffers back in the 80s,” says actor Jaywant Wadkar, whom we last saw in Shiv Sena leader Anand Dighe’s biopic Dharmaveer. “There would literally be seven to 10 extra employees in every department, and we had nothing to do. Plus, we were already active in the theatre circuit and our managers knew about our dreams. Unless it was a really busy day, they’d happily allow us to go to rehearsals or shows.”
Wadkar’s story is shared by countless others from his generation, such as Vijay Patkar, Vijay Kadam, Pradeep Patwardhan and Amol Palekar, to name a few. Wadkar tells us that Palekar acted in Rajnigandha and Chhoti Si Baat while being an employee at Bank of India, same as him. Not just men, there was also a slew of female actors as well as some writer and directors who started out as bankers, we learn.
Budding stalwarts, Patkar and Kadam, were Wadkar’s colleagues. All of them had already nourished the acting bug at school and college, more actively in the latter for the benefit of directors would come to recruit fresh talent. “My first play was while in kindergarten,” Kadam, whose last big screen appearance was in Anurag Kashyap’s Kennedy, tells us. “By the time I was in Class V, my teachers had recognized my talent and by the end of college, I directed plays for inter-collegiate festivals. From there to commercial theatre, was but a small step.”
Kadam first broke onto the Hindi film industry with Tiger, an eponymous serial on Door Darshan, centered around a private detective. Kadam played his trusty sidekick, a resourceful man who could procure or facilitate anything; aptly called Genie.
The same held true for Patkar, who acted with Wadkar in the 1988 hit Tezaab. Both starred as members of Anil Kapoor’s merry band of loafers. Patkar is still remembered as Krack to Boman Irani’s Jack for the salted biscuit brand commerials. “The only condition,” he chuckles, “was that we make our bank proud at the annual inter-bank drama competitions. And for exactly this reason, banks were happy to take on as many stage actors as possible. They’d get bragging rights for every successful actor on their roster.”
This was important to the banks as well as the actors. For the actors, it was part of their path to success. The victories at competitions brought small articles in newspapers which directors and producers looked for. It also let them network with other actors and theatre personalities.
Patkar, who joined Bank of India in 1985, concurs that there were too many employees and too little work in banks of the 1980s, unheard of today.
“It really was a golden period for actors,” he says. “Bunking work didn’t have as serious consequences then as now.”
“My manager would even allow me to come to work earlier than others, or stay back later than the rest so that I could make up for the hours taken up by theatre and earn my salary,” Satam recalls.
And despite all the progress and the glamour, this crop of stars never forgot their roots. And this is not just a symbolic statement. Many of them stayed on as employees for years after they became stars.
“Are you kidding me?” Wadkar exclaims when we ask why he didn’t quit after his first big break. “I was the master of reconciliation (the practice of balancing an account statement) in my branch in Fort. When I applied for voluntary retirement in 2000, my manager called me up to ask me if I had lost my mind.”
Did fame affect work? “Yes, but not negatively,” Wadkar laughs, “My branch would enlist me to collect documents from other banks, as they were more willing to oblige me than other employees.”
Wadkar and Patkar both took voluntary retirement in 2000, while Patwardhan served his full tenure of 60 years before retiring in 2020. He passed away a year later after a brief illness.
“Of course, the reliability of the pay cheque mattered, but more than that, we owed the bank our fame and success,” says Patkar loyally.
This dual life wasn’t without its share of problems. There were jealous colleagues and sniggering about some employees “earning dual incomes”.
“It wasn’t unwarranted,” says Kadam, who took voluntary retirement in 1994 to become a full-time actor. “There were so many unauthorized leaves that my bosses called for my records. The running joke was that it took two peons to carry my roster. It was no longer like the olden days when bosses would remind me that it was time to go to rehearsals. I read the room and got out.”
He proudly tells us that 2024 is his 50th year of being an actor.
What lessons did they learn?
“That stage is the best place to start [acting],” says Wadkar promptly. “Nothing shapes you as an actor like theatre. We were luckier than most because we were already acting in school and college before being picked up by commercial theatre directors. They honed our talent into a craft.”
Kadam agrees.
“When I quit my job, I told my family that they don’t need to support me [financially],” the indefatigable 66-year-old tells us. “And I have kept my word. Theatre trained me like nothing else. At times, I’ve walked onto a set for an audition only to be told that the script has changed, and still taken the set by storm at the first take. I still get calls from people who have watched Kennedy at various film festivals since it released last year, even though I haven’t attended a single screening myself.”
As Satam puts it, “We are theatre actors first. The screen just happened to us.”
An entire generation of actors from theatre and cinema started off as bankers in Mumbai. Jaywant Wadkar, who we last saw in the 2022 film Dharmaveer, worked with the Bank of India for 17 years. Pic/Nimesh Dave
Vijay Kadam, Vijay Pakar and Shivaji Satam
In the 1980s, nationalised banks preferred hiring actors who would make them proud at inter-bank drama competitions, like Patkar in this picture
(Crisp) Movie Review: KENNEDY by FENIL SETA
11:42 AM
Kennedy, directed by Anurag Kashyap, is the story of a contract killer before the onset of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The story is inspired by true events and the film boasts of crazy and ruthless characters which keeps the interest going. The political commentary induced a lot of laughs. A few scenes are memorable and the final shot is a masterstroke. Sadly, the film seems stretched. The climax part doesn't give a high (except the final shot). Also, a crucial track seemed forced just for the effect and to make a political statement. Speaking of performances, Rahul Bhat is terrific and the way he speaks through his eyes is seen to be believed. Sunny Leone does well but her character is unconvincing. Mohit Takalkar (Commissioner Rasheed Khan) and Shrikant Yadav (Inspector Kale) leave a huge mark. The same goes for Abhilash Thapliyal (Chandan) and Kurush Deboo (Parvez). The actors playing Gunjan, Uday’s wife and Uday’s daughter Aditi are fine. The opera-style background score adds to the effect. All in all, Kennedy makes for a decent watch. Here's hoping it releases without cuts in cinemas.
My rating - *** out of 5!
My rating - *** out of 5!
There’s a persistent fear that I may make a Bombay Velvet again-Anurag Kashyap
8:26 AM
Even as his wish to work with Vikram on Kennedy remains unfulfilled, Kashyap says absence of stars in projects gives him a free hand with the story
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; August 15, 2023)
If something comes a close second to his love for filmmaking, it’s his love for film festivals. Since May, Anurag Kashyap has been doing the festival rounds with Kennedy, the latest being at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. For someone whose latest movie got a standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival, does he harbour fears as a filmmaker?
“My producers feel the pressure because my movies don’t make enough money for them. I do what I want to do. I work with people who are available. I don’t have access to stars. Also, there’s a persistent fear that I may make a Bombay Velvet [2015] again. When you don’t have stars, the resources are limited and you get a free hand with the story,” smiles Kashyap.
It’s true for Kennedy. The noir thriller was originally written for Tamil superstar Vikram, even borrowing the title from his nickname. But things didn’t work out, and Kashyap went on to cast his Ugly (2014) actor Rahul Bhat.
“I can’t chase stars. I don’t want to pressure anyone to do a film, I want them to joyfully submit to it. I reach out to stars, but if they say, ‘Pata nahin,’ I don’t pester them. Rahul did Kennedy because he trusts me. Vikram keeps changing his number. When he was shooting for Ponniyin Selvan 1, Sobhita [Dhulipala] told him that I reached out to him. [That’s when] we figured out that I texted him on a number that was three years old. My cast was locked by the time Vikram reached out to us, but he gave his blessings.”
Another quality that is common to most Kashyap films is their political undertones, his last offering Almost Pyaar With DJ Mohabbat being a prime example. “All my films factor in the social context of its milieu. Almost Pyaar has strong social undertones. But I am not deliberately trying to make a political film. Politics will seep in naturally, given the setting. Kennedy is set during COVID-19, so it reflects its times.”
It has been a rich 25-year run at the movies for Kashyap. As an artiste, how does he view the current stage of his career? “I’m at a stage where I don’t feel the need to compete with anyone. People want to box me, but I like every genre. I loved Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. I loved Barbie more than Oppenheimer. Christopher Nolan delivered what’s expected out of a film, but Greta Gerwig delivered something novel with a doll! I fight to keep creativity soaring in filmmaking.”
Ten days before Kennedy's screening at Cannes, I was calling stylists frantically-Megha Burman
8:14 AM
Kennedy actor Megha, who was at Cannes for Anurag-helmed movie’s première, rues that red-carpet appearances dominate the film festival
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; June 17, 2023)
Doing the rounds of film festivals for the first time can be an out-of-body experience for actors. It was no different for Megha Burman, whose movie Kennedy travelled to the Cannes Film Festival last month.
Anurag Kashyap’s directorial venture, also starring Rahul Bhat and Sunny Leone, got a standing ovation at its screening. “To be there with a film, which was selected, was huge,” gushes Burman.
As much as Kennedy is winning praise in the international film festival circuit, the actor points out that the red-carpet appearances at these galas, particularly Cannes, are a different ball game. “I understand that fashion is integral to Cannes, but the coverage has increased vastly. I could’ve opted for an outlandish gown, and paid the paparazzi here to be featured on their Instagram. But I wanted the film to shine. I felt comfortable knowing my film was selected by an esteemed jury. That balance of cinema with fashion is essential,” she asserts.
For Burman, who has previously featured in Panga (2020) and a few south movies, the days leading up to the red-carpet outing weren’t easy. “I reached out to designers for my Cannes outfit, but not many responded. Most designers look at your [social media] following and give gowns for free in exchange for the exposure. Ten days before the gala, I was calling stylists frantically. Finally, I found a Varnika Sangoi creation thanks to my stylist Keyuri Sangoi, who turned in the outfit in three days.”
If anybody is known as a representative of Indian cinema abroad, it is Anurag Kashyap-Sudhir Mishra
8:09 AM
Filmmaker Mishra, who attended Anurag Kashyap’s Kennedy première at Cannes, on how the thriller received a standing ovation
Upala KBR, Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; May 26, 2023)
An Anurag Kashyap movie has become something of a staple in the Cannes Film Festival. Over the years, the filmmaker has taken Gangs Of Wasseypur (2012), Ugly (2014) and Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016) to the prestigious festival. In the small hours of Thursday, his latest offering, Kennedy, had its première at the ongoing film gala, as part of the Midnight Screenings section.
Filmmaker-friend Sudhir Mishra, who attended the screening at the Grand Lumiere Theatre, says he felt like a “proud elder brother” as the neo-noir crime thriller — starring Rahul Bhat and Sunny Leone — received a seven-minute standing ovation.
“If you read Kashyap’s interviews about Kennedy, you will realise that he mentions taking the ideas from the stories I told him. So, he has graciously dedicated the film to me, and given me the first credit. The show ran to a full house even though it was a late-night screening. I felt proud as everybody stood and clapped when the film got over at 3 am,” he shares.
To Mishra, the film’s resounding success is a marker of Kashyap’s evolution as a filmmaker. He adds, “I’ve known him since he first came to my brother’s [Sudhanshu] office in 1994. Today, I see how far he has come. If anybody is known as a representative of Indian cinema abroad, it is Kashyap.”
Mishra adds, “Anybody else who got that kind of reception would be cocky, but he is shy, almost as if he cannot believe it’s happening.”
Kennedy tells the story of an insomniac cop who turns assassin. After Ugly, having his second film premièring at Cannes was an emotional moment for leading man Bhat. “I feel blessed, honoured and grateful. This is what the manifestation of a dream looks like,” he says.
Independent film critic Sucharita Tyagi says the film left the audience teary-eyed. Heaping praise on Bhat, she says, “Despite Rahul’s face being hidden behind a mask, his embodiment of the character is the film’s strength. It marks Anurag’s return to form.”
I’ve tried not to show that people’s comments hurt me-Sunny Leone
8:08 AM
Ahead of Kennedy’s première at Cannes, Sunny on fighting people’s judgment of her acting chops and emerging triumphant with an Anurag film
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; May 24, 2023)
Kennedy has reached the ongoing Cannes Film Festival, as has Sunny Leone. Her movie, helmed by Anurag Kashyap, premièring at the prestigious gala is perhaps the perfect example of how far the actor’s tenacity has brought her.
“I’ve always believed that if you don’t give up, work hard, and stand by your own morals, you will be happy with your choices,” she says, looking back on her journey.
In 2011, Leone left her profession as an adult star in the US and stepped into Indian showbiz with Bigg Boss 5, following it up with Hindi films. Was it exhausting to forge her path in an industry where people may have harboured judgment about her?
“If it wasn’t for my fans, I wouldn’t have been here. Disappointment and feelings of rejection give us the option of either being negative, or figuring out our own path. This is one of the proudest moments of my career.”
Last July, Kashyap and Leone announced their collaboration. That was enough to spark chatter about whether she will fit in the vision of the director, known to choose actors over stars. Leone admits that questions around her acting capabilities have always followed her.
“It gets to me at the back of my mind. I’ve tried not to show that people’s comments hurt me. [I’ve been asked] questions like, ‘When will you do a serious role?’ or ‘How does it feel to be in a serious role now?’ It’s not a great feeling. I’ve always taken myself seriously. Unfortunately, some people don’t see you as a human. Kennedy and Anurag Kashyap are the perfect examples of pushing all that negativity aside, and something amazing coming true.”
The Rahul Bhat-led neo-noir thriller, which premières today, sees Leone play Charlie. To her, Kashyap’s set has been nothing less than a school, where she learnt much about cinema and craft. “I was nervous at my audition, and on the first day of shooting. I’m happy they accepted my version of Charlie. To get advice and lessons from someone who is considered knowledgeable not only in the Indian film industry, but all over the world, is incredible. I hope I can work with Anurag sir again.”
Travelling to the Cannes Film Festival is a dream come true for me-Abhilash Thapliyal
8:24 AM
RJ-turned-actor Abhilash on heading to Cannes early on in his acting career, with Anurag-helmed Kennedy
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; May 18, 2023)
Walking the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival would often seem like a distant dream to Abhilash Thapliyal. Or, working in an Anurag Kashyap film, for that matter. But with Kennedy, the RJ-host-turned-actor has realised both dreams. Kashyap’s noir cop drama, led by Sunny Leone, Rahul Bhat and Benedict Garrett, is set to have its world première on May 24 in the Midnight Screening section of the ongoing festival. Thapliyal, who plays a pivotal role in the movie, can hardly contain his excitement.
He says, “Travelling to the Cannes Film Festival is a dream come true for me, and for any actor. Being an RJ before, I have spoken about it in my shows, but to go there with a film is an honour. I am thankful to Anurag sir for making me a part of Kennedy.”
It has been a natural progression from radio jockeying to hosting and then acting for Thapliyal. After catching the audience’s attention with Entertainment Ki Raat, he followed it up with TVF Aspirants (2021), Blurr and Faadu (2022). Admitting that he is learning the ropes of acting, he credits the filmmakers for honing his skills.
“I am learning the nuances of acting. I try to be as honest as I can, committing fully to my performance, and doing thorough homework. It’s pure luck that I got to work with directors like Amit Sharma [in the upcoming Maidaan], Ajay Bahl, Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and now, Anurag sir.”
Anurag Kashyap let me read Kennedy's script only once-Rahul Bhat
8:26 AM
With Kennedy heading to Cannes, actor Rahul on how Kashyap’s noir police drama helped him channel his turmoil after bleak personal phase
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; May 9, 2023)
In 2020, when actor Rahul Bhat was going through a bleak phase in his personal life, his art brought him the solace he sought. “I was going through a divorce. Then, the pandemic happened. It was gloomy and dull. Then the script of Kennedy came my way,” he recounts. Anurag Kashyap’s films often show us the dark side of humanity — hardly the kind that brings one comfort.
But in the noir drama Kennedy, Bhat found an outlet to creatively channel his inner turmoil. “The script was too dark. Perhaps Anurag was going through his own catharsis at that point. He let me read the script only once, and then took it away. But I felt this was the story I was looking for.”
Kennedy, which has Sunny Leone as the leading lady, is gearing up for its première in the Midnight Screenings section at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival. Bhat, who collaborated with Kashyap on the critically acclaimed Ugly (2014) and Dobaaraa (2022), counts him among the finest writer-directors in the country today. But, more importantly, he regards the filmmaker as someone with whom he has developed a spiritual connection.
“No one understands the medium the way Anurag does. He leaves you alone, only nudging you here and there. On the first few days of Kennedy’s shoot, it was such a silent set that it scared me. When I asked him why he wasn’t talking to me, he laughed, ‘We are creating something. Go on. Let’s not talk.’ That’s our relationship. It has more silence than noise.”
With the director, the actor cracked the tough character of an insomniac ex-cop. “I gave the character almost eight months before going on the set. I had to bulk up first. What was more difficult was to get inside his mind. His walk and stare were the most important [nuances] to crack. He is so huge yet invisible. He is calm, yet there is a lot of violence in him.”
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