5 Weddings director on how “fittest man” Rao pulled-off along chase sequence without as much as breaking asweat for the romantic drama
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; September 26, 2018)

His fervent desire to become the part he essays on screen has led Rajkummar Rao to undergo abundant physical and emotional transformations.

It may be argued that his characteristic roles — of a man deprived of food when trapped in his apartment (Trapped), or that of a heftier Subhas Chandra Bose for the web series Bose: Dead/Alive — warrant such alterations. Yet, even the part of a humble Punjabi police official in 5 Weddings had the actor get out of his comfort zone.

American producer-director-actor Namrata Singh Gujral tells mid-day that the actor pulled off a two- mile run for the film, despite being offered a body double to perform the act. “It helped me stay in character,” the actor simply reasons, even though Gujral offers a deeper insight into the scene.

“We shot at the Chandigarh International Airport. The scene in question sees him attempt to stop his love interest [Nargis Fakhri] from leaving India for America. The sequence needed him to run for a couple of miles and he insisted on doing so himself. In fact, he even repeated it as many times as needed to acquire the perfect shot. Rajkummar is so fit that even after running for over two miles, he needed to pretend to be out of breath for the cameras,” says the director.

Asserting that his lithe- looking frame can be deceiving, Gujral insists that he underwent no physical alteration to pull off the sequence.

The stint, she promises, is a reflection of his natural fitness level. “He is the fittest guy I know. He is a vegetarian, but has muscles akin to my husband, who is a steak and potato eater. If they remake Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, they should cast him. He will finish the film in one day, without breaking into a sweat.”

Rajkummar, Nargis may make for an odd couple, but 5 Weddings director, Namrata Singh Gujral has a different opinion
Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; December 23, 2016)

US-based actress-turned-filmmaker Namrata Singh Gujral’s currently cutting the first look of 5 Weddings, a slice-of-life film starring Rajkummar Rao and Nargis Fakhri. The two share screen space with Academy award nominee Candy Clark as well as Golden Globe nominee Bo Derek in the Hollywood venture.

Seeing the rushes, Gujral says, “I want to give a shoutout to Nargis and Rajkummar. Aside from their fantastic performance, I am smitten by their chemistry on screen. Casting this jodi could not have been more perfect.”

Though the two make for an odd couple — Nargis with a sexy gal image and Rajkummar known for dark, compelling roles — Gujral was keen on bringing the two together. She had seen Rajkummar’s power-packed act in Shahid (2013) and was familiar with Nargis, on the other hand, given that she is a US national. “The role was tailormade for her — a subcontinent girl living in the US.”

Gujral, who primarily shot the film in LA, recently canned a few scenes in Chandigarh with Nargis, Rajkummar and a bunch of local actors. She admits, “I was initially hesitant when I felt compelled to cast Indian talent for authenticity versus casting West-trained actors, but the local talent blew me away.”

One of the roles is played by Suvinder Vicky, the lead from Chauthi Koot (2015), which was screened at Cannes last year. “English is not his first language, but his earnest performance leaves you spellbound.”

About shooting in India, a first for her, she says, “As a storyteller, I find as much passion in India as I do anywhere else in the world. Technically, Indian teams are spot on, but on the production side, things need to rev up a bit. Budget-wise, I now understand that everyone takes a cut, but it’s an alien idea and creates transparency problems. I also find the work pace more relaxed.”

For Gujral, the most satisfying part about shooting here was infusing spirituality into a film that is funny, yet serious at the same time. “India was able to provide the perfect backdrop for a universal human journey. Not to mention, the latka-jhatkas at Indian weddings with Nargis and Rajkummar. Who doesn’t love that?”
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Director's journey

Dharamsala-born Namrata Singh Gujral moved to the US to study. She featured as Renu Mathur in Sanjay Gupta’s Kaante (2002). She made her foray into Hollywood as an actress. She played the title role in 2007 rom-com Americanizing Shelley, and was seen as Nurse Kathy in TV show Passions (2001-05) before turning filmmaker and cancer advocate.

Namrata Singh Gujral, who will direct Fakhri in a Hollywood film, discusses her connect with the actress and promises made to Yash Chopra and Dev Anand
Kasmin Fernandes (MID-DAY; August 9, 2016)

Nargis Fakhri, who just returned to Mumbai after a few months at home in New York, will soon fly back to the US to join Golden Globe nominee and supermodel Bo Derek, and Oscar nominee Candy Clark (American Graffiti and The Man Who Fell To Earth). She is part shoot for a slice-of-life comedy, 5 Weddings, helmed by filmmaker and cancer advocate Namrata Singh Gujral. The story follows an American journalist, who travels to India for what she thinks will be an easy magazine feature on Bollywood weddings. As the coverage unfolds, so does a colourful mosaic of lost loves, transgender tangles and culture clashes.

Herself an Indian-American actress, Gujral has appeared in Denzel Washington-starrer Training Day (2001). However, you may remember her as Renu Mathur in Sanjay Dutt-starrer Kaante (2002), as Shelley in Beau Bridges-starrer Americanizing Shelley, as Nurse Kathy from American TV show Passions, as Saira Ahmed from Family Show, and Anna Kraus in 1979 action film, The Shark Hunter.

For Gujral, also a co-producer, the film is a multitude of promises made right. “The first was to Yash Chopra, who ran a fantastic panel called FICCI in Mumbai, where I was an invited guest speaker on global co-productions in 2008 with fellow panelist Cameron Bailey from TIFF. One night, Cameron and I were returning to the hotel after a party in Juhu, and Mr Chopra was in the lobby. He congratulated Cameron on TIFF and then congratulated me on Americanizing Shelley. I was shocked that he knew about it. He said he was a fan of romantic movies, so I said I’d love to produce one with him. He smiled and asked “Promise?” No telling if he was kidding! But I never got to find out…”

On the same trip, Dev Anand requested a meeting with Gujral. “It lasted three hours and explored various angles to make a contemporary version of Hare Rama Hare Krishna. His love for East-meets-West [movies] was eerily similar to mine. But, within three months of returning stateside, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Life took a major detour,” recounts Gujral.

After chemotherapy and going into remission, Gujral decided to pursue the cancer-inspired film 1 A Minute with Olivia Newton-John, Deepak Chopra while putting other projects on hold. “Sadly, by the time we got done with its global release, both Mr Anand and Mr Chopra had passed away within a year of each other.” Singh Gujral

Then, there was another brush with death, as Gujral was diagnosed with an aggressive blood cancer in 2013. Given three weeks to live, she was sent to a medical centre in California, for six months. “Lying in bed after intrathecal chemo to my spine, where you can’t move for hours, I promised myself that if I ever made it out, I would honour the two filmmakers. Shania in 5 Weddings is a little bit Jennifer from Hare Rama Hare Krishna, a little bit Simran from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and of course a whole lotta Nargis.”

Gujral’s film also upholds a promise made to a member of India’s hijra community during a meeting in 2014 outside Tata Memorial Hospital, where she launched Finding Match: The Cancer MoonShot Story featuring US Vice Prez Joe Biden and Congresswoman Priya Dutt. The film is being shot in nine parts of the world, and focuses on the challenges that these communities face in finding bone marrow and organ matches. Excerpts from an exclusive interview with the US- based filmmaker:

On life before turning director
It was an innocent life, because that was before breast cancer and blood cancer. I was an actress in Hollywood, doing pretty well and spending my days thinking about how not to age when I wasn’t on set. After my journey with cancer, which started almost 10 years ago, I am shelled out of innocence into an abyss of wisdom, truth and oddly a strange tranquility.

On similarities with Four Weddings And A Funeral
Both have similar pacing and tone; the similarity ends there.


On casting Nargis Fakhri
We considered some fabulous Hollywood actresses for this role. Then, a casting assistant brought up Nargis. I knew I had found Shania right away when I saw her work. She is sweet and funny. She has also had a tough life herself. So, we connect on many levels.

On expectations from her film
Anyone in the world who has lost a loved one to death, especially a parent, will find the film almost healing. Apart from death, there is birth, life, weddings and, of course, love and acceptance as part of the narrative.

On being a woman filmmaker
Three years ago, I was given three years to live. ‘Deh Shiva Bar Mohe Eha’ from the Guru Granth Sahib became my mantra. So, when you beat two aggressive cancers, it’s hard to say anything else is a challenge. But yes, I find it fascinating that even in Hollywood, the supposed Mecca of progressive thought, women directors are a definite minority. There is a line in 5 Weddings which says that for things to change, you can change laws, but it’s ultimately the people who have to change. I think that holds true for anything.