Showing posts with label Ridley Scott. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ridley Scott. Show all posts
The quiet rebel in me always uses the staff lift in. It’s my way of saying a silent ‘F*** you’-Adarsh Gourav
7:43 PM
Set to shoot for Ridley Scott’s Alien in Bangkok, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan star Adarsh says his unfamiliarity with the West makes it hard yet creatively exciting to collaborate
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; January 5, 2024)
Adarsh Gourav couldn’t have imagined a better end to 2023. Or a better start to this year. The actor has been winning praise for his honest performance in Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, which dropped on Netflix in the last week of December. He has little time to bask in the love, as he is set to begin shooting for the television series, Alien, on which Ridley Scott serves as the executive producer. But movies like Kho Gaye Hum Kahan are hard to shake off, and Gourav acknowledges that it has stayed with him.
“When I moved to the city as a 13-year-old, I felt every beat of what my character Neil feels. I saw how materialism hits you in Mumbai. I felt insecure, inadequate and envious at times,” he recalls.
Through his character, director Arjun Varain Singh explores not only this generation’s hustling spirit, but also their silent frustrations. “I love how the character makes class divide a conversation. The scene where Neil is reprimanded for using the gym shower, and the board reads ‘Staff not allowed’, stuck with me. New buildings in Mumbai have dedicated lifts for staff. I find it humiliating. The quiet rebel in me always uses the staff lift in those buildings. It’s my way of saying a silent ‘F*** you’ to people who think this is okay. We have been desensitized and don’t make enough noise about class divide.”
Gourav’s reason to be part of the Siddhant Chaturvedi and Ananya Panday-starrer went beyond its powerful script. It was the joy of playing a city-bred character after a spate of small-town boy roles in The White Tiger (2021), Guns & Gulaabs (2023) and more.
“People associate me with violent roles, with characters who belong to Tier-2, -3 cities. It was refreshing to get a character that I associate with myself. I want to portray characters that help me transform emotionally and physically.”
Gourav adds, “Despite being a middle-class family, my parents ensured they took us on vacations, and I’ve travelled across the length and breadth of India. I have changed 13 houses in the city, from Dahisar to Amboli, and went to an upscale school like Podar International School. I have observed a lot of the worlds in India, and rarely get a script where I can’t recognize the character. I’ve seen every character and met them, briefly.”
Doing international projects then helps him go out of the realm of familiarity and embrace unknown characters. He is set to join the unit of Alien in Bangkok later this month. “While working in the West, there are so many things that I have absolutely no idea about. I read up on it and practice my accents in my free time. I might not sound exactly like a person from Chicago, but I work so hard that sometimes I surprise myself by getting into the final shortlist,” he laughs.
“[Before I shot the first schedule] in June, I had never worked with people from London, New Zealand, and America. To live, workshop with them and know that these are your people for the next six months can be daunting. But I met some wonderful people and can’t wait to reunite with them.”
Adarsh Gourav to star in the prequel to Alien
8:38 AM
Adarsh of The White Tiger fame roped in for international series Alien, a prequel to Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi film of the same name
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; August 30, 2023)
You have to give it to Adarsh Gourav for attempting to build an eclectic résumé ever since he broke out with The White Tiger (2021). In the two years since, he has been part of a heartland crime comedy in Guns & Gulaabs, an apocalyptic series in Extrapolations, and a young adult drama in the upcoming Kho Gaye Hum Kahan.
Now, the actor will feature in the series, Alien, which will be a prequel to the 1979 film of the same name. With the 1979 offering, director Ridley Scott kicked off the popular franchise that includes Aliens (1986), Alien vs Predator (2004) and Prometheus (2012).
The sci-fi horror franchise ventures into episodic storytelling with the FX-Hulu series. While Scott will serve as executive producer, it will be helmed by Noah Hawley and feature Essie Davis.
A source reveals, “Adarsh and the cast filmed some portions in July, before shoots came to a standstill because of the SAG-AFTRA strike. Filming will resume after the strike ends. It will be shot in Thailand, and Adarsh has two weeks’ work left. The network is planning to stream the series in 2024.”
Over the decades, the Alien franchise has seen renowned filmmakers—from James Cameron to David Fincher—wield the directorial baton. For Gourav, the latest spin-off is another opportunity to make a mark in the international circuit.
The source adds, “After The White Tiger earned him a BAFTA nomination for best actor, Adarsh caught the attention of many in Hollywood. In the series, he plays an Indian character.”
Priyanka Chopra to party with Murder On The Orient Express actors Johnny Depp, Judi Dench, Penelope Cruz
7:55 AM
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 24, 2017)
Los
Angeles-based filmmaker Aditya Sood, who is co-producing the British
mystery drama Murder On The Orient Express, an eponymous screen
adaptation of Agatha Christie’s novel, is set to host an intimate bash
for the cast and crew of the film, along with other stars, including
Priyanka Chopra, at his residence. Also on the guest list are Judi
Dench, Penelope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Leslie Odom
Jr, Michelle Pfeiffer, Daisy Ridley and co-producer Ridley Scott.“The dress code is Indian and the menu will feature biryani, tandoori chicken and kebabs. An Indian playlist is also being put together for the party, which will take place over the weekend,” a source close to the development told Mirror. Sood, whose repertoire boasts of films like The Martian, Deadpool 1 and 2, Designated Survivor and Artemis, has coproduced the film alongside British actor-filmmaker Kenneth Branagh (who is also directing the film), Ridley Scott, Simon Kinberg, Mark Gordon, Michael Schaefer and Judy Hofflund.
Ahead of the film’s release, the makers have announced a sequel, titled Death On The Nile, another Agatha Christie adaptation. “The bash doubles up as a celebration of the film’s upcoming Indian release, as well as plans for the sequel,” the source adds. The film released internationally on November 10 and premiered in India at the 48th International Film Festival if India in Goa on Tuesday. For the sequel, Branagh is expected to return as the director and also reprise his role as Christie’s famed Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. According to the source, all concerned parties are yet to sign on the dotted line. The sequel follows Poirot’s Egyptian vacation, where he discovers a murder on the banks of the Nile and a love triangle gone bad.
Today, I feel Company is a half-baked film-Ram Gopal Varma
8:09 AM
RGV gets candid about hits and misses; says Twitter’s an extension of his personality
Meena Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 7, 2017)
One has known Ram Gopal Varma for 28 years but that amounts to zilch. Nasty one second and disarming the next, RGV remains an enigma. He lives vicariously through the movies he views and makes. He deliberately courts the Bollywood “outcaste” image and will not pander to the egos of either his actors or the media.
Excerpts from a chat with the incorrigible filmmaker:
Amitabh Bachchan has trusted you despite the fact that besides the successful Sarkar franchise, you also made the disastrous RGV Ki Aag with him. Comment.
I have the highest regard for Amitabh Bachchan. Unlike others who only look at the end result, he sees the effort I put into both Sarkar and RGV Ki Aag. Most people don’t bother with the causes and just react to the effect. That’s understandable. I’m not complaining.
You have been around for 28 years. In the early years of your career you could do nothing wrong. In the second half, most of the films you did were wrong. Why?
To start with, it’s not true that I did not do anything wrong in the early phase. After the super successful debut, Shiva, in 1989, I gave five flops in a row. Then, there were three flops before Rangeela in 1995 which was followed by another flop, Daud, two years later. People remember only the hits after some years. The media too wasn’t so aggressive in those days.
Would you say that somewhere along the way you’ve become a little complacent?
I know that’s what people think and that I do too many things too fast and so do not focus on the job at hand. But the truth is that I spent the maximum time, effort and money on films like Daud, Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag and Department and they are my biggest flops while films like Satya, which was made without a ready script succeeded. There is no co-relation between working hard and making a hit film though I know nobody will believe me.
Sarkar is a franchise which has kept you on top of the game. What are your expectations from Part 3?
For me, Sarkar is the epitome of what great film characters meant from the days of an angry young Amitabh Bachchan to the Godfather trilogy. Sarkar 3 is the epitome of the franchise.
How close is Sarkar 3 to your heart and will we catch a glimpse of the genius that was there in Shiva, Company and Rangeela in it?
You will find the present RGV in Sarkar 3. Ridley Scott once said that when you see a film that you have made a long time ago, you almost feel as if someone else has made it. I agree. That is because we are continuously changing through our experiences. So today, when I see Company, I feel it’s a half-baked film because I know so much more about the complexities of the underworld now.
You are really aggressive on the social media like recently you got after Tamil Nadu’s CM-hopeful, Sasikala Natarajan.
For me, Twitter is an extension of my personality and I say whatever I feel strongly about at the moment. Also, it is not a public platform, it’s something between me and those who wish to follow me
But why are you always so offensive?
I am not offensive, I’m actually gentler than a lamb. But the truth I speak sometimes sounds offensive.
Is there a film in the offing on Sasikala?
Let’s see.
There is so much of you on the social media. Yet you continue to remain an enigma. What is the real RGV like?
You can meet the real RGV on Twitter. He is a mixture of one teaspoon of genius, two teaspoons of dumbness, a pinch of humour and half a cup of ‘mad’ common sense.
You once started your day watching a movie and went to bed watching one. Does this routine continue or has it given way to some other idiosyncrasy.
Earlier I used to watch only movies, now I watch a lot of documentaries and web series.
After Urmila Matondkar and Antara Mali you stopped giving Bollywood, heroines who could occupy mind space, stopped nurturing talent…
I would say I stopped ‘talenting’. Now, don’t ask me its meaning
Ridley Scott wants Irrfan Khan to play a scientist in his next film?
4:01 PM
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 2, 2015)
Ridley Scott, best-known for his historical drama Gladiator, which won five Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Actor for Russell Crowe, is planning a film with Irrfan Khan. Mirror has learnt that the maker's upcoming sci-fi film, Alien: Paradise Lost, slated to open in 2017, has a role going of an Indian scientist. The film rolls in Hungary in January and Irrfan might just hop time zones again to enter an alien universe.
Interestingly, for Scott's sci-fi drama, The Martian, which hits screens today, the makers had approached Irrfan with the role of ISRO scientist Venkat Kapoor, moulded on Padma Shree awardee Dr. Subbiah Arunan. Dr. Arunan had played a prominent role in the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), which celebrated its first anniversary on September 24.
The film is based on Andy Weir's 2011 best seller, by the same name, and the author wanted an Indian actor to play the part. "My first and only choice was Irrfan Khan," Andy, who has co-written the screenplay told Mirror. Irrfan who was juggling his dates between the Hollywood feature, Jurassic World and Shoojit Sircar's Piku, was keen to do the film. "He had to back out due to a Bollywood contract conflict just three weeks before our shooting began," recalls Andy. "I had to turn down a Ridley Scott-Hollywood film for my other assignments," Irrfan had admitted to Mirror earlier (June 19). After completing Piku, Irrfan flew off to Budpest to film the American thriller, Inferno, based on Dan Brown's novel, with Tom Hanks. He also completed Meghna Gulzar's Talvar which opens today, and was recently shooting a Japanese TV miniseries, The Tokyo Trials, in Lithunia.
Since Andy had an extremely short window to fill the second most important role in the story, he decided to tweak it a bit once it was clear that Irrfan would not come on board as Venkat.
"We no longer had the luxury of going after a specific ethnicity and just wanted to find another really good actor for the role," he reminisces.
They ended up with British actordirector Chiwetel Ejiofor, best known for his role in the 2013 Oscar winning film, 12 Years A Slave. "But we changed the character's name from Venkat Kapoor to Vincent Kapoor, who is halfblack and half-Indian, to make the role more authentic," admits Andy.
Click a moment on October 10, stand a chance of becoming co-director in crowd-sourced documentary
7:45 AM
Anyone across India can click a moment on October 10 and stand a chance of becoming a co-director in a crowd-sourced documentary which is part of a unique cinematic experiment
Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 1, 2015)
In 2010, director Kevin Macdonald and producer Ridley Scott created a 94 minutes, 53 seconds crowd-sourced documentary, Life in a Day, offering a candid snapshot of a single day on the planet. It was compiled from 80,000 YouTube submissions and 4500 hours of footage coming in from 192 countries, all shot on July 24, the first Saturday after the World Cup.
The directors who contributed to this unique cinematic feature included Ferran Brooks, Kevin Macdonald, Alejandro Romeo and Hiroaki Aikawa with a host of codirectors. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 27, 2011, and was streamed live on YouTube.
Taking the global film experiment further, Google in partnership with filmmakers Ridley Scott, Anurag Kashyap and Richie Mehta, is now asking people across India to help create the first user-generated, feature-length documentary shot on a single day. India In a Day will chronicle moments, captured on camera or even a smart phone, from another Saturday, October 10.
Scott is the executive producer and Mehta the director. Anurag, along with R Balki, Shekhar Kapur and Zoya Akhtar are the creative consultants. Those whose clips are selected, will make it to the credits as codirectors.
"It doesn't matter how small or personal it is, from riding a bike to calling your mum, it simply needs to bear witness to what life is like in today's India," says Scott, known for the Oscar winning Gladiator and classics like Thelma & Louise, Alien, Black Hawk Down, Blade Runner and more recently The Martian.
Mehta believes this is an opportunity for all of us to discover an extraordinary India. And Anurag urges, "We want to tell the story of India in a single day, and we want you to help. You can grab your camera on October 10 and capture anything and everything around you. Film anything. But most of all, make it personal. Make it your point of view. Tell us what you love, what you hate, what worries you, what you hope for, what you want to change."
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