Rana Daggubati Interview with Dulquer Salmaan & Meenakshi Chaudhary | Lucky Bhaskar
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00:00So, since it's Lucky Bhaskar, I want to test luck first.
00:06This dumb luck I don't have.
00:08You don't have this dumb luck?
00:09I'm generally fortunate and blessed, you know.
00:10But like, finding a dollar note, I won't.
00:14No, you don't? That's not your vibe?
00:16Let's see, Meenakshi.
00:17Okay, what do I do with this?
00:18Let's see if you can aim and throw in the cup.
00:21Oh, God! Why do we always end up playing?
00:23Yeah, so let's see.
00:27How many she...
00:30Do we get like three chances?
00:31No, I'll just cut and put the ones that work.
00:35I love this game.
00:36See?
00:38Oops!
00:38That's cut.
00:41Okay.
00:41She got three already.
00:42She got three already.
00:44Four.
00:45So, there you go. Lucky Bhaskar will be a hit in five languages.
00:49That's how luck goes.
00:50So, first, Lucky Bhaskar, before I start,
00:53you're the retro king of India.
00:56How are you always in a period?
00:58Why do all period cinemas come to you first?
01:02I've actually begun to now fear
01:05directors thinking that if you don't bring something period to DQ,
01:09like, he might not say yes.
01:11So, it's like, is it period? Let's take it to him.
01:14I feel like how much ever I fight these things,
01:16like, I was trying to fight love stories.
01:20I tried to fight retro period films.
01:24But eventually, if there is something
01:27really authentic and beautiful in that story,
01:30I can't be like, I don't want to do this because it's period.
01:34Because it's a love story.
01:35End of the day, we're here to tell great stories.
01:38And that's what I love most about cinema.
01:41Like, I want to tell the most beautiful stories.
01:43So, if I'm meant to be period for most of my career,
01:49and if I have to have some filmography with the record of most number of period films, so be it.
01:54I think you already do. Just say it.
01:55I think already I do, yeah.
01:57So, what do you think? Have you seen him in other period stuff?
01:59Doesn't he look like he walks out of a period?
02:01His hair, the way he looks, it's just perfect.
02:05You should be saying this.
02:08As to why I'm looking like this is also partly because of him.
02:12No, but honestly, I think he's like a cardboard cutout, right?
02:15Like, how they say, these are the ingredients we need in a character
02:18that should look like this, that should be like this,
02:20that should just fit the thing.
02:22He fits it all.
02:24And I think I now understand, like, working with him on this film,
02:29and like seeing footage and whatever we, you know, the scenes we do together,
02:33I feel like it's just so easy for him to glide into any character that it is.
02:39And I think he's blessed to just be able to fit into that retro vibe
02:43because it's not everybody's cup of tea.
02:45I've also understood that.
02:46Not everybody can suit into that.
02:48And he's just blessed with that modern space.
02:51He's blessed with that retro space.
02:52And I think very few have that.
02:54And I think he's one of those.
02:55So, before getting into your film, I have to, like, I'm usually the most...
03:00Thank you, by the way.
03:02I took all these compliments and I'm sitting there, like, soaking it in.
03:06So, usually in life, I'm like the most secure human being.
03:09But the only thing I'm insecure about is hair.
03:13And...
03:13You have a good head of hair.
03:14No, this is a fixed head of hair.
03:18I love the honesty.
03:19But when I see him, like, usually when, like, women take a long time to get hair,
03:23like, I saw him getting his hair done once.
03:25I was like, macha, how do you have so much hair?
03:27And you're older than I am in some strange way.
03:29I am, yeah.
03:31It's just a Malayali thing.
03:32Is it like in Kerala you have, like, I don't know, I've seen all the people from Kerala have amazing hair.
03:39It's in the coconuts, macha.
03:40I think it's just that, right?
03:41Possibly the oil.
03:43So, tell me, how did Lucky Baskar start?
03:46What did, with you?
03:48How did Venky land up, speak to you?
03:52I think how it all just panned out together in this one space was...
03:59I think it was Venky's call to kind of think.
04:02I was in the sort of list of, like, you know, they say the short lists of things,
04:07of people who might fit the role of Sumati when they were looking into that.
04:10And I did a look test.
04:13And I didn't hear back from them for a month.
04:15And I was just, like, giving up, thinking, I think this is not happening.
04:18So, let me just move on with my life.
04:20And it just took that long for them to take that call.
04:23I don't know how it happened.
04:24So, then suddenly, this one day, out of nowhere, I think it was after a month,
04:28I get a call from Venky.
04:30And I'm in Bombay.
04:31And I'm sitting and he's like, hi, just wanted to tell you, congratulations, welcome on board.
04:36I was like...
04:38Which Venky is this?
04:39Yeah, like, he just started the conversation on that note.
04:41Why are you congratulating him?
04:42I was just thinking, what is he saying?
04:44Like, what is he talking about?
04:46It took me, like, a minute to kind of just understand what was happening.
04:49And I was like, oh, you mean Lucky Bhaskar?
04:51I was like, yeah, just wanted to let you know that you're on board.
04:55I was like, oh, okay.
04:57That's literally how it happened.
04:59And then the next thing I know, we are here, doing the pooja, starting the film in the next week.
05:04And it just started off like that.
05:05So, yeah.
05:06But, you know, in full sort of praise to her,
05:10the fact that...
05:12Lucky Bhaskar is what, your fourth film, fifth film?
05:14A Telugu, yes.
05:15Yeah.
05:16So, and starting out, and the first thing in the film, like a big part of the film,
05:22is there in the trailer, is that we are playing a married couple with a child.
05:27And the child is six, seven years old.
05:29And there is no way that Meenakshi is old enough to have a child of that age.
05:33Unless you...
05:35But the fact that she had no qualms about that,
05:38I thought it was so, like, just refreshing.
05:42Yeah, today it's hard to say, you don't want a kid, you want Piya.
05:45No, as in...
05:47Even me, for that matter, I think I started to play dad after I became a dad.
05:53That's interesting.
05:54Till then I was like, okay, maybe I was pushing that little 20-something year old,
05:59or like, not college, but like, single guy role, to an extent.
06:07But once my daughter was born, I was like, okay, now it's legit.
06:10It's legit, yeah.
06:11Like, everybody can believe it.
06:14And I don't want to take it away from anybody who's...
06:17Everybody wants to create whatever image they have, or they hold on to it.
06:22Because I feel like I did the same.
06:24I love the fact that she believed in the idea of the film,
06:28and she loved the character of Sumathi, and she was like, so what?
06:33Venky was like, you know, but you're playing a mom, and there's a child.
06:37And I feel like that's exactly what you said, right?
06:39Yeah, yeah.
06:40And there is not a single sequence in this film where I see Meenakshi playing Sumathi
06:47with Hrithvik as a son, as Karthik.
06:50There's so many sequences of them together.
06:51They kind of enter together, or they're interacting together,
06:53or they're there in the house.
06:55And it feels so organic, and it feels so real.
06:57And I saw her putting in the effort to bond with him.
07:00So yeah, that takes a lot.
07:03And you've played dad before?
07:06Yeah, I have.
07:07And this is your oldest kid in that sense?
07:09No, no, I've had older kids.
07:11You've had older kids?
07:12Wow!
07:13Clearly, this is your first time playing mom.
07:14This is my first, yeah.
07:15First time playing mom.
07:16So, okay, now, I had a very funny thing, because Adushesh was my son first.
07:20Oh, yeah!
07:21So straight, straight, it was like...
07:23That's when I got there first.
07:25But you know, historically, they've all done that.
07:27I feel like dad's played father to Mohanlal sir.
07:31Are you serious?
07:32Yeah, yeah, yeah.
07:33Wow, right?
07:34I feel like that generation of actors came from a school of...
07:38Almost like theatre, right?
07:40You play all kinds of roles.
07:42You can play a woman, you can play a 70-80 year old man,
07:47you can play a teenager, you can play anything.
07:50And that's the challenge.
07:53See, Venky is somebody in Telugu we know for extreme detailing of characters.
07:58Right.
07:59Like, okay, not to...
08:01I'll sound like a clichรฉ Telugu, but usually in Telugu,
08:04there's a largeness to commercial cinema.
08:06Sure.
08:07And that's the beat of cinema that is mostly accepted.
08:09But there's a handful of filmmakers that make a commercial film,
08:13also have art of sensibilities where detailing of character is perfect.
08:17You see production design of the film, it's perfect.
08:19You don't see anything that's off character.
08:21And Venky is one such.
08:23And earlier you spoke about the production design of the film
08:26and how much of detail it was.
08:27So what are the finicky things of Venky and how does he start?
08:30I think this I relate to completely.
08:33I've always felt...
08:35You can tell very believable, real, logic-based stories
08:40and believable characters.
08:43Which, it's almost like Kajrad Atha was in a lot of mainstream cinema.
08:47Yeah, yeah.
08:48When you go into that level of detailing of real life,
08:51a portrayal of real life.
08:53But at the same time, I feel like you can make that commercial.
08:57You can tell it, not a larger-than-life way,
09:01but you can mount it in a certain way,
09:02whether it's scale, whether it's entertainment,
09:04there's...
09:05I'm saying extraordinary things can happen to ordinary people.
09:09And I feel this film is so much of that.
09:12So much of extraordinary things happening to this one...
09:15Ordinary man.
09:16Ordinary man and his family.
09:17Yeah.
09:18Ordinary people in that sense.
09:21But I think the genius of Venky,
09:23I'm glad he's not here,
09:25so I can praise him,
09:27is that he seems to get the pulse of the people in this film.
09:34And there's a whole variety of characters.
09:37There's a whole spectrum of characters.
09:39And it's not like everybody speaks Venky's voice.
09:42It's not that everybody speaks his language.
09:46There is enough detailing where each person seems their own.
09:49If somebody is of authority, then they are of authority.
09:52If somebody is of a...
09:56Somebody who's failed his 10th grade,
09:58then he'll obviously speak that kind of a language.
10:00And I love that Venky is able to write those.
10:04There have been days when I'm fighting over some random thing,
10:07and then he'll give me the scene, I'll read it,
10:09and I'll be like,
10:10I can't fight with you because...
10:12The scene is so good.
10:13You can still write this.
10:14Your views on life are something I might argue with or debate with you on.
10:18But when you give me a scene,
10:20I feel like it is so organic and so real.
10:22In fact, the biggest fights I've had with Venky on the film,
10:26his post-shoot is an edit.
10:28Because he obviously has a time limitation,
10:31a runtime limitation in his head.
10:33And I'm like, how can you take the scene away?
10:35It's so beautiful, it's so real, it's so organic.
10:38And isn't it hurting you to trim this
10:42and sort of lose the essence of it or something?
10:44And he's like, no sir, I have a larger story to tell.
10:47And I can't really pick and choose.
10:49I want everything to be there,
10:50but this is the best way to get it.
10:53But it's been such a long time since I fought with the director
10:57to lengthen a film.
11:00I'm always fighting to reduce.
11:02This is almost three hours, bring it down,
11:04cut ten minutes, cut fifteen minutes.
11:06And that is, I think as producers, we have that in our head.
11:09But this is the first film where I'm like,
11:11I think I can afford another five minutes.
11:13You can give another ten minutes.
11:14Let the film breathe.
11:15It can afford it because it's so organic.
11:18So Venky, every time I see him,
11:20he's like this quiet, coy guy.
11:23But he's got very definitive views on life.
11:25Yeah.
11:26And the way characters should be.
11:27And you won't expect that's coming out of somebody
11:30who's set in that tone or that tonality of speaking.
11:33Sure.
11:34How is he as a director?
11:35How does he direct people?
11:37How clear is he?
11:39I think that's...
11:41I don't know how he does it.
11:42He's the exact opposite of what he writes.
11:45He's the exact opposite of what he writes?
11:47The maturity in his writing...
11:49So you're saying...
11:51I mean, I'm awestruck sometimes
11:55as to how he explains the character should be.
11:58When in real life, he's just talking about model cars
12:01and I'm like sitting there.
12:02He's talking about model cars?
12:04Yeah, I'm not kidding.
12:05I don't know if I have that influence on him somewhere.
12:07Yeah, if it was a model car,
12:08100% this guy would have said something.
12:10It just takes off and I'm just thinking,
12:12I can't believe this guy...
12:13I created a monster, so he's...
12:14Yeah!
12:15That's all he talks about.
12:16Really?
12:17A lot.
12:18Meenakshi's like,
12:19we have shoot, we have energy,
12:20just sit there in the background.
12:21But he has this childlike energy about anything that's new.
12:23He does.
12:24He gets excited with...
12:25I'm sure this car wouldn't have been in his head.
12:28I think he had a collection of some cars from his childhood.
12:31Yeah.
12:32I think he really got into it.
12:33I think when he came to the rate to me,
12:35he saw a collection in my house or something.
12:38But it went berserk during this film.
12:40It's crazy.
12:41But also what's beautiful is that
12:43he's so talented.
12:45And I have...
12:46There are very few directors who really portray women
12:50in the most authentic, organic and beautiful way.
12:53And I think Venky is one of those.
12:55That's us.
12:56I was so apprehensive initially
12:58because I was like...
12:59He's like,
13:00I don't want layers of makeup on you.
13:02I don't want you to even look like you have makeup on you
13:05in the house and all the house scenes.
13:07And I was like,
13:08I don't know if...
13:09He's like,
13:10just trust me on this.
13:11Don't.
13:12It looks so beautiful.
13:13It does.
13:14I don't think we've ever seen Meenakshi like this.
13:16Yeah.
13:17No doubt.
13:18I don't know.
13:19I don't think so.
13:20I'm sure we'll see different shades of you,
13:21different characters.
13:22But I don't know if we'll ever see Asumati.
13:24Because Asumati lives in a certain era,
13:26in a certain time.
13:27I think it's the most authentic version of me
13:30so far that I've played in any character.
13:32And I was actually very scared
13:34because this is getting too real.
13:36And I was not sure if it's...
13:38how it's going to be.
13:39But I think he just...
13:41When I saw it,
13:42I was like,
13:43he just knows what he's doing.
13:44He's so good at it.
13:45There's not a single scene that we get,
13:47when we get the sides,
13:48we're prepping for it or reading it,
13:50that you cannot believe fully.
13:52Yeah.
13:53We are performing with full conviction
13:54because it feels like a life lived.
13:56True.
13:57So I know a little bit about him.
13:58Every time he gets a role,
13:59he somewhere lives that a little bit.
14:01And a part of that role becomes him.
14:03Like during the period of that film.
14:05Yeah.
14:06And it happened over time.
14:07Like I've seen him during Kota,
14:09there is a certain aggression
14:10in the human body,
14:11in the body itself.
14:12I've seen him through Lucky Bhaskar.
14:13I've seen him now with Kanta.
14:14Yeah.
14:15What is it with you?
14:16Does part of that character stick with you?
14:18Or am I right or wrong first?
14:20I guess it's always there playing
14:22in the back of your head.
14:23And I think if you're in a certain look,
14:25a certain hair or beard or whatever.
14:27That energy of that person sticks with you.
14:29Yeah.
14:30How about you?
14:31Did some parts of Sumathi
14:32continue being with you?
14:33No, absolutely.
14:34The major part of Sumathi
14:36being that she's a mother.
14:37That's something that I obviously
14:39don't have any real life experience with.
14:41So I really had to kind of
14:44dig deep into that aspect
14:47of my character that I was playing.
14:49But apart from that,
14:50I think I'm a complete director's actor.
14:54So I give in to the process
14:56of what he wants me to do
14:57and how he wants me to be.
14:59Because he has the whole movie in his head.
15:02He knows what's happening.
15:03I probably don't know
15:04how I would see that.
15:06And also we don't shoot in a linear way.
15:08So I don't know what's happening.
15:10So I think I trust him fully
15:11with the way he's like,
15:12you know what,
15:13I think she's going to be in this space now.
15:14So I don't think too much.
15:16Sorry to interject,
15:17but did you think you would have
15:18felt like your mom
15:19or the mothers in your family?
15:22Yeah.
15:23So just the mother bit
15:24was something that I knew
15:25that I had to kind of work on a bit.
15:28And literally the only example
15:29that you'd be having
15:30is your close ones
15:31that you've seen around you,
15:32which is my mother.
15:33But apart from that,
15:34I don't think like for other characters,
15:36there's not too much of like homework,
15:39I would say.
15:40I feel like every time you came,
15:41because I mean,
15:42this film was shot over a year.
15:44So you shot over a year?
15:45Over a year.
15:46Oh my God, yeah.
15:47I mean,
15:48not entirely Venki's or Vamshi's.
15:50You put breaks on and off.
15:51Yeah, breaks.
15:52I had some health issues.
15:53Yeah.
15:54But I feel like every time
15:55you came back to set,
15:56you were very happy
15:57to get back into Sumatri, right?
15:58Yes.
15:59So that's one thing.
16:00This is one set
16:01and one character
16:02that I have absolutely enjoyed
16:04to the bits.
16:05Like,
16:06I cannot tell you the energy
16:07that I get and I have
16:09and I feel like it just kind of
16:11spreads.
16:12You know,
16:13that energy on the set
16:14is something that I've not seen
16:15anywhere so far.
16:16So apart from the both of you,
16:17who are the other actors
16:18that are a larger part
16:20during the shoot?
16:21I mean, the kid.
16:22Hrithvik was so good.
16:23Hrithvik was so good.
16:24Yeah.
16:25There's not a single,
16:26there's not one retake
16:27I can think of.
16:28Because of him?
16:29Because of him.
16:30We would forget lines.
16:31We would forget lines.
16:32In fact,
16:33there's a sequence where
16:34he's asleep
16:35and both of us are talking
16:36and I say something
16:38and she reacts loudly
16:39and he wakes up.
16:40But between takes,
16:42for set up or whatever,
16:43we're taking time
16:44and he's always lying there
16:45with his eyes closed
16:46and he could have very easily
16:47fallen asleep
16:48for a child of that age.
16:49Right.
16:50But he was there.
16:51But as soon as they call action
16:52and as soon as it's his cue
16:53to wake up,
16:54bang on.
16:55Nice.
16:56So the one,
16:57I feel like there's one time
16:58where he messed a line up.
16:59We're all like,
17:00how could you?
17:01Yeah.
17:02How could you?
17:03Did you mess up a line?
17:04And he was like,
17:05is it that wrong?
17:06And we all put him in the spot.
17:07We're like,
17:08oh my god.
17:09Finally,
17:10one mistake with this kid.
17:11True.
17:12He's adorable
17:13and he is so well prepped.
17:14Knows all his lines,
17:15knows all his beats.
17:16Very hard working,
17:17disciplined.
17:18Hard working.
17:19Such a good kid.
17:20Yeah.
17:22But I think the entire cast.
17:23Sure.
17:24As in,
17:25not just
17:29the home situation.
17:30Like even the bank.
17:31The bank, yeah.
17:32Every single
17:33cast member there.
17:35I feel like we all
17:36almost live like
17:37that is our
17:39workplace
17:40and we all have roles to play.
17:41There's a gentleman
17:42who plays a security guard.
17:43Every single day of shoot,
17:44he's already there
17:45in uniform.
17:46And when I'm walking in,
17:47he'll salute me.
17:48And we have so many
17:49interactions in the film.
17:51And I feel like
17:52in the most distant shot
17:53where he's there in the background,
17:54he's still standing there.
17:55Like,
17:56it's amazing.
17:57And
17:58every other character
17:59in the bank,
18:00for me,
18:01and we almost
18:02operate in that same manner.
18:03Some 45 days
18:04we shoot in the bank cell.
18:05So every day at 6pm
18:06when they call pack up,
18:07we'll all leave
18:08the bank together.
18:09So it's like
18:10you're almost
18:11bank employees all
18:12getting out of the same place.
18:13Exactly.
18:14Like a factory,
18:15the bell or whatever
18:16rings and everybody
18:17exits together.
18:18We'll all pour out
18:19of the bank like that.
18:20I've never had
18:21this kind of experience.
18:23I remember there was a day when
18:25I think we finished early
18:26and all the bank
18:29actors
18:30You were going to say
18:31all our bank employees
18:33was going to come out of your mouth.
18:34So they all kind of
18:36got into regular clothes
18:37and they all wanted
18:38to take photos and stuff.
18:39Oh yeah.
18:40And I was like, wow!
18:42This is how all of you look?
18:43Because when in period attire
18:45and you know like
18:47work clothes of that time,
18:48they're all very
18:49formal looking
18:50and hair done up.
18:52Correct.
18:53And now they're like
18:54cool, young,
18:55colourful,
18:56hair open
18:57and all this stuff.
18:58And I was like, wow!
18:59I can't imagine all of you
19:00All of these guys.
19:01Beautiful.
19:02See like,
19:03as soon as I heard
19:04actually first from Venky
19:05about what Lucky Baskar was,
19:07like just the fascination of
19:09taking money from a bank
19:10and just going away
19:11was just a happy idea.
19:14Big spoiler.
19:16No, I mean
19:17like just
19:18bank, money.
19:19Sure.
19:20I always wanted to loot a bank
19:21like in my life.
19:23Like what is that energy?
19:25There's a writer
19:26called Sridhar Raghavan
19:27who's a friend of mine.
19:28He said,
19:29every time you
19:30can take money
19:31from somewhere,
19:32some institute,
19:33it'll be a blockbuster
19:34because all of us
19:35want to do it.
19:36Because we're conditioned to
19:38Are we allowed to reveal this?
19:39Oh no.
19:41Then we'll chop it in.
19:42Okay.
19:43Venky will take
19:44whichever piece he wants.
19:45Okay.
19:46Conditioning, right?
19:47Conditioning is so much
19:49to behave
19:50and do the right thing
19:51and follow the rules
19:52and the law
19:53and abide by it
19:54and not really
19:56stir up
19:57any kind of
19:58honestness.
20:00So when we see films
20:01where you
20:02or when I see
20:03true crime
20:04dramas of any
20:06type,
20:07you're always wondering
20:08how can you do that?
20:10Wow, like it really
20:11takes some guts
20:12or like it really takes
20:14sort of some dismissing
20:15of your integrity
20:17or your understanding
20:18of right and wrong
20:19to go and do this.
20:21You know?
20:22And I think that's what we find
20:24kind of heroic.
20:25Wow, this takes
20:26another kind of guts.
20:27This takes another kind of
20:28bravery to do this
20:29because
20:30the rest of us are so
20:32boxed
20:33by conditioning.
20:35Yeah.
20:36I think that's the fascination.
20:37Okay, when
20:38I meant bank and money
20:39I actually was talking
20:40about Nagavamsi.
20:42So,
20:43Vamsi is
20:44right,
20:45he's a dear friend
20:46I worked on
20:47with Bimal Naik.
20:48I did a film
20:49with Sitara.
20:50And he is
20:51so different
20:52from all the producers
20:53you normally see
20:54in a classical sense.
20:55For sure.
20:56So he had something
20:57which now became
20:58very viral and popular.
20:59I have to talk about it.
21:00He said day one
21:01is going to be
21:02100 crores
21:03and that's how
21:04he's beginning
21:05his campaign
21:06for this film.
21:07Just to
21:08make it clear,
21:09in
21:1013 years of my career
21:11almost 40 films
21:12I still haven't
21:13hit 100 crores.
21:14So,
21:15if this does
21:16100 crores day one
21:17I would be the
21:18happiest person.
21:19I will probably
21:20be like Vamsi
21:21and have a framed
21:22picture of you
21:23in my home.
21:24But tell me,
21:25how is it
21:26with Sitara,
21:27with Vamsi,
21:28Chinnababu,
21:29all of them?
21:30You know,
21:31they've been lovely
21:32and they've been
21:33very supportive
21:34of the film.
21:35But I remember
21:36there was one
21:37I feel like
21:38we were
21:40he's not the kind
21:41of producer
21:42that meddlesome
21:43like he doesn't
21:44overly interfere.
21:45But he does
21:46visit from time to time
21:47to sort of
21:48show his presence
21:49and make sure
21:50you know that he's around.
21:51And that's good.
21:52I think that's healthy
21:53as producers.
21:54If you're there every day
21:55there are a lot of producers
21:56who sit there
21:57all day
21:58to seem like
21:59the clock is ticking.
22:00There's that nervous energy.
22:01Correct.
22:02If you go over.
22:03But he doesn't do that.
22:04He comes from time to time.
22:05So one day
22:06he wanted to meet me
22:07and he's like,
22:08is everything going as
22:09do you think
22:10it's going okay?
22:11Because you know
22:12this is not a typical
22:13massy commercial film
22:15with fight and dance
22:16and songs
22:17and all this stuff.
22:18But we're still going
22:19you know
22:20this many days
22:21we're still shooting
22:22so much.
22:23You sure it's okay?
22:25And I was like
22:26Vamsi Kapoor this is not
22:27a type of film
22:28that even I've attempted.
22:29Nor has Venky.
22:30And I think
22:31I've done one
22:32heist film before.
22:33And when you do
22:34any
22:35should I reveal
22:36heist film?
22:37Just block this
22:38and we'll just beep it.
22:39They'll think it's
22:40something wrong, bad
22:41we're talking.
22:42But I'm saying
22:43certain genres of films
22:44need
22:45a certain
22:46amount of
22:47shots
22:48and angles and stuff
22:49to
22:50either
22:51increase pace
22:52decrease it
22:53slow it down
22:54speed it up
22:55how you want
22:56in edit.
22:57So we do need
22:58a number of shots
22:59especially in certain sequences.
23:00So I was like
23:01I do understand
23:02what Venky's
23:03there's no wastage.
23:04We're not traffic.
23:05We're not just
23:06we're not
23:07he's like
23:08okay sir
23:09you're sure?
23:10I said yeah I'm sure.
23:11Then beyond that
23:12there's no
23:13conversation about this
23:14which I liked.
23:15Because he was trying
23:16to understand
23:17I think
23:18as a producer
23:19he's seeing us
23:20shooting and shooting
23:21and he's like
23:22this is just some
23:23okay bank
23:24okay house
23:25and there's some
23:26done.
23:27This should be a quick
23:28film
23:29without so much effort.
23:30On paper
23:31the idea of
23:32it's usually
23:33a strange thing
23:34when we assume
23:35a big action sequence
23:36we feel like the film
23:37should get over fast.
23:38Because you can
23:39break down songs
23:40in song, dance and fights.
23:41You can be like
23:42one song four days
23:43this song five days
23:44this fight twelve days
23:45whatever.
23:46There is a calculation.
23:47But for drama
23:48you don't know
23:49how to break it down.
23:50Drama you don't know
23:51how to do it.
23:52I think we're facing
23:53the same problem.
23:54Oh this is how long
23:55it takes?
23:56Okay okay okay
23:57no problem.
23:58So now this film
23:59is out on
24:00the 31st of October
24:01and it's out
24:02across India
24:03in five languages.
24:04What is your
24:05expectations of each?
24:07I am beyond
24:08I think
24:09A I have not
24:10these past two years
24:11have been the slowest
24:12in my career
24:13in a very long time.
24:14I usually have
24:15Macha stop
24:16stop saying that
24:17Macha seriously
24:18I usually do
24:19at least three films.
24:20If you see my
24:21contemporaries in Malayalam
24:22they're all like
24:23five films six films
24:24my dad is at five six films.
24:25So when I'm like
24:26one film a year
24:27for two years
24:28it's almost
24:29unprecedented.
24:30But in Telugu
24:31they think you're
24:32an actor who does
24:34I need to
24:35speed things up
24:37because
24:38I sometimes
24:39think it's a
24:40three four month film
24:41it's taken
24:42a year
24:43so I think
24:44for me the joy
24:45the excitement
24:46is the fact that
24:47I am
24:48coming out with
24:49a film after
24:5014 months
24:51so and
24:52irrespective of
24:53how it fares
24:54in each of the languages
24:55I think we've made
24:56a good film
24:57and I think
24:58the subject is
24:59very Indian
25:00very universal in that
25:01I think
25:0280% of India
25:03is either
25:04a Bhaskar
25:05or knows a Bhaskar
25:06or relates or
25:07connects to a Bhaskar.
25:08I think for me
25:09when I first heard
25:10the script
25:11what I connected with
25:12was like
25:13if some
25:14decent percentage
25:15of the audience
25:16walks out of
25:17the cinema halls
25:18at the end of the film
25:19feeling like
25:20they are Bhaskar
25:21in some way
25:22we have a winner.
25:23So Dilk
25:24who's a Bhaskar
25:25in your life?
25:26I think we all
25:27know Bhaskars
25:28in our lives
25:29in some form or the other.
25:30My dad is
25:31my mom has
25:32some three siblings
25:33and obviously
25:34their kids
25:35their extended families
25:36and there's always
25:37been only one movie star.
25:38I'm the second
25:39in that sense.
25:40So all of growing up
25:41we've always seen
25:42different members
25:43of the family
25:44struggling
25:45in some form
25:46or the other
25:47especially financially
25:48and I think that is
25:49all of Bhaskar's story
25:50that he's
25:51every month
25:52I feel like
25:53he's a little
25:54in a negative balance
25:55like he'll make
25:56he'll make x
25:57but his expenses
25:58every month
25:59are x
26:00plus
26:01so much
26:02and that's his struggle
26:03and I feel like
26:04so much
26:05so much of our country
26:06historically
26:07has always been like that
26:08I think it's been
26:09a lot better
26:10of late
26:11since liberalization
26:12and the past 20 years
26:13but
26:14there are still
26:15people that
26:16struggle
26:17on a month
26:18to month basis
26:19which is
26:20which is what
26:21I think I love
26:22most about the film.
26:23Tell me
26:24who are Bhaskars
26:25in your life?
26:26Have you seen
26:27Bhaskars around you?
26:28I think I've
26:29grown up
26:30in a very
26:31normal government services
26:32my dad was
26:33in the army
26:34and
26:35I think
26:36even though
26:37you get to have
26:38a very comfortable life
26:39I do remember
26:40having
26:41the best
26:42travel experiences
26:43and memories
26:44in our Maruti
26:45the four of us
26:46just going in
26:47travelling
26:48which is
26:49so relevant
26:50yeah it is
26:51so you know
26:52I feel like
26:53I have all of those
26:54memories etched
26:55in my mind
26:56like I can still
26:57you know
26:58think so clearly
26:59about all of those things
27:00growing up in that space
27:01wherein
27:02my mom would have to
27:03bargain with the
27:04sabziwala also
27:05on how it is
27:06but it's a typical
27:07you know like
27:08middle class space
27:09that's what I've
27:10grown in
27:11where education
27:12is given the
27:13most importance
27:14you know focusing
27:15on things that
27:16will probably
27:17stand you long term
27:18I remember my
27:19I would be
27:20buying my books
27:21that we saved
27:22and passed on
27:23to my brother
27:24because
27:25we won't be
27:26buying the other ones
27:27so I just went
27:28to my sister
27:29straight
27:30they are fresh books
27:31so that's what
27:32and I remember
27:33my mom buying
27:34a little
27:35one size extra
27:36like for us
27:37for our school
27:38uniforms
27:39knowing that we
27:40are going to
27:41fit into it
27:42probably next year
27:43as well
27:44it's going to
27:45go in
27:46so you know
27:47those small
27:48small things
27:49that work in
27:50and I've
27:51grown up
27:52with that thing
27:53so I know
27:54those things
27:55and how
27:56when I was
27:57listening
27:58when I'm
27:59shooting
28:00when we
28:01are all
28:02hearing those
28:03scenes
28:04it's so
28:05relatable
28:06because I have
28:07grown up
28:08with those
28:09things
28:10and it just
28:11felt so nice
28:12knowing that
28:13it's on
28:14screen
28:15because I
28:16could relate
28:17to that
28:18and be like
28:19you know
28:20we also
28:21do this
28:22do you
28:23remember this
28:24in the
28:25army
28:26so
28:27like they
28:28always used to
28:29have a sense
28:30saying okay
28:31you guys are
28:32civilians
28:33we're army
28:34kids
28:35they would
28:36like treat us
28:37differently
28:38is that how
28:39you grew up
28:40too
28:41I mean
28:42you guys
28:43are civilians
28:44I'm like
28:45what does
28:46that even
28:47mean
28:48like we're
28:49here
28:50protecting you
28:51yes
28:52is that
28:53the sense
28:54of
28:55being
28:56transferred
28:57I mean
28:58because of
28:59your dad's
29:00job
29:01so you're
29:02not just
29:03born in
29:04one place
29:05and you're
29:06not just
29:07raised in
29:08one place
29:09but you're
29:10transferred in
29:11so many
29:12places across
29:13India
29:14that you
29:15kind of
29:16learned
29:17even
29:18and I'm
29:19a very shy
29:20kid
29:21growing up
29:22I was
29:23forced to
29:24get out of
29:25your shell
29:26and learn
29:27to be on
29:28your own
29:29because every
29:30two years
29:31is going to
29:32be a new
29:33place
29:34altogether
29:35I'm saying
29:36so class
29:371 to 10
29:38you shifted
29:39like
29:40I think
29:41I shifted
29:42what like
29:435 schools
29:445-6
29:45schools
29:46that's crazy
29:47it is
29:48that's crazy
29:49it is
29:50but also
29:51just imagine
29:52the personal
29:53that is like
29:54protecting us
29:55imagine the
29:56stress their
29:57families go
29:58through
29:59imagine the
30:00fears they
30:01live with
30:02it can't be
30:03easy
30:04and we just
30:05take it for
30:06granted
30:07fully so
30:08so I think
30:09it's fully
30:10justified
30:11with civilians
30:12you guys
30:13deserve to
30:14say whatever
30:15you want
30:16I remember
30:17most of
30:18my childhood
30:19my dad
30:20was not
30:21there
30:22he was
30:23there
30:24he was
30:25there
30:26he was
30:27there
30:28he was
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38:24he was
38:25there
38:26he was
38:27there
38:28he was
38:29there
38:30he was
38:31there
38:32he was
38:33there