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Touching a chord

Satish Kaushik

There is something about Satish Kaushik that makes you smile. He's round and chubby and has this hearty air about him. Even on the phone, when we called for the interview, we found him as warm and friendly. That, despite the fact that Graham Bell's tinkler had startled him out of a pleasant nap.

Satish is pretty frank about his failures and rather pleased with his success in his third attempt. And he's clearly very grateful to Anil Kapoor for having suggested him as a director to producer D Rama Naidu for Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain.

Satish has covered pretty much all the ground there is in cinema -- he's done theatre, television, films, production, and been a comedian in quite a few movies. A product of the National School of Drama, he joined the Film and Television Institute of India, where he decided he was cut out for direction more than acting.

He chortles at the suggestion that he may have decided to turn director when no one offered him roles as an actor. But now he's appreciated as both an actor and a director.

He started his career as an assistant to Shekhar Kapur. It was then that he met Boney Kapoor and bagged two big films. Roop Ki Rani, Choron Ka Raja was the most expensive film at that time, reportedly costing Rs 70 million. Satish was shaken but he went ahead with Sanjay Kapoor's launch film, Prem that he took on at the last minute when Shekhar Kapur stepped out. That too flopped.

Though Satish was perturbed, he buried himself in acting till Rama Naidu gave him a chance. Today, rejuvenated after a hit, he is ready to direct another film for Boney Kapoor. According to him, "After those historical disasters, I have to square my account with Boney by giving him one big hit film".

Satish feels he has now got his due. Currently he plans to concentrate on family dramas, which he thinks is his forte. And D Rama Naidu's expressed his confidence by taking on Satish as director in another film. Excerpts from an interview with Sharmila Taliculam:

Finally, your third film as director, is a hit. How do you feel about that?

My film's collection was the best (of the four films released in that week). It's a great feeling that my third film as director has finally seen success because my last two films, particularly aimed at the box office, didn't do well. That, though they were very well made. They were difficult films to make because they were very different. Then came this film and I'm very satisfied the way it turned out.

A still from Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain. Click for bigger pic!

Still, one must never be completely satisfied with one's work so early in one's career. I want to make more films. But I'm satisfied because the score is now 2:1. I've been working hard. I didn't utter a word against the films or anybody else after my last two films bombed. I knew what I's made and since they didn't work at the box office, I had no right to speak about them.

So you thought acting is a safe bet...?

So between Prem and Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain, I got into acting in a big way. I got a Filmfare award for Saajan Chale Sasuraal and I got recognition with (the television serial) Colgate Top Ten where I had Pankaj Kapoor as my co-star.

So instead of knocking on the doors of producers and telling them that I am here and that I do good work, I thought acting was a better option. I chose it for my own dignity and self-respect. I know my job so well, so why should I have to fall at somebody's feet and beg that I be given films to direct?

I chose to open my own company, do my own television serials. I did television wholeheartedly. I also did many films as an actor. So it was not as if these three years haven't been satisfying, you know. I did a lot of other things, including designing my office. I was lucky that I got Hum Aapke....

I believe that whatever you do, there are some people who believe in your talent and want to give you a chance. That matters a lot. I was in touch with Anil throughout and he was the one to suggest my name to D Rama Naidu for this film.

So Anil Kapoor was responsible for getting you Hum Aapke.... How did you react?

I remember I was sleeping in my room in America where I was shooting for Aa Ab Laut Chalen. I got this call at three in the morning. I heard the story and I was very excited. The excitement grew when Kajol came into the picture. This film was completed in record time.

The label that I made films in four-five years came unstuck with this film. I started this film in March and released it in January. So it was a very satisfying and good experience.

Rama Naidu is a school in himself. You get to learn a lot of things. Labs, studios, editing rooms, theatres, everything you want are at your beck and call. I always wanted to work in such a disciplined atmosphere. So when I worked with him, it was a like a new class for me.

This film changed my perspective. I knew there was a lot at stake. There were deadlines to be met and I knew this film was mine... All this added to my excitement.

You got this film readymade? Script and all?

Click for bigger pic!

Yes, I got this film readymade because it is a remake of a Telugu film, which was already a big hit in Andhra Pradesh. But I wouldn't call it a remake really. I would like to call it an adaptation because this isn't a frame-to-frame copy of the original. I've come from a theatre background and I've been taught that one has to adapt a particular story to suit one's ambience and taste.

So I based the whole film in Delhi and gave the characters a north Indian Punjabi look. I gave Shakti Kapoor a Punjabi-Pathani look, my own character is that of a Pahadi. Kajol is from a lower middle class family. The only bread winner. Her house in the film is similar to my house in Karol Bagh in Delhi. The house is in the middle of a busy street and the noise filters in all the time. That also shows that there is a lot of turmoil in the house all the time. So it is an adaptation of Pavitra Bandham, not a remake.

Which did you enjoy more, acting or directing?

See, basically I am an actor. I started out as one. I am from the NSD and my batchmates were Anupam Kher, Kavita Choudhary, Anita Kanwar... We had a very good batch. My whole aim was to become like Mehmood or Johnny Walker. I wanted to be a comedian. With my kind of looks, I thought I'd make a good comedian. My only ambition from childhood was to be an actor and I was confident that I'd be just that.

I joined the NSD and then I went to FTII for about three months for more training. That opened a new avenue for me. I saw that my co-actors did diploma films and acted in them. Nobody took me on because of my appearance. That's when I decided that the man behind the scenes was the most important person.

The director dictates everything, he chooses his actors; he's a very creative person. So when I didn't get films, I'd sit in the archives, watch films and observe other directors at work. I used to give the clap when somebody was shooting. I got a little excited about the man behind the camera. I thought about coming to Bombay after that.

Was it easy in Bombay?

In Bombay, I wasn't getting any roles at all. Those days when I started, that is in the eighties, most heroes did comedy, action, everything. We didn't stand a chance. Also, I was new to Bombay.

To survive I did a job in a textile mills. I joined Nadira Babbar's Ekjut and acted in some plays. So I would work in the mill in the mornings and go to the theatre in the evenings. Still, the roles weren't coming.

Finally, I decided I should become an assistant. Because I couldn't sit idle, you know. I have to something or the other all the time. I am very restless person. I do ten things at the same time. Like today I am acting, directing, writing and running my own production company. So I thought that I should be working everyday. And then I joined Shekhar Kapur.

What did you do with him?

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I assisted Shekhar in three films -- Masoom, Joshilay -- which was half complete -- and then became an associate director in Mr India. During the making of Mr India, I developed a good rapport with Boney Kapoor and Javed. Javed was always pushing me to become a director. He always believed in me.

During this film, Manju Singh who was the producer of a television serial, Ek Kahani, asked me to direct one episode. I showed it to my colleagues and they were taken aback. Then I did a pilot for another television serial called Lifeline. That too was appreciated. Boney saw it and offered me Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja.

Didn't you write the script for Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron too. How was the experience working with Kundan Shah?

Writing Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron was a very innocent experience. Ranjit Kapoor was the writer and we were in theatre together. He told me to help him write the script. He used to tell me that I'd be a better writer. And here I thought I couldn't even write a decent letter.

But that was a different kind of writing. When we got together we would pull out a tape recorder and I would start acting and saying the dialogues. That got recorded and we would put it in the screenplay.

We performed this way and Kundan gave me a role in the film saying there was only one particular character I could play. I was acting out the scene where Naseer and I are in the same room talking on the phone to each other and our receivers get exchanged. Seeing that, Kundan decided only I could do the role.

Seeing that the script of that film was so good, do you work on your scripts too. Or do they come to you complete?

All my scripts are hard-bound. They come complete to me. Even Roop Ki Rani... was a hard-bound script. But they can be changed too. We got carried away in my last two films. There were too many effects and big sets. And then, when a film takes too long, then it loses its meaning too. So the fault lay in the fact that it got delayed. The songs lost their freshness.

When we started the film, big sets were the norm. By the time we released the film, soft romantic songs had become a craze. The songs were picturised on a big scale. It took me 19 days to shoot one song. That was unheard of in those days. Today everybody does it. That was a nine or ten crore (Rs 90-100 million) film.

Prem got delayed because RKRCKR was delayed. The unit was the same and we couldn't do two films together.

Is that why those two films failed at the box office?

One can sit back and study and dissect as to what went wrong. I wish I had a more human first film. Like Hum Aapke... It's a well-made film but on a very human level. I made films that were just not me. I had to put myself into them completely. Even the roles I do... You must have noticed that I'm very human in them too.

I try to get that into every character of mine. I try and identify with the people. Those films I made were not identifiable. I'm very friendly and warm. At the first meeting itself I make that known to people. Making those two films was not really warm. I got into the techniques of the films, the effects, the sets. In Hum Aapke...I went into the heart and the soul of the film. Right from the beginning, this film was dear to me, close to me, and I could feel that this was my kind of a film. I wish I had got a film like that.

How is it directing other actors when you are an actor yourself?

Performance-wise, direction is easier because I'm an actor. I can tell my actors what kind of performance I want. I can act out the scene and expect them to understand better. The punchlines and the pronunciation can be exactly the way I want them to be. I can also tell them how I feel about the character.

Your batch from the NSD became actors, not really stars. Are you disappointed you didn't get your due?

There are no disappointments actually. We are happy to be acting. It doesn't matter what kind of a role it is. We've got our due in the sense that we do get good roles. Not any run-of-the-mill stuff.

Raj Babbar was a hero for a little while before he got character roles. Look at Naseer and Anupam Kher. They've made their mark as good actors and are almost as important as the lead stars. They have international recognition too.

These actors are best suited for character roles. They are not the hero kind at all. Despite that, they have acted in films where the story revolves around them. Take for instance, Naseer in Sir, Jalwa or Anupam in Saraansh or Daddy. But a person like me can't hope to be the lead star. Nobody can make a film centring around me. The kind of money involved is too much and nobody can take that risk. So there is no disappointment when you accept this.

But characterisation is lacking in our films. Except the hero and the heroines, the rest of the cast just exist. Is that frustrating?

I agree that other than the hero, the heroine and the perhaps the villain there are no strong characters. But all my roles have been important and worthy of remembering. Right from Mr India to Ram Lakhan to Jalwa to Saajan Chale Sasural to Deewana Mastana to Hum Aapke... now.... They have all been good. I always improvise on my characters and make them look important to the film, however small the role is.

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I always ask my director whether I can change my look and make it funnier. Everybody has been encouraging and positive to my suggestions. They probably think that since I am from theatre, I must know what I am talking about.

What kind of films would you make?

My films are classy. I wouldn't want to make any vulgar or obscene film. Even the colour scheme in my films are thoughtfully chosen. RKRCKR was a thriller and shot that way. Prem was an outdoor film. So it was more natural. Hum Aapke... was a human film about a family. That's why you find Kajol in salwar-kurtas or saris. There has to be a certain sensibility and sophistication in making a film.

What about producing your own films?

I would love to produce my own film sometime. My company at the moment produces television programmes already. And we have done lots of them.

What about a feature film?

I would like to make a feature film soon. In fact, my dream is to be a producer, director and an actor. Have my own empire. I believe that one should have a goal to achieve something and this is my goal.

So will you work on all the departments of your film?

I'll definitely work on all aspects of the film. I'd like to make films on different subjects and not just the same thing again and again. But yes, I'll concentrate on entertainment. I'd like to make a thriller again. It will give me a kick to do something different and successful. I can't live on Hum Aapke's glory.

Are you getting any offers to direct a film now?

I've been getting a lot of offers to direct now. I am doing a film for D Rama Naidu again. I have to square my Boney account also. So I am doing a film for him. He has been close to me and done so much for me. I should make a hit film for Boney now.

Can you tell how you shot the scene where a pregnant Kajol falls on her stomach? People are complaining about that scene.

I don't know why that scene got noticed so much. Maybe when you are making a film, you don't realised that you are making something people might not like. But it felt right doing it then. I had to show that both characters were in terrible pain and wanted to help each other. I was working on that.

I heard rumours that women fainted while watching that scene. But they still go to see the film. This is film was not supposed to make the youth crazy about it. But I see that young girls also love this film.

We knew that if women liked this film, they'd get their children and husbands. Young girls are getting their boyfriends, wanting to show them how Anil Kapoor has an attitude problem but is still a nice guy.

Whose idea was it to say 'wanted wife for one year' in the hoardings?

That was production publicity, because that's the story. But there are a lot of things like that happening in our country too -- in Gujarat, I hear.

In America, it keeps happening. This might not be a universal problem but this idea is different and gives the audience a chance to see something else and enjoy. Judaai also worked because there the wife sells her husband for couple of crores to another woman.

What are your future plans?

I am looking after my company, Chitrayug, now. I am bringing Colgate Top Ten back on the small screen. I'd given it up in between because I was busy with this film and Pankaj Kapoor with his other television assignments. I'm also working on scripts for Rama Naidu and Boney. This year should be good and busy for me.

Photographs of Satish Kaushik by Jewella Miranda