'Filhaal is not a women's film'

Filhaal releases February 1. Meghna Gulzar doesn't seem jittery. She is disturbingly calm.

Meanwhile, there are these thoughts that flow out of her mind in a tumble: She has just woken up on a Saturday morning and she has the sniffles. Hopefully, audiences will be sniffing into their handkerchiefs, too, when Filhaal is out.

Meghna in an interview with Subhash K Jha:

The promos of Filhaal are looking so bright and white. Is that how you designed them?

Lilac has somehow become the colour of Filhaal. Incidentally, it is my favourite colour. White complements lilac best. While introducing the film, it was essential to highlight the characters rather than the surroundings, clothes and other paraphernalia. That's why I put the four protagonists in a stark place where we saw them, not what they were wearing.

But yes Filhaal is a soft film The colours are soft, subtle and mellow. Nothing in the film is larger than life. I would say the mood is almost sublime.

Raakheedi saw the film. She loved it.

Yes I know. Her words mean a lot for me. She is not one to shower undeserved praise.

Is this a women's film like everyone thinks it is?

Well, the men, Sanjay Suri and Palash Sen, have very strong roles. Though mine is not a triangular plot, Sanjay Suri is the third important character in my film. Filhaal is a film about having a baby so, obviously, Tabu and Sushmita have more to do. Nothing about my film is in your face.

Some might find Palash Sen's part insignificant. But look at the nuances, look carefully at the film and you will see his role contributes to the main drama. The decision that the three other characters take has a bearing on Palash's life.

So your work is finally done…

Yes, my work is done. I was scared when some trade papers mentioned the first week of March. It was scheduled for a January release. But Jhamuji [Sughand, producer of Filhaal] was negotiating for a proper chain of theatres. That is why the delay.

Also, I think he wanted to see the finished product before he negotiated with the buyers. His caution is completely justified. What did he have to go by to judge my capabilities? After all, Filhaal is my first film.

But he must have signed you because he saw the spark in you.

Which is fine. But how a film sounds on the script level and how it actually appears on celluloid are two different things. It is not as though Jhamuji sat for the rushes with me. Nor did he sit at the editing table. He is such a non-interfering producer; he told me would only see the married copy.

Filhaal does not look like any recent film...

That's a blessing. I didn't do anything consciously, though. I made the film with blinkers on. I never looked at the box office, national audience or the overseas market. I just made the film I wanted to make.

The music of Filhaal is very different from what Anu Malik usually does. Are you musically inclined?

You could say that. I used to sing a lot at school. I played the piano for about five years. I understand music. I know what sounds good. And I knew exactly what kind of music I wanted in Filhaal.

So when we made a gode bharai song, I knew I wanted an element of mischief in it. Filhaal is not a very frothy film. The gode bharai song was one situation where we actually see all the characters happy. Even the form is different from the traditional mukhda-antara-mukhda [chorus-verse-chorus] style.

Someone told me something very nice about the music. He said the entire story of the film unfolds through the songs. You can't put my songs in another film or pick up songs from another film and put them into mine. I wonder if that is a good thing. But that is how film music should be. It has to be reflective of the theme.

How much have Sushmita Sen and Tabu contributed to the final shape of Filhaal?

Oh, lots. The contrasting characters of the two protagonists worked to my advantage. One is introverted; the other, extroverted. That is how Tabu and Sushmita are in real life. Their respective energies were transposed into the film beautifully.

Wouldn't it have been more challenging to cast them in each other's roles?

That is what I wanted to do. I asked Tabu to choose - she preferred the one she has done. Then began the search for the other girl. In a way, Tabu and Sushmita played the right parts.

The beauty of their performance is they don't seem to be acting. They have lived their characters. Also, the situations in the film are nothing like anything the two have done or experienced in real life.

Tabu's character could easily have become dark. But the way she has handled it makes it easy for us identify with every emotion of her character.

Let me stress here: Filhaal is the story of not one but both girls. The way Tabu and Sushmita approached their scenes was an indication of their own attitudes as well as their characters' attitude.

Tabu would get all worked up before every emotional scene. Sushmita would laugh and joke, go on camera, sob her heart out and then get back to normal. That contrast in their emotional energy has worked very well in Filhaal.

The year 2001 has not been too kind to women-oriented films except Chandni Bar. Where do you see Filhaal fitting into this scenario?

I think what happened was, a lot of women films were being made but they chose to play it safe. They were neither here nor there. Genuine conviction was missing. The audience didn't believe in the superfluous statement made by some recent women's films.

The theme of women's oppression was too contrived and the protagonists' revolt was almost invariably with the help of a male partner. Else when a woman went against social convention great pains were taken to justify her action. To me, that seems contradictory.

Why can't we let a woman be an adultress without alibis and justification? Where is the liberation in this kind of justification?

Is this where Filhaal comes in?

First of all, my film is not a women's film -- just because two of the protagonists happen to be women. Gender is not the issue here.

My film is about four characters -- two male and two female. Certain issues are raised in the story which men would be able to identify with as much as women.

No one will look at gender demarcations while viewing these four characters caught in a dilemma. Perceptions about my film will depend not on a person's gender but sensitivity. If you can see both the male and female viewpoint, you will have no problem empathising with the goings-on in Filhaal.

One thing I am sure about: I never want to be slotted as a director who makes women-oriented films.

Gulzarsaab is a man and yet is known to make women's films.

Yes, but being a man, it is a USP [Unique Selling Point] for him. For me, it will be restrictive.

Aren't you glad your film got delayed? Now you can be the first major new director of 2002 instead of the last in 2001?

*sighs* My promos began on October 24, 2001. It is time the film were released.

Will the making of your next film depend on the success of Filhaal?

I don't know. It depends on the script. At the moment, I am getting feelers for making more films. Right now, I am not open to any thoughts except the release of Filhaal.

I can't think of more than one film at a time. I don't know how other filmmakers do it. For me it is too exhausting.

Has your husband Govind seen Filhaal?

He saw the first cut. I am waiting for him to see the married print. I am anxious to know his opinion. He represents the attitude and response of the young, working class audience who hardly see films and only do so if it promises to be worth their while.

I know I will get an accurate reaction from Govind.