In 2012, when Shahid had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), filmmaker Hansal Mehta didn’t have sufficient funds to take his lead actor, Rajkummar Rao to Canada. Five years on and four collaborations later, life has come a full circle for the duo. Their latest offering, Omerta , which releases this Friday in India had its world premiere at TIFF in September last year, an event both Mehta and Rao — now established names in the industry — proudly attended.
In these five years, the two have collaborated rather consistently and, in the process, garnered critical acclaim. While Rao has also worked with other filmmakers, Mehta ensures he writes parts for the actor in all his scripts. “Except in Simran (2017), there was no role for him, so while writing [the script] itself I told him, ‘Raj, there’s nothing in this for you’,” recalls Mehta. Although, Rao insisted on making a guest appearance, Mehta talked him out of it. “I told him it will be unfair after having done such amazing work together,” shares Mehta.
It’s fairly evident that the duo holds each other in high regard. Mehta doesn’t hold back from endorsing Rao as one of the best actors of his generation, who is unafraid to experiment and take risks. In Omerta , for instance, Rao plays a character who is “unabashedly antagonistic”, as Mehta puts it. “In Raj, I have found my muse through whom I could push the envelope completely,” the filmmaker declares.
Of phobia and radicalism
Much before Shahid , Mehta wanted to make Omerta , as the screenplay was ready, and more importantly, it felt more relevant to the time. “It would’ve been interesting to see an antagonist and then a hero,” says Mehta. The duo views the two films as companion pieces with terrorism at its core. In Shahid, the protagonist — based on the life of lawyer and human rights activist Shahid Azmi — becomes a lawyer and fights cases for the wrongly accused, after emerging from a traumatic jail experience himself. While in Omerta , Rao plays the role of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, British terrorist of Pakistani descent, who served time in prison for his role in the 2002 kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. “Now when I watch Omerta I feel like this is the right time,” says Mehta. “It is also the irony of the world we live in — Shahid who became the champion for human rights is dead, whereas Omar, who is sponsored by the state of Pakistan to wreak havoc, is free or allegedly in prison.”
Radical Islamic terrorism is a sensitive and a tricky subject to deal with. While filming Omerta , did Mehta find himself walking on eggshells? The filmmaker answers with a prompt no. “We have to face the truth,” he emphasises. “If I could face the backlash of those who called me a sympathiser and a pseudo-secularist when I made Shahid and Aligarh (2015), I am willing to face the backlash of those who are now suddenly saying that I am promoting Islamophobia,” he adds. “Both of those are nonsense.”
As for Rao, the relevance of Omerta lies in the omnipresence of terrorism globally. “When you’re in a crowded place, the first thought that comes to your mind is, ‘What if there’s a bomb blast? What if somebody starts shooting?’,” observes Rao. “Terrorism is the truth of our society,” he adds.
The actor describes his character in the film as one who is all black with no shades of grey; a terrorist he played with utmost honesty. “I was trying to believe in his philosophies and ideologies, which I just can’t connect to and I strongly condemn,” says Rao.
The importance of Omerta , for the actor, lies in raising questions if not answering them. It’s an intention that resonates with Mehta as well, who claims to refrain from judgement as a storyteller. “What you search for after the film is over is more important,” adds Mehta.
Documenting the present
Be it Shahid, Aligarh, City Lights or Omerta , all four collaborations deal with issues plaguing the contemporary society. How important therefore is social commentary to the duo? “It is important, but for me, it is more about chronicling the times we live in,” explains Mehta. “We are living in a time of distorted history and our history changes based on our establishments.” So while documenting the current times, does he fear the wrath of the establishment? “Never,” he replies, “I am constantly reminded to be fearful but that only emboldens me further and makes me more angry.”
Rao, on the other hand, appears more measured when it comes to social commentary in cinema. “It is important whenever it is possible,” he says. “Especially with Hansal Sir.” The duo have often collaborated to tell true stories, but City Lights (2014), a work of fiction, remains the most special collaboration for Rao. Needless to say, with a grim core, Omerta has been the most mentally exhausting one. “To dwell into that darkness is challenging,” shares Rao, who watched numerous documentaries and online hate speeches to interpret the character of Omar. “It’s disturbing the kind of things you have to see to understand and cultivate that anger,” he reflects.
Stranger than fiction
While factual accuracy with true stories is important, Mehta gives precedence to narrative and interpretation. “The entire Daniel Pearl killing scene came out of our imagination,” he informs. “It was written very differently.” The filmmaker was inspired by the “catharsis of inner violence” that he saw in Rao while he was playing badminton with the crew in Patiala, while still rooted in his character. “He was playing it very aggressively and kept aiming for my body,” recalls Mehta. The incident prompted him to revisit the sequence and reinterpret it with Rao.
It’s this mutual comfort which allows the two to reinvent their craft as they go. The filmmaker fondly recalls the time when he was apprehensive of casting Rao — a little-known face — in Shahid . But he is overjoyed to see him in the mainstream clique of Hindi cinema today.
“He feels very proud of the success I am seeing right now, at this point of time in my career,” shares Rao. “It isn’t easy to walk around with Raj on the street anymore,” adds Mehta. But the duo isn’t complaining, as long as the actor’s growing fame reflects in a rise in viewership for their films.
