While Bollywood continues to churn out its standard cine flicks with masala and item numbers, there are a few movies that stand apart by breaking its filmi stereotypes. Konkona Sen Sharma's directorial debut feature A Death in the Gunj is the newest kid on the block. With over 90 per cent of the film in English and dealing with a range of social issues, the film is vividly introspective and challenges gender roles in the process of delivering an entertaining cinematic experience.
Hitting theatres last week, the star cast of the film – Kalki Koechlin, Vikrant Massey and Gulshan Devaiah – was in Bengaluru recently to share their experiences. Having received widespread accreditation at the movie’s premiere in the Toronto and Busan International Film Festivals, they hope to get a positive response from the Indian audience as well.
“I didn’t wash my hair for 23 days,” laughs Vikrant while discussing his preparation for the young and aloof protagonist, Shutu. “I was going for a worn-out, unkempt and socially awkward look.”
The film, set in 1979, is on a family vacation going awry in the quiet hills of McCluskiegunj, a small town near Ranchi, Bihar. “It was a place stuck in time,” says Kalki who plays Mimi, the promiscuous love interest of Shutu. “There was only forest around with old bungalows that hadn’t been touched for 30-40 years.” She goes on to add that the film was shot within 31 days but under very decisive direction. The cast also includes Ranvir Shorey, Om Puri and a plethora of other actors.
Konkona says, “I never had dreams of making it big in Bollywood. I had convinced myself and my family that I was not interested in directing. But then this just happened!” Her cast goes on to describe her directorial chops. “I think because Konkona is such a fine actress, she has a good understanding of the craft of acting. That makes her an incredible director,” comments Gulshan. Kalki pitches in: “Koko (Konkana) is a stickler for detail when it comes to direction. She’d say ‘just take two steps, not more than that!’ She knows exactly what she wants visually and I felt I was in good hands.”
The film tackles issues from family dynamics to sexual politics and male chauvinism. Vikrant points out: “I really don't believe the idea of ‘ladke aise hote aur ladkiyan aisi hoti hai’. Men are sensitive too.” Discussing the film’s depiction of women, Kalki explains, “I play the 35-year-old, unmarried Mimi who fancies a drink and a smoke which was quite uncommon for women during the 70s. She uses her sexuality to get attention but underneath there is a sort of vulnerability. I wanted to bring out these flashes of vulnerability without making her look apologetic for it.”
The film also portrays the subtlety of bullying, especially within families. Vikrant again elaborates: “People who see the film will definitely draw parallels with their personal lives, because being bullied or feeling unimportant is something everyone goes through. I've been bullied growing up and I've also bullied people. However, we’ve become too desensitised to it.” When asked what her personal take-away from the film is, Kalki says, “I found that this film had a lot of heart and emotion. It exposes how human beings play on one another's sensitivity.”
Gulshan quips that the most challenging part of the film was driving an old ambassador. “It was a ‘total khatara’ which wouldn’t even reverse properly. It was like a ghost car. Barring that, acting was easy.” When asked who he would like to work with in the future, he quickly responds: “Anyone other than Kalki! I have had enough of working with her. We’ve done three films and one web series together, which is more than half of my career,” he laughs and adds: “But on a serious note, it’s always an experience to work with somebody new and I’d really like to act with Konkona.”
“I do want to act and direct more,” says Konkona. She goes on to say that she and Kalki are working alongside each other in Raman Bharadwaj’s new film Scholarship . On his upcoming projects, Gulshan says, “I’ve worked on a web series called Smoke . I have also completed a bilingual film called Hadsa in Hindi and Daav in Marathi which is a crime thriller.”
