Prakash Jha’s cinema might have lost some of its edge but it still emanates from the socio-political fault lines of Indian society. When the images of Damul and Mrityudand are about to fade from public memory, he once again turns to a female protagonist. If Gangaajal (2003) looked into society-police relationship with a critical eye, its sequel seems to be mounted for box office salvation. Called Jai Gangajaal , the film is into post-production and Jha says he is not governed by any trend and that he wanted to reflect on male attitude towards women officers. “The whole attitude is like what she can do. In fact, in the film, the female police officer is brought to the city so that the powers that be could do their ‘job’ without any interference from the cops. She is considered to be ‘manageable’ and ‘pliable’.” One reminds him of Durga Shakti Nagpal’s case. “There are many but these people don’t change. There is a dialogue in the film where a political leader says that you have been given the uniform so that you can guard us like a sentry. It is a fictional story but you can find its reverberation in many North Indian states. How this attitude back-fires, is my story.”
Priyanka Chopra plays the officer but, in the meantime, her Quantico image has taken over everything else. “My films are essentially not for people who watch Quantico but even then they will get to see an interesting contrast because Priyanka has understood the ground realities of the character.” Priyanka’s glamorous image is so overwhelming that even if she tries, the hangover is difficult to shed. “She has done Barfi in the past and when Saif Ali Khan can convincingly play a dalit in Aarakshan why can’t she?” Jha counters.
Of late his political films are said to be becoming star vehicles where content is diluted to reach out to the maximum eyeballs.
“I haven’t done any research on it. When I have a story I want to tell it in the best possible way. However, I won’t contest your judgment. It could be a point of view,” Jha admits with a straight face.
Once again the film has been shot in Bhopal as Jha says in his seven years of association with the city, not even seven minute of shooting time has been wasted. “The place is beautiful and Hindi speaking but most importantly, the people of Bhopal are very disciplined and cooperative. There is an apt Urdu word salhaaiyat to describe their goodness. Many industry people say smooth shooting experience is ensured by the administration. I feel it ultimately depends on the common people. There have been times when the local traders have opened the market late to ensure that we could complete our shooting in the centre of the city. I don’t want to take names but there are other North Indian states where a lot of time is wasted in entertaining the guests of the local administration.”
At the same time Jha points out film units have a role to play as well. “I always tell my crew to be careful while shooting at places of historical significance and clear the trash before leaving the spot. Also, I ensure we contribute something to the place where we are shooting. I don’t bring junior artistes from Mumbai. I pick from local talent. Sometimes unions in Mumbai complain but I can handle that.”
An excellent communicator he narrates instances where he managed to shoot in difficult circumstances. “It depends on the local administrator as well. During Mrityudand , once, we started shooting in an interesting village, next to a railway line, without permission. In the midst of shooting I could see a group of people led by a woman coming towards us. I got jittery soon we realised the lady is the Pradhan of the village and she wanted to help us. At the end, though, she came up with a receipt book of Panchayat and asked us to contribute. This is how it can work at the local level.” Similarly during Jai Gangaajal , he wanted to shoot a sequence in the National Park near Pachmarhi. “Now the fee of shooting in a National Park is quite exorbitant. Then we approached the Army unit which is stationed just near the Park. They allowed us and we made some contribution to the Army Fund,” relates Jha, adding there should be no prohibition on shooting in places where a common man can go.
The topic swerves to the recent Bihar elections and Jha, known for his proximity to Nitish Kumar, says, “It was interesting to analyse the way people voted. It was significant not just politically but socially as well. It will find its way in one of my films.”
Not ready to get into caste, corruption and communal debate, Jha maintains there can’t be one reason behind winning an election. “A perception builds up over a period of time but nobody could gauge that it would be pretty one-sided at the end. We could see there was overselling and overloading from the other side but I didn’t know the impact will be this big. All strategies back-fired,” he reflects.
On the relationship between Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav, Jha plays safe. “Who am I to judge? I am on the side of anybody who governs better. In the interest of Bihar, there should be a working relationship between the two, but it is too early to predict anything. You have to wait for the churn to crystallise.”
