Source: DNA India
By: Upala KBR
Date: November 1, 2013
Rakesh Roshan talks about his most expensive film till date I have known Rakesh Roshan for a dozen odds years. Not much has changed. he has remained the same — simple, unassuming and extremely confident. In the release week of his latest film Krrish 3, he isn’t any different. There is no fear or anxiety. It is his most expensive film till date but the man is at ease. A quick chat with the director on Krrish 3.
Dhoom 3 has three events in your release week. Do you think it is an attempt to sabotage your fiilm?
Not at all. I am sure it is not deliberately done to sabotage Krrish3. We are all doing our jobs. We are not here to put each other down and sabotage each others work. Ultimately our work will speak for us.
Would you call Krrish 3 your most ambitious and expensive film till date?
Expensive yes, but all my films are very ambitious! Tony Ching from China has done all the action sequences. He is a very expensive action-choreographer but he is very knowledgabe. He had done Krrish too. Tony is the best in wirework and cablework in the world. Every action sequence looks different. The cost was high because of the special effects but because of the way I shot the film, I have controlled a lot of expenses too. A lot of hard work went into it as well. Hrithik took four hours to put on the makeup of an old man. It was not like changing your hairstyle and shirt and coming to shoot. And then to finish this kind of a film in 140 days is a very commendable job.
How did you manage that?
I animated almost the whole film — action sequences, dramatic scenes, and all the double and triple role sequences. For a year, I sat and made it on my computer with my technical team. Whatever shots were not necessary I cut them off. I saw the whole film before I went on the sets so I cut a lot of cost over there. One year I did that and then in six months I completed the film. I started in December and finished the film in June with just two songs remaining and from June to this October.
Apparently you did the animation in India?
Yes 80 per cent at Red Chillies (RC) and the rest at Pixion. After making Koi Mil Gaya and Krrish I gained a lot of knowledge of animation and special effects from Hollywood technicians. So this time I didn’t need a supervisor from there. In Krrish 3 we became the supervisors and Red Chillies executed our work. On October 23, I saw the first copy and felt very victorious that we managed to make the film within our budget. Whatever I had visualised, we have got 100 per cent of that so we have reason to feel confident and victorious. I think I saved around 30-40 crore, otherwise it would have been almost impossible for me to have made this film.
Lets talk about the super villains.
There is Kaal (Vivek Oberoi), Kaya (Kangana) and the five Maanwars. They have different powers. Krrish is fighting not one but many super villains because Krrish has got a lot of powers and the best part is that I have not defined his full powers till now. In Krrish 3 he evolves with every situation and you see him displaying all kinds of powers. When I started Krrish 3 I didn’t have to establish him, I just had to establish a super villain with his past. Kaal wants to create his own superheroes made from mutants called Maanwar — manushya and jaanwar. Both have different ideologies and how they meet in the film and clash forms the crux of my story.
What has been the most challenging bit for you?
For me, working on Krrish 3, has been like going for exams every day, because everything was new. Hrithik is playing three roles in the film — Rohit of KMG, Krishna and Krrish. So in Krrish 3, he had to play the father, who has the mannerisms of a child, then Krishna where he’s a common man, husband and son and finally the super hero Krrish who is powerful and strong.
What after K3?
I don’t know, Now when I think of any subject — like Koyla and Karan Arjun — I feel I have done that kind of films, so they don’t excite me now. At that time it was a challenge for me to make and prove to my audiences that I could make films based on themes like reincarnation. But now I want to make films that challenge me. The Krrish series does all these things. Each of the last three superhero films I have directed, have satisfied my creative urges. At the moment I have no subject but in Krissh 3 and at the end, I have left a hook in the film... If this film works I might take it forward... It is better to come out with the stories of a superman and Krrish is our first Indian superhero. We have only superheroes who save America - no other country has a super hero. India is the only country which has its own super hero!
Do you regret producing Kites?
No. Though it didn’t do well it was a good attempt and a well made film. It gave me a lot of recognition abroad. I think I failed because instead of taking Step 1, I took 10 steps forward. It was too early to show a romance between a Mexican girl and an Indian boy. The film was much ahead of its time. I would definitely work with Anurag Basu again as he is a fabulous director and I am really proud of the film he made.
Kangana was upset with her role?
That is between the director and the heroine. I never came in between them. She is not upset with me or she wouldn’t have done Krrish3. What Anurag narrated to her and what was there in the film is between them. They are friends and he introduced her so that’s their affair. I never interefered in the creative process.
How involved is Hrithik in the filmmaking process?
He is involved right from the script to the last frame and the release of the film. As a creative person I appreciate it because I get a helping hand and our tuning is perfect. Without him I don’t think I would have been able to make this film. We share a great understanding. Hrithik knows my working style as he has worked with me for so many years.
Have you ever thought of expanding your production house like Dharma, YRF and Balaji?
Right now I don’t harbor any such ambitions. I can’t make more than one film at a time. I want to make good family entertainers. People wait to watch my films and that is the biggest draw. If I make 10 films in a year people won’t watch.
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Source: Rediff
Date: October 31, 2013
By: Sonil Dedhia
Rakesh Roshan may have completed 25 years as a director, but the man is still nervous about his Diwali release, Krrish 3. This will be the fourth time he is directing his son Hrithik Roshan. Just days before the release of the sci-fi film on November 1, the 64-year-old director is still going through the last minute details at his plush office in suburban Mumbai. The promos of Krrish 3 have generated enough buzz, and is already being compared to Hollywood's X-Men. In his interview, Hrithik had claimed that the comparisons were good but Roshan Sr disagrees. “There are no similarities with X-Men. I just get inspired by Hollywood films.” In this long conversation with Sonil Dedhia, Rakesh Roshan talks about his movies, and why he won’t make a film without his son Hrithik.
It’s been a decade since Koi... Mil Gaya released. How do you look at the journey?
When I made Koi... Mil Gaya, it was a different subject, about an alien landing on earth. At the point of time, it was a difficult film for me to make. We continued with the film and made a sequel, Krrish, in which I had the task of establishing Krrish as a superhero. It was again difficult as it was probably the first superhero film in India. When I made Krrish 3, my biggest dilemma was how to make a super villain. As Krrish has been established as a superhero, I was looking to sketch a super villain character who had more powers than Krrish. To make a villain is very easy in Hindi films but to make a super villain in a convincing manner is very difficult. As Indians, we are not trained to make films like Krrish. It has been an exciting journey. With Krrish 3 set to release, I am feeling as excited as a small child.
Krrish 3 took three years to make. Did the sci-fi films that released in the West during that time give you jitters?
Yes, I was a little nervous. In the west, when they work with VFX and other technology, they have many action sequences in the film. We work with a story that has very few action sequences because our budget doesn’t allow it. They make movies for $400 million and we make films for Rs 100 crore. Their one action sequence is our whole film. We give more importance to the content of the film. We give more values to every character than they do, so we score over there.
How do you keep yourself updated with the whole VFX space?
Special effects are just decorations. I have seen a lot of films where special effects are a part of the director’s imagination. You imagine a certain thing and if your VFX guy says it is possible then you go ahead with it. If not, then alter it. The VFX of the film is done by Indian companies (Red Chillies and Pixion). Wasn’t it risky to get all VFX work done in India when everybody in the industry prefers going abroad? We have the knowledge, we just don’t have the experience. If I don’t give them the experience then who will? If we give them time and teach them, they will make mistakes but rectify them. That’s why I gave them one-and-a-half years. We rectified a lot of things. Each shot used to take 25-30 revisions. Now they are experienced. I can make another film with them easily.
When you say that you see a lot of films with special effects, are you referring to Hollywood superhero films?
No, not particularly superhero films. I see every film. Every Friday I see every Hindi film and Hollywood film that releases.
Have you taken references from any film for Krrish 3? Apparently there are similarities with X-Men. The mutants in your film are similar to the mutants in the X Men series.
There are no similarities with X Men. People who don’t have any work will say anything. I know what I have made and I am responsible for it. I wouldn’t want to get my name spoilt by making a copy. I have been inspired by them. I webbed in the mutants. The way I have shown them has never been done in Hollywood. I haven’t taken any references from any film. A superhero film has got its own world. It is a universal subject which can’t change. When I say I watch a lot of films, it means movies of any genre. If I like a scene it remains in my mind sub-consciously. I don’t copy that but I do take inspiration from it and do it in another way.
You mentioned in an interview that you had not expected to make Krissh 3. So was making the third installment a business proposition or a creative call?
It was completely a creative call. I saw all the three parts of Lord of the Rings and I realised how the story continued. So I thought, why can’t I make three-four installments where the story continues with the same actors? That gave me an idea. The idea that Jaadoo came and gave powers to Rohit and went away in Koi Mil Gaya was accepted by the audience. That became my base. So the powers from Rohit came to Krishna and how Krishna, at one juncture when he is supposed to hide his capabilities in Singapore and yet save people in the circus, turns into Krrish. He actually turns into Krrish after half the film. So it took me one-and-a-half films to establish a superhero. Once I established the superhero, I wondered, now what? I should make a film with a super villain now. So that’s a creative call and not a commercial one.
Was Krrish 3 written keeping a super villain in mind rather than the super hero?
In a superhero film in Hollywood, there’s a superhero and there’s a super villain. The two meet, they fight, they meet, and they fight and so on. The content value is not that much. Their films are also not very long generally having 90-100 minutes of run time. In Indian films the audience needs content and I wasn’t getting good content which would satisfy me. I made two scripts and I wasn’t happy with either. So I started working on some other subject. But at the back of my mind Krrish was still there. Any other subject at that time wasn’t challenging me.
What made you choose Vivek Oberoi to play Kaal?
I’ve always thought Vivek was a good actor. When I was writing the script I had him in mind. But I wasn’t sure whether he will do a villain’s role because he was doing hero-oriented films. I called him to the office and I asked him to read the script and give me his opinion. After two hours he came to me and asked whether I wanted him to play Kaal. The moment I said yes, he agreed to do the film. What Vivek has done in the film I can’t see any other actor doing.
What made you cast Kangna Ranaut? There were reports that she had refused the film.
Yes, when I first went to Kangna she refused to do the film. I don’t know why. Then I tried other actresses but I couldn’t get Kangna out of my mind because when I was writing the script I had her in mind. I went back to her with the bound script. She read the script and called me within three-four hours and said she wanted to do the film. She told me later that she was a little scared because Priyanka is there in the film and that her role might get chopped in the end.
Was the thought of being overshadowed by Priyanka in Kangna’s mind because she got a raw deal in Kites, which you produced?
Director Anurag Basu knew Kangna very well, I told Anurag to tell her what the role is about. He spoke to her. I don’t know what conversation they had. Yes, Kangna must have felt bad as her role was edited. But being a producer, I had no hand in that.
Since Kaho Na Pyaar Hai you have only made films with Hrithik in the lead. Would you ever make a film without him?
Why should I? People will call me a fool that I have such a talented son at home and I am working with somebody else and taking his shit all day long. I tell Hrithik to get up in the morning at 6 o’clock and come on the sets, and he comes.
Has it become impossible to visualise a film without Hrithik?
It is impossible for me to visualise because whatever story I am visualising I am keeping him in mind.
Does the personal relationship ever take precedence over the professional? When Hrithik underwent brain surgery, did you feel torn between being a producer and a father?
Yes, of course. A father’s emotion is different from a producer’s. Suppose in a running film if anything happens to the actor, as a producer it affects you. But as a father you have all the sympathies. I am a human being. I am not a superhero. When Hrithik underwent surgery, my film was over so there were no worries as a producer. But as a father I was worried.
Are any liberties taken between father and son during the shooting of the film?
If there’s anything being done for the good of the film it isn’t liberty. If he can give one more shot then I will ask him to. On the sets, he is an actor and I am a director. Even when he was my assistant and we were shooting, we used to have breakfast at the same table, but I used to go back in my car while he would take an auto. When we went abroad for shooting he would stay with the unit sharing a room with four people and not with us in a five star hotel. That’s how I taught him. There were so many times he would say, “Papa my bathroom was very bad I couldn’t take a bath, can I have a bath in your bathroom?” I would allow him but that doesn’t mean I was allowing him to take liberties.
How do you see his transformation?
He is still a learner.