Rajen on his upcoming movies
Rajen Kothari, the award-winning cinematographer of films like Damul and Ghayal, looks forward to his second innings as director.
Is
it
correct
the
Om
Puri
and
Satish
Shah
have
not
worked
together
in
a
film
after
Jaane
Bhi
Do
Yaaro
in
1983?
Yes,
can
you
imagine!
And
we
did
not
know
that
till
the
fag
end
of
the
film!
Your
name
is
also
in
the
credits
of
that
film.
I
was
supposed
to
shoot
Jaane
Bhi
Do
Yaaro,
but
I
got
busy
with
some
other
work.
So
I
put
them
on
to
Binod
Pradhan.
He
met
the
other
Vinod
Chopra
during
the
making
of
this
film
and
they
went
on
to
work
together
on
many
films.
Why
did
it
take
you
so
long
to
make
your
second
film
after
Purush
(1992)?
I
want
to
direct
films,
but
I
don't
have
the
energy
or
verve
to
go
to
producers'
offices
and
try
to
put
up
a
project.
Purush
also
happened
at
the
behest
of
the
producer
Sivanand.
About
Pangaa
Na
Lo,
I
was
supposed
to
photograph
a
film
for
the
producer
Sunit
Jawadekar,
which
for
some
reason
did
not
happen.
They
were
keen
on
producing
a
film
and
asked
me
if
I
wanted
to
direct.
I
have
some
pet
projects,
but
some
with
a
social
message
needed
a
star,
and
today,
the
minimum
waiting
period
for
a
star
is
two
years.
Some
were
not
feasible
in
other
ways,
so
when
we
heard
the
subject
of
Pangaa
Na
Lo,
everything
fell
into
place.
It
needed
two
senior
actors
,
two
newcomers,
it
was
Bombay
based,
could
be
shot
within
35
days
and
fell
within
the
monetary
consideration
of
the
producer.
Also,
it
is
a
comedy,
and
these
days
audiences
seem
to
prefer
comedies.
So
everything
suited
us
well.
Was
it
a
better
experience
making
a
film
now,
as
compared
to
the
earlier
days?
Purush
was
a
serious
subject
(on
rape),
but
it
was
fun
to
make.
Unfortunately,
it
was
released
just
a
day
after
the
Babri
Masjid
incident
and
people
were
in
no
mood
to
see
films.
Pangaa
Na
Lo
was
a
great
experience
too-I
have
an
internal
knack
of
organizing
things
well.
If
the
actors' comfort
level
is
looked
after
well,
things
proceed
smoothly.
Om,
Satish
and
I
were
batchmates
at
the
FTII
(Film
and
Television
Institute
of
India,
Pune).
Om
I
had
worked
with
before.
Satish
was
a
discovery.
Did
you
plan
to
cast
them?
Well,
we
gave
narrations
to
other
actors
too,
like
Paresh
Rawal
and
Boman
Irani.
Boman
could
not
do
it,
but
he
gave
some
suggestions,
which
we
incorporated
into
the
film,
and
we
have
acknowledged
his
contribution.
Both
had
problems
of
time,
so
we
finally
settled
on
Om
and
Satish.
You
are
the
head
of
the
department
of
cinematography
at
Whistling
Woods.
That
must
be
keeping
you
busy
That
does
keep
me
busy,
but
I
have
also
shot
two
films-one
in
Bengali
for
Samir
Chanda
and
one
in
Marathi
for
Gajendra
Ahire.
Unfortunately
for
me,
Shyam
Benegal
and
Gulzar,
with
whom
I
have
worked
a
lot,
have
not
made
a
film
for
three
years.
I
will
be
doing
Benegal's
Chamki
Chameli,
when
it
takes
off.
You
also
teach
at
the
FTII
and
Satyajit
Ray
Institute
in
Kolkata-
is
the
syllabus
at
Whistling
Woods
very
different?
No,
but
the
teaching
methodology
is
very
modern.
I
must
say
that
it
is
to
the
credit
of
FTII
students
that
despite
outdated
methodology
they
are
doing
wonderful
work,
going
by
some
of
the
student
diploma
films,
which
are
excellent.
The
FTII
came
on
the
verge
of
shutting
down,
but
they
have
revived
in
a
big
way.
There
are
12-15
students
from
overseas
and
not
NRIs,
so
obviously
they
come
because
they
have
heard
that
it
is
a
good
place
to
learn.
Who
were
your
other
batchmates
at
FTII?
Saeed
Mirza,
Kundan
Shah,
Nadeem
Khan,
Virendra
Saini,
David
Dhawan,
Renu
Saluja-we
were
a
great
batch.
With
so
much
new
technology
coming
in
so
rapidly,
how
do
you
keep
yourself
updated?
Teaching
is
a
two-way
process,
you
get
as
much
as
you
give.
The
students
come
up
with
a
lot
of
ideas
and
new
horizons
also
open
up
for
me.
Otherwise,
there
are
websites,
books,
it's
not
difficult
to
keep
yourself
up
to
date.
The
state
of
the
equipment
must
also
have
improved
a
lot?
Oh
tremendously.
Since
globalization
and
the
opening
up
of
the
economy,
we
have
equipment
available
that
was
not
possible
five
years
back.
It
took
us
maybe
40
years
to
change
the
first
lot
of
equipment,
and
now
it
takes
four
years.
Equipment
renters
know
that
if
they
get
the
latest,
people
are
willing
to
pay.
More
than
cameras,
the
lighting
kits
that
we
get
now
have
improved
vastly.
What
is
your
take
on
the
advances
in
computer
and
digital
technology?
A
colourist
once
told
me
that
if
the
basic
material
is
good
then
it
can
be
enhanced,
but
nobody
can
work
miracles
if
the
basic
inputs
are
faulty.
I'm
sure
heavy
CGI
must
be
challenging,
but
I
would
rather
take
actors
to
real
locations
and
shoot,
no
matter
what
the
problems
arise.
How
can
actors
perform
well
in
isolation
-
if
they
shoot
alone
in
front
of
a
screen
and
everything
is
filled
in
by
computer?
I
may
do
it
if
forced,
but
at
heart
some
of
us
are
classicists.