In just over a week the action/adventure/fantasy film Drona will hit theaters. Directed by Goldie Behl, the film boasts an all-star cast including Abhishek Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra, Kay Kay Menon and Jaya Bachchan. The film’s story revolves around Abhishek’s character Drona discovering who he truly is and then with his bodyguard Sonia (Priyanka) at his side he battles the evil wizard Riz Raizada (Kay Kay Menon). Intriguing isn’t it? Recently Goldie Behl spoke to bollywoodhungama and here are some highlights from that interview.
Behl explained that Drona is many things but at heart it is a “coming of age drama”: “However, if you want to label it in any one particular genre you could say it’s a fantasy adventure. But in the soul of it, it is a very simple story of a boy realizing his destiny and his true calling so to speak.”
Growing up Abhishek and Goldie were friends and they said that one day when they grew up they would make an action film together. Years later Goldie narrated the story of Drona to Abhishek and the actor agreed to star in the film. “I have been really fortunate enough to know him very closely. It’s but natural for anyone to discuss an idea with their close friends first and that’s what I did too when the idea of making Drona came up. I discussed the idea with Abhishek and am glad that something in the story inspired him to say yes to this film. He is truly a great actor.”
With giving any hint as to whether Drona is a superhero or supernatural Behl did say about the character, “Well…he’s completely human and has got all the weaknesses of a human being (be it emotional or physical weaknesses). That’s the fun part of it because you have all these defects and still you emerge as a strong hero.”
He was nothing but praise for Abhishek’s performance in the film, “He is simply brilliant in the film. I would categorize Abhishek as a big screen actor because the larger the image you project of him the more you can see of him. He’s a subtle performer and understands the nuances of big screen such as extreme close-up shots. His acting mantra of ‘Less is More’ has well worked with Drona.”
Talk then turned to Priyanka’s character and Behl said, “Priyanka plays a royal guard, and her duty is to serve and be by the side of the King of the Vir Bhadra Dynasty (the dynasty to which Abhishek’s character belongs).”
The villain of the piece is Kay Kay Menon’s Riz Raizada and Behl explained some about the role, “ Yes, he is indeed evil and menacing. He plays a wizard in the movie and is absolutely unpredictable. He has all the trappings of an evil wizard.”
Also part of the cast is Jaya Bachchan and she agreed to be a part of the film without ever seeing the script. “ I think getting Jayaji on board was the simplest. I just told her that I’m making a movie and I would like you to be in it and she immediately said yes. I was taken aback and asked ‘Don’t you want to hear the script and know what your role is?’ She replied ‘No need… you are my son and it’s your responsibility to take care of me.’ It just put more pressure on me to live up to her expectations.”
The director and the crew have worked really hard to create the amazing world that these characters live in, from spectacular location shoots, special attention to detail in the costuming and they also had six different studios working on the special effects for the film.
Finally he was asked to give audiences three reasons to watch Drona and he replied, “It’s got great performances; you will see the same actors but in a very different kind of world and environment. It’s got never before seen stunts and visual effects and what is really the surprise factor, is that the film is very emotional and will make you cry.”
Be sure to go see Drona when it opens in theaters on October 2nd!
