Noted director Mani Ratnam talks with Subhash K Jha about Guru, working with Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, as he looks back on the 18th anniversary of release.
Who was your first choice for Guru?
Abhishek was the first choice for Guru and I am very happy about his work. I think he is growing remarkably as an actor. If you shift me back to the start and ask me who you will cast as Guru I will go back to Abhishek.
You had earlier worked with Abhishek in Yuva. This was also the second time you worked with Aishwarya Rai?
I was quite happy with what Ash did in Irruvar. I thought she was quite remarkable , given that it was her first film and in a language(Tamil) that she did not know. In Guru she was speaking Hindi, so it must have been much easier on her. She has done the role with a lot of dignity and poise. She remained very close to the character and has done it with ease. In a film that is based on the male protagonist she stand tall and strong.
You finished Guru in record time?
I’m just doing work that I am paid to do. It was planned as a single- schedule film and we finished our major work by June- end.
Looking back, do you see Yuva as an experience that didn’t connect as much with the audience as you hoped it would?
There is always room to try something new. Be it in content or form or look. And when you do try something new there is always a chance that that it may not connect fully with the audience. That is a risk that a filmmaker has to take. If you take the credit when it works you have to take the blame when a film does not. But that should not stop you from growing and take a few more steps ahead. That’s where Guru has taken me.
