He has got the looks, he has got the voice, and on top of all that he has the talent to excel in all kinds of different roles. Dino Morea has made us laugh, made us swoon (so many times), and thrilled us with his performances. Up next, the hot thespian is getting ready to blow audiences away with his new avatar in Acid Factory. In the many-layered thriller, to be released October 9th, Dino plays a quirky, odd, edgy character, and from what we hear has done justice to it in spades! Dino says that this role gave him the chance to really go a bit crazy with his character and the darker shades really gave him scope as an actor. I got the chance to talk with Dino about Acid Factory and well… I will let him tell you all about it! Enjoy!
What was it about the role in Acid Factory that made you say yes, I have to do it?
Well, it was not only the role in Acid Factory, it was the entire film actually which kind of got me. What they offered me was something really interesting. The role actually gave me the opportunity to experiment with my look, with my character, and with the styling of the look. It has a lot of negative shades to it, so it has a lot of scope to go crazy with this role. That is what I enjoy, you know, playing a positive role is pretty straight out, but when you do something negative, you have the opportunity to go a little insane and that is what I enjoy. I think audiences are going to love it. On the whole the film is a fantastic premise, a really fantastic premise for a thriller. You have an ensemble cast, you have a great story, and so everybody comes out shining if it does well. So, that is what I was thinking of… the bigger picture.
Was it hard to get into the skin of this character since he does have a darker side?
No, not really. See, that is the good thing about this film. I will give you a little insight into the story. The movie opens when five guys regain consciousness in an acid factory and have no clue, absolutely no clue, as to who they are, how they arrived there, or what happened because they have temporary amnesia, which they get through a certain explosion which happens in the factory. Now, two guys are tied up and three guys are free and they have no clue as to what happened. So, you start the movie on new characters, you don’t know your character because you don’t know who you are but you do things out of habit, or what you sort of remembered before you passed out. So, you have to play your character as such, and that was a tough part. The first three or four days, I remember, of shooting this film, was when I really had to focus and really get into my own rhythm to figure out where this character is going to go. I could have made him really harsh. I could have made him funny. I could have made him simple, but I went the funny way knowing fully well in the end he turns out to be a really negative character. He is a bit of a nutty character through the film, but towards the end he realizes he is a rascal and the guy who is kind of masterminding the entire plan. That was the interesting part – to start with one character and moving into another.
What was the filming experience like?
Oh, the experience was wonderful, more so because we had a great team. We had great actors with us and we all got along like a house on fire. It was brilliant. Every day was a delight to shoot. We were all tucked away in another city, we were shooting on a cool set and I guess because of the camaraderie that everybody shared we just had a brilliant time. We had a really good time! Like I said, the first two to three days everyone was focusing on getting into their characters, getting into their roles, but then I think the rest was a cakewalk because it just came to you.
How was Suparn Verma to work with as a director?
It was really enjoyable. He wrote a really interesting story. Putting together a movie with so many people is a tough job and he has done a commendable job, I must say. He has pulled it all together really well; of course, he was supported by Sanjay Gupta who is a professional. We had a great team, like I said. Everybody supported each other and everybody had their suggestions, some were taken some were not, but I think everyone was so positive about this film that we all gave our best in trying to make it better.
The cast is filled with amazing actors. What was it like working in such an ensemble and how did you feed off each other to make the performances better?
Ah, you know that was the good part, because when you have five different actors in the same room doing a scene there is always that one-upmanship because you want to get better. Not out of anything else, just be the better actor because you want to stand out in the scene. So, everyone was doing the best, whether it was a dialogue or whatever, to improve on their characters, but yet no one was stepping on each other’s toes or stealing something from another person. It was all clear cut, but you just had to make that impact with your performance and everybody went out and did what they had to do. So, each character and each personality being so different, it has come out so well.
Do you have a favorite scene in the film?
Strangely, one of my favorite scenes is actually this bike race that me and Aftab shot for the film. It is a fantastic race – I think it is one of the best races shot in Indian cinema. No dialogues, but we are just having this fantastic bike race we shot when we were in Cape Town. It looks absolutely stunning. That is one of my favorite looking scenes. Where [acting] scenes are concerned there is a scene I shared with Aftab and Fardeen towards the beginning of the film where everyone is still clueless, and we are sort of probing into each other as to how each one knows a little more than the other. Some of the scenes we did are quite funny and quite interesting.
How much did your new look help you define your character?
Like I said, this character gave me an opportunity to reinvent myself. When he narrated the story my hair was already growing long so I kept it really long for this film. I gave him an interesting look; I styled him well and so yes, it did. Something about the long hair and the little French beard kind of added to the character and made him look intense, but yet on the surface he was just acting like a little child in the beginning. Then suddenly, he becomes a much more mature character towards the end, which was really nice, you know? Your look is stern but the acting is a little bit different. It was good. It just worked out right.
What do you think of the music of the film? Do you have a favorite song?
Yeah, I love two songs actually. The two which I really like are Yeh Jism, which is really nice, it has got a great house beat – it is fantastic. Then there is Jab Andhera Hota Hai, which is an old Feroz Khan song that they have taken and remixed for the film. These songs are brilliant, brilliant, brilliant songs! Sanjay Gupta is known for the music he presents in his films. We have got a brilliant album and we have gotten great reviews on our album already.
Is it harder to do comedy or something like this…a darker role? What is your favorite type to play?
For me, playing a darker role is always more challenging and interesting. Actually, the two toughest ones for me would be comedy and doing something dark, because something dark for me is just going insane with antics and acting. Comedy would be lots of spontaneity, you know, coming up with those quick one-liners, sometimes on the spur of the moment you just gotta think of something and make it work. There is a lot which goes into comedy, it is not easy, and there is a lot that goes into doing a negative role. These are two I really enjoy because they give me scope as an actor. I think a lot and I just try to make it as intense as possible and these work for me.
What has been your most satisfying role as an actor so far?
Hmm, let me see. Raaz was great – being my second film; it was really good. As an actor I felt great. The one comic role I did was Tom Dick and Harry, which was quite good. It was my first attempt at comedy and I don’t know – I felt after that movie that I just had the body language for comedy. I think I have the rhythm and the body language because I think it needs to be really fluid. By nature I am quite fluid and quite mental, (laughs) so it just works fine for me. Otherwise, Holiday was very challenging. Holiday was a film directed by Pooja Bhatt. That was a dance film I did. It was challenging because I learned entirely new dance forms. I learned Latin American like the Salsa and the Paso Doble and stuff like that for the film. That was challenging in terms of physically strenuous, but great.
What can audiences expect from Acid Factory?
I am pretty sure audiences are going to love the film. It’s got good-looking people, it’s got great songs, it’s got a fantastic story that is edge-of-your-seat. It is an hour and forty-five minutes of a thriller. It’s not like we have thrown in 5 songs and stuff: one song and the rest is all background score. It’s brilliant. I don’t think audiences are dying to sit in movies for 2 hours, 2 hours 20 minutes any more. So, we are giving them a totally Hollywood package. We are giving them a great thriller in about an hour and 45 minutes with fantastic action, great thrills, good music and good-looking people.
What is the hardest thing about being an actor?
I would say the hardest thing about being an actor has nothing to do with acting, it is about sustaining, and to try and choose your films right. For me, as an actor, being part of the industry is choosing the right films and working with the right people. That is the toughest thing, honestly, because sometimes you get a great script and the backers are just not right and unfortunately those kinds of movies don’t even see a good review. These are important things, which are very tough to come by.
What do you think of Hindi films today?
I think Hindi films are a great source of entertainment. They are really fantastic. We are improving everyday. I think cinema in India is changing; we have audiences for all types of cinema now. We have got an audience for a thriller like what we have done, we have got an audience for progressive cinema and yet there is still a huge audience for commercial, typical masala Bollywood films, and then you have an audience for the ones that are the senseless comedies. It is coming of age, no doubt. There is a new generation of directors, everybody is writing newer scripts and making really interesting stories, and making good films. It is getting really entertaining – it is a huge industry and it is getting better.
What will we see you in after Acid Factory?
Well, after Acid Factory I am doing a special appearance in the Yash Raj Film called Pyaar Impossible and it stars Priyanka and Uday. That is another sweet film. It is a really nice film and was really easy on me – a romantic comedy. Post that, next year I start shooting two films, which I am in discussion with producers as we speak.
Do you have a message to your fans?
Thank you all for being my fans, you have been wonderful, thank you for the support. I am on twitter @dinomorea9 follow me! Keep watching my films. I hope to give you better films.
I really enjoyed talking with Dino and I’m even more excited to see Acid Factory after our interview! I am especially cannot wait to see his performance in the film and think it is going to rate as one of his best to date. Be sure and get your ticket to see the action, the suspense, plus an edgy Dino, in the mystery of Acid Factory! Also check out our other interviews with director Suparn Verma, and actors Manoj Bajpayee and Aftab Shivdasani!
