Sanjay Suri talks with Subhash K Jha about his film the hard-hitting drama Daman, which starred Raveena Tandon, which released 24 years ago.
How did you land a role in Kalpana Lajmi’s Daman?
I still remember it was very early in my career after Pyar Mein Kabhi Kabhi and Tera Jadoo Chal Gaya that I got a call from Kalpana Lajmi. I was very excited to hear from her. I had loved Rudali and wanted to work with her and Bhupenda (Hazarika).
How did your meeting with Kalpana go?
On one call, I visited her office in Lokhandwala office, where she met me and said he really liked me in Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi and had a role to offer in her next film called Daman. I was super excited.
Daman was not a mainstream film, and still you wanted to be part of it so early in your career?
A lot of focus for newcomers then would have been commercial films, but here I was getting a chance to work with her. I definitely was excited about it. I met Onir also for the first time at her office, he was editing the film. So, in a way, my long association with Onir started with Kalpanaji and Daman.
How was the shooting in Assam?
Soon, everything fell into place. We were off for the shoot to beautiful Assam with Raveena Tandon, Sayaji Shinde, and Raima Sen. The story of marital rape was being explored by Kalpana. I played Raveena’s empathetic, sensitive brother-in-law.
Did you enjoy working with Raveena?
I had seen her movies, and this was an opportunity for me to work with a very experienced and famous star, so yes, as a newcomer, it was very exciting for me to be playing the romantic lead opposite her and also play the younger brother to a very seasoned actor like Sayaji Shinde.
Lots of fond memories?
Daman became a starting point of many friendships, too, be it Onir, Raveena, Raima Sen, or even you, Subhash. Even during our evenings over there, Bhupen da would sing for us next to a bonfire, and it was really special to have experienced all that twenty-five years ago. Often, we all used to bond over lovely tea at the tea gardens in Assam, where most of us were staying. Onir and I used to discuss cinema over a cup of tea. I am thankful to Kalpanaji, who was instrumental in bringing all of us together, and she and Bhupenda are missed a lot.
