Under Rohan Sippy’s direction, Abhishek Bachchan has played the classic romantic in Kuch Na Kaho opposite Aishwarya Rai, the über-cool conman in Bluffmaster, and now a cop with a dark past in Dum Maaro Dum. In this suspense thriller, Abhishek plays ACP Kamath, a hard cop searching for a drug kingpin but with some sin redemption of his own to take care of as well. Describing the character, director Sippy said, “The beauty of ACP Kamath’s character lies in his shade of grey. Laughing outside; seething inside. The film is as much his fight against external demons as his own internal ones which are much more terrifying.” It was that underlying emotion that Abhishek says drew him to the character. Add in the fact that DMD attempts to take the suspense thriller genre up a notch in action, coolness, and mood and you have got a perfect role for Abhishek. I got the chance to have a quick chat with the actor about Dum Maaro Dum and though he wouldn’t reveal the shocking finale, we did have fabulous talk about working with Rohan again, shooting in Goa, and more! Check it!
So what was it about this role in DMD that made you want to play him?
I like the character very much. I think he had many emotional layers which I was very excited to play. Plus, you’ve got Rohan there, and it’s very hard for me to say no to Rohan. But the character really, really excited me.
How do you portray those internal demons that he seems to have? How do get yourself in that place?
Ahhh! The tricks of the trade (laughs). I mean, it’s what we do, you know. I think once it’s written it makes it so much easier to actually flesh it out. The genesis of everything has to be the written word. Once you have that and you’ve accepted that, you make it your own; it makes it a lot easier to reproduce. The biggest obstacle is making the written word your own and holding it. Only then will you be able to convince the audience that it’s a genuine feeling.
Kind of letting Abhishek Bachchan go and then the character shines through
Exactly.
How was it working with Rohan Sippy on a third film?
Wonderful! I mean it’s our third film together and it’s always a pleasure. He’s a dear, dear friend of mine. We’ve known each other since school – we went to the same boarding school. What I am most thankful for is he always gives me something very different to do. Each film that we’ve done together has been drastically different from the past. It’s always a lot of fun.
How do you think he’s changed as a director?
Oh, I think immensely. There’s this huge amount of change in his approach to everything and just the confidence level, I think, has gone through the roof.
How do you think you’ve changed as an actor?
I hope in a similar fashion as him. I really hope that there has been a growth. I hope there has been change, there’s been maturity in performance. I like to believe I bring all this to table when I work with Rohan.
You took to the mic again for ‘Thayn Thayn’. How was it recording that song?
A lot of fun. He somehow manages to arm-twist me into singing for him. So, yeah, I had a lot of fun. I’ve always enjoyed getting behind the mic for Rohan.
One of you main story lines is with Prateik. How was it working with him?
It was wonderful working with Smita Patil’s son. She’s a wonderful actor, and she and my father have done some wonderful work together, so it was wonderful to get to work with him. I first saw his work in a movie called Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na and thought he was wonderful. He’s so effortless as a performer. You know it’s almost like he isn’t aware that the camera is on. So it was really enjoyable. He’s a very talented young man and definitely going to go very, very far.
Did you work with Rana and Bipasha in the film as well?
Yes, I did, actually. Bipasha is somebody I’ve worked with very often. I’ve done many films with her. This is my first film with Rana, another wonderful talent.
What was it like shooting in Goa?
Great fun. I’ve always been to the more touristy side of Goa and suddenly I got to see this side of Goa which I never even knew existed. So, it was very exciting.
You had a shoot at a night market and no one could know you were there filming. Tell us about that experience.
Yes! It was wonderful. We first went to the market in the day when its empty and we rehearsed the entire scene and we quickly went and hid in a tower. By about 11 that night, when there were close to 30,000 people, we just kinda did a gorilla warfare kind of shoot were we just ran into the market, did the scene, and before anybody knew that we were actually shooting, got out.
If you had to make a tagline for the film, what would it be?
Wow! I’m very bad at this. I have absolutely no idea!
So what do you think audiences are going to love about DMD?
I think the way Rohan has decided to tell the story is very unique. I think they’ll enjoy the language of the film in terms of the language of the craft. I think the music is fantastic and there are some really cool dialogues.
The trailers and the promos certainly have been getting raves and from the looks of it, DMD is taking everything up a notch in the coolness, the action and the story
I hope so! (Laughs) We will find out on the Friday when it releases but I really, really hope so!!
With a ‘perfect’ and a ‘thank you, it was my pleasure’, Abhishek was then off to the next thing on his list in a very busy schedule, which included, (he hoped), a chance to celebrate the World Cricket Cup win! We thank him for taking the time to talk with us! You can check out Dum Maaro Dum on Friday, April 22nd! Check out Bipasha’s interview here and stay tuned because we chatted with director Rohan Sippy as well!
