A dding to the recent resurgence of spy movies in Bollywood is Raj Kumar Gupta’s India’s Most Wanted. The film stars Arjun Kapoor as an Intelligence officer, who leads an unarmed manhunt for the country’s most-sought terrorist. Raj, who made his directorial debut with the critically-acclaimed Aamir and recently delivered his first major box-office hit with Raid, insists his filmmaking approach hasn’t changed. “Please don’t blame me for the commercial success of Raid,” he says. “All my films, be it No One Killed Jessica or Ghanchakkar or India’s Most Wanted, have the same tonality. They are all rooted in reality.” Excerpts..
Your new film casts an unglamorous look at the intelligence community. It’s not how we are used to seeing spies in the movies.
The James Bond world does not exist in reality. Spies are normal people, who feel fear and face real circumstances. They have to deal with situations on the go and come up with solutions. It’s a basic and human world that they inhabit. What’s extraordinary is their courage and commitment.
What was the research process for India’s Most Wanted?
It took me three years to write this film and one to make it. The research started with articles and reports of what had happened. Many reports about the same incident were contradictory, so I had to verify everything. I hit a dead-end at one point. However, because of my investment in the story, new leads kept coming up and I spoke to several people who gave me the material I needed.
You haven’t specified the name of the terrorist in the film, although people have guessed it’s about Yasin Bhatkal’s arrest.
One has to be sensitive when dealing with a subject like this. We are not shying away from the fact that it’s inspired by real events, where lives were lost. There’s a culprit who was responsible for the bombing in multiple cities across India. I would like audiences to find out the rest of the story in theatres.
How did Arjun and the rest of the cast come on board?
I had liked Arjun’s debut performance in Ishaqzaade (2012) and had called to compliment him. We kept in touch over the years. After Raid, I wanted to start India’s Most Wanted immediately. Arjun read the script and said yes on the same day. He was equally passionate about the script as I was.
As for the other actors, they all came via Casting Bay (a casting agency in Aram Nagar, Mumbai). I have always believed in casting new actors, or actors from theatre backgrounds, who are immensely talented but haven’t been recognised on screen. Thesame process applied to this film.
The trailer humorously hints at budget constraints and bureaucratic apathy in national agencies. How pivotal is that layer to the story?
It’s an important element, of course. With all due respect to our agencies, there are times when such situations arise, where our operatives must pool in their own money to complete a mission. We all know that not enough is provided to our agencies, and there might be reasons for that, but this is one point we really wanted to highlight.
This is the maiden production of your banner, Raapchik Films.
We’d earlier produced a short film called Aaba. It won a lot of awards and established the credentials of Amar Kaushik (who later directed the blockbuster Stree). I co-own the company with my wife and partner, Myra Karn. She oversees the business part while I focus on writing and directing.
You’ve shot in Patna and Nepal. How difficult is it to shoot in real locations with a Bollywood star?
It depends on the passion of the actor. We could not carry a vanity van everywhere. Arjun would sit quietly in an SUV and come out when needed.