High tea with Raakhee and Sharmila

Subhash K Jha

"Sharmila Tagore and I are finally shooting together!" Raakhee exclaims. She has been shooting for Rituparno Ghosh's latest Bengali film Shubho Mahurat in Kolkata for the last 15 days.

In sultry Kolkata, around 2 pm, at Tollygunj studios, the atmosphere is humid. Director Rituparno Ghosh is locked in serious discussion with one of his associates. He looks up quizzically at me, the frown melting momentarily when I introduce myself. "Go into the set. Both of them are in there," he says.

I enter the cavernous set, nearly tripping over the wires in the darkness. Inside a set depicting a small, middle class living room of a Bengali household, the two stunners sit together, discussing their scene. They are working together for the first time since Yash Chopra's Daag.

It is the climactic confrontation between the two. Tension crackles in the air. Added to it is the heat engulfing the set. Raakhee spots me and smiles. I am introduced to Sharmila, looking as lovely as ever. When I compliment her on her looks, she dimples politely and says, "I look like a frog."

Raakhee and I then proceed to her handkerchief-sized makeup room where a temporary AC has been installed as a concession to the star's status. She states, "Everyone keeps talking about the grand reunion between two tigresses. The Kolkata press expected Rinku (Sharmila) and I to claw each other's eyes out. I think they were very disappointed when nothing happened. We met as though meeting after three months instead of three decades."

The showdown-that-wasn't happened when the two actresses were re-introduced by the tense director. Sharmila got up and hugged Raakhee warmly. Whatever tensions reportedly existing between them during Yash Chopra's Daag were forgotten. Raakhee helped Sharmila fix her makeup. Thereafter, the two were totally relaxed with each other.

It is time for the shot. The two sit on chairs in the living room, while Ghosh invites me to watch them on the video monitor. Sharmila, playing an actress, looks edgy, distracted and absent-minded. Raakhee, as the detective, looks in control, relaxed and all knowing. For the shot, Raakhee is required to hand a cup of tea to Tagore, who refuses. She gets from her chair and looks beyond the camera.

Shot over, we proceed again to Raakhee's makeup room for lunch. A press conference has been scheduled at 3 pm, and the local presswallahs begin to gather. Nandita Das, who plays Raakhee's niece, isn't required for the day's shooting. She arrives for the press conference. All three leading ladies sit together as cameras flash.

Suddenly, a carton of music cassettes that have nothing to do with Ghosh's film, is produced and cassettes are distributed. This, I am told, is part of the promotional scheme to subsidise the exacerbated production costs of Shubho Mahurat. Many brand labels show up during the course of the film. Even the tea that Sharmila Tagore and Raakhee drink during the shot is sponsored.

After a few mandatory questions, Raakhee moves back to the set for solo closeups and random shots. She is expected to leave on Tuesday to join Suneel Darshan's unit of Talaash in Mumbai.

Sharmila continues to chat with the press while the dusky Nandita is surrounded by a bunch of journalists badgering her about Deepa Mehta's aborted Water. She fields the questions bravely and sighs, "They just won't let me forget Water, though so much has happened since."

She later says, "I am not doing any films in Mumbai right now. In fact I am cutting down on my assignments."

Raakhee joins us. An excited girl produces a paper and pen for both the actresses. "I am so happy to see both of you in Kolkata," her eyes sparkle. A man then approaches us. "I have been following your films for a long time," he tells the tired and testy Rakhee. She raises her eyebrows and says, "I am privileged."

He then turns his attention to Nandita. "I loved you in that Bawandar picture." Nandita smiles.

The three beautiful actresses are together in a whodunit that promises to be special. Though the tight budget shows up in the urgency with which the shots are planned. "There is hardly time to breathe between shots," Raakhee complains good-naturedly. The two actresses take the heat sportingly as long as they can until Tagore finally tells the director to take it easy, else she would lose her patience.

Raakhee's scenes are over. Rituparno Ghosh is now shooting the main body of the work with Sharmila Tagore. Shubho Mahurat will soon be ready for release.