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Whose film is it anyway?
Examining the changing power equation between directors and producers in Bollywood
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Subhash K Jha
Although both producer Ram Gopal Varma and director Rajat Mukherjee have denied the charge it is widely believed that Varma has directed most of Road. Starring Vivek Oberoi, Antara Mali and Manoj Bajpai, the film releases this Friday.
The producer shrugs, "Any film produced by my company is bound to reflect my sensitivities as a filmmaker. That cannot be helped. To that extent, Road IS my film, though Mukherjee has directed it."
The Road controversy epitomises a growing debate on the role, function and power of the producer in the making of a Bollywood film. Gone are the days when a producer was expected to put in the money for a project and withdraw into the background.
Now, active and highly evolved producers like Vashu Bhagnani, Feroz Nadiadwala and Viveck Vaswani have made startling changes in the power equations between producer and director.
The average producer today is a closet filmmaker. Feroz Nadiadwala comes from a filmmaking family and is therefore equipped to oversee every department of filmmaking. Though he does not directly interfere with a director, he can very well take matters into his hands. For instance, Nadiadwala supervised all the slick action scenes in Awaara Paagal Deewana, instead of the director Vikram Bhatt.
Similarly, actor-turned-film producer Vaswani has been "completely into" his two latest productions of Rahul Bose's Everybody Says I'm Fine and Anant Mahadevan's Dil Vil Pyar Vyar without undermining the directors' authority.
Trouble only starts when producers get restless within their prescribed territory and feel that directors reserve too much of the limelight for themselves.
Years ago when Rajendra Kumar produced Love Story to launch his son Kumar Gaurav, he interfered in Rahul Rawail's direction to the extent that Rawail chose not to have his name in the film's credits. Nonetheless the film is commonly acknowledged as Rawail's work.
Director Shashilal Nair, recently in the news for Ek Chhotisi Love Story, was fired by the producer of Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke. Several part-time directors were roped in. The project is yet to see the light of day.
Sanjay Gupta was thrown out of Jung two years ago. The producer took some members of the cast into confidence and completed the film. Leading man Sanjay Dutt and a close friend of Gupta then went on television to warn viewers off the film.
The increasing influx of producers into the creative aspect of filmmaking has engendered several open tussles of interest between the producer and director. Last year, a new producer Vasant Chedha fired the director Govind Menon from their film Danger, and took over the project with active participation of his cast members. It is said they were suitably rewarded.
Protagonist Ashutosh Rana finally put the conflicting debate to rest when he said it was Govind Menon who directed the film. Many directors, especially beginners, feel stifled by the increased pressures put on them by producers. Some years ago when struggling director Lateef Binny made his debut, he was forced to cast the producer's lady friend as the female lead opposite Sunil Shetty.
Meanwhile, Rajat Mukherjee of Road is now working on a new film, Nepal featuring singer Sonu Nigam with new find, Flora Saini who is friendly with the producer.
Hence the dilating and often murky dimensions of a producer's power over a project are being progressively felt by the film's true begetter, the director.