Gajanan Dudhalkar

Director Mahesh Manjrekar is no stranger to Mumbai’s mill culture. As a child, he grew up in the mill precinct of Wadala, observing at first hand the lives of the city’s mill workers. “I used to wake up with the morning siren of the mills and I literally grew up with the families of mill workers. Later, I witnessed their dreams fall apart when the textile strike crippled the industry,” he says.

Little wonder, then, that the director who’s known for making gritty social issue-based films, has turned to a subject that’s close to his heart with his forthcoming film, City Of Gold – Mumbai 1982: Ek Ankahi Kahani. The film, which marks Manjrekar’s return to Hindi cinema after a gap of three years, will first release in Marathi though —Manjrekar has made it in both languages — as Lalbaugh Parel. And no, the director wasn’t deterred by sceptical producers who felt that the subject was no longer relevant at a time when most of Mumbai’s mills have “given way to glitzy malls”.

That’s not all. Shooting City of Gold may have completely “drained” Manjrekar but the multi-faceted director is already busy working on several new projects ranging from a Bengali film to setting up an acting-dance-and-music academy.

First up, though, is City of Gold, which he co-scripted with Marathi playwright Jayant Pawar. The film has a huge cast of 65 actors including the likes of Sachin Khedekar, Seema Biswas, Satish Kaushik and Kashmira Shah.

“I worked like a maniac on the film. It has definitely been my most challenging work till date. The subject was compelling and I also became very emotional directing it as I’ve been a part of many of the families who underwent real hardship at that time.”

Manjrekar (in red glasses) at the music launch of Lalbaugh Parel; (below) a still from the film

Manjrekar has paid close attention to every detail of mill life in his film. Like the sound. He says: “Sound is an integral part of this film because the mill workers used to work in a very noisy atmosphere. To bring this out, I told my actors to show that restlessness and to talk in a higher pitch.”

Manjrekar may have returned to Hindi films after a gap of three years but he was busy focusing on his writing, acting and production during this period. And he also directed box-office Marathi hits like Mee Shivajiraje Bhosale Boltoy and Shikshancha Aicha Gho, both of which released in 2009.

So what is Manjre-kar’s greatest strength as a director? Actress Seema Biswas, who has worked with him in City Of Gold, says: “Before working with him, I’d heard that Mahesh was very short-tempered. But he appeared very relaxed and confident on the sets and he treated everyone equally. He is a very down-to-earth and chilled-out guy, who knows how to extract the best from his actors.”

Agrees Sameer Dharmadhikari, who plays an aggressive mill-owner in the film: “I remember Mahesh’s first narration of the film. Because he’s also an actor, he was very clear and sincere to the script. Plus, he is technically sound and does detailed research on each and every character.”

Now, Manjrekar is already looking forward to his next project: a Bengali remake of his hit Marathi film, Mee Shivajiraje Bhosale Boltoy. Mithun Chakraborty is the film’s protagonist and Manjrekar will also share screen space with him.

Why is he making a film in Bengali? “Culturally, Maharashtrians and Bengalis are very similar and are in love with their literature, films and theatre,” says Manjrekar. The film will be produced by Dar Motion Pictures, which has also produced City of Gold.

Apart from this, Manjrekar is also working on another Hindi film, White, based on personal relationships, which he has scripted himself. Besides, he has various acting assignments too. He’s acting in Arbaaz Khan’s Dabangg and also in, Ekaant, made by Sunil Pillai.

That’s not all. Manjrekar is also thinking of trying his hand at a slightly different venture. He’s keen on opening an academy for dancing, acting and singing in Mumbai. Remember, he’d wowed television viewers with his performance in the dance-based reality show Jhalak Dikhla Jaa in 2006.

“Dance will be the main focus of the academy,” says Manjrekar, who loves to unwind by watching football and cricket. “Right now, the IPL is my top priority,” he laughs.

Manjrekar began his career in Hindi films as a director of the gripping underworld saga, Vaastav: The Reality, with Sanjay Dutt in 1999. He followed this with hits like Astitva with Tabu and Sachin Khedekar in 2000 and Viruddh — Family Comes First with Amitabh Bachchan, John Abraham and Sharmila Tagore in 2005. But his last Hindi film, Deha, failed at the box office.

'I took a sabbatical from directing Hindi films and chose to play safe by directing Marathi films instead. I lost interest in Hindi films because I hate the star system in Bollywood. The astronomical fees of today’s actors and the unreasonable film budgets give me the jitters,” states Manjrekar openly.

So what are his priorities today? Says the no-nonsense director: “I will only act in and direct films if the subject matter interests me. And I’ll keep making the kind of cinema that I believe in.”