Chandan Roy Sanyal is back in the reckoning with his menacing act as the bad bhanja in Nikhil Advani’s D-Day. He also has the indie film Prague releasing soon and films on the floors with Subhash Ghai and Abbas Tyrewala. He tells t2 about being in the Bolly business again and why his Bengali film experience didn’t live up to his expectations.

 

After Kaminey, D-Day has made people sit up and take notice of you again...

Actually the feedback has been very encouraging. The film’s kind of put me back on the radar. After Kaminey, I did F.a..t.u. and Tell Me O Kkhuda. I got a little money. That was the plan as it gave me security for the next two years. Then I did a lot of independent films — Prague, BMW, Love You to Death. And while I am proud of these three films, only Prague’s getting a release as of now. I think a lot of people thought that after Kaminey I wasn’t doing anything and sitting at home.

 

Did Kaminey actually help you get work?

The only film I got because of Kaminey was Kahaani. Which I couldn’t do because of F.a..t.u. Besides that I don’t remember anything that came my way then. Mr (Ashutosh) Gowariker had called me for Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey but that was a very small part. Looking back now, I think Kaminey was a double-edged sword for me. A lot of people didn’t want to cast me after that film because they didn’t know what to do with me. And a lot of people thought I would only do lead roles.

Do you regret not being able to do Kahaani?

Yes.

 

Would you have done Rana better than Parambrata Chattopadhyay?

Maybe yes.

 

What kind of work did you want to do then?

At that time such refreshing films were happening like Ishaqzaade, Band Baaja Baaraat and Vicky Donor. If after Kaminey I had got at least one film like that... I deserved at least one.

 

As the lead?

Yes. Like people who have seen Prague have felt how I have carried the film on my own. If Nawaz (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) can lead a Gangs of Wasseypur, why not me?

 

Why did you do D-Day then? Because it’s quite a small role...

When Nikhil Advani came to me with the script, I could see it was a small role. But it had Irrfan Khan, Arjun Rampal and Rishi Kapoor. So I thought I was walking into a very prestigious project. Also, there was no screen test; Mr Advani believed I could pull it off. He even gave me the offer of playing the driver Aslam and becoming one of the four heroes. But I was like I would rather play the bad bhanja than that guy. Because that had five minutes of more dimensions than 35 minutes of one dimension.

 

Were you apprehensive that in terms of look and feel that D-Day character would be very similar to Kaminey — long hair, a little looney...?

No, because in Kaminey Mikhail was a very positive character. But in D-Day, people clap when I die. Everyone wants me to die... “kutte ki maut maaro saale ko”! If I hadn’t been negative enough, Arjun wouldn’t have been such a big hero in the film. So, I wanted to portray this bhanja guy as very dark and menacing. And I felt bad while playing him... I felt filthy, I felt dirty.

 

Most of your scenes were with Rishi Kapoor. How was he to work with?

He’s like a child in his enthusiasm. Every evening after pack-up we would discuss how the day went and he gave me all the authority to tell him what I felt of his performance. He would say: ‘Tell me the truth!’ He likes me as an actor and feels I should do more movies. He is very encouraging.

 

You did three Bengali films in the interim — Mahanagar@Kolkata, Aparajita Tumi and Ganesh Talkies. What was the idea there?

When nothing interesting was happening in Mumbai, I wanted to take a little refuge in Bengali cinema but that also didn’t work for me. I was hoping for better cinema. At least a Bariwali or an Unishe April level of cinema. I was not doing those films for money or for popularity. When I did Mahanagar, I was expecting a Herbert. When I did Aparajita Tumi, I was expecting an Antaheen. When I did Ganesh Talkies, I thought it would be as good as Anjanda’s (Dutt) music.

 

Why do you think Bengali cinema is struggling to reach those levels?

Maybe it’s lethargy. Budget cannot be the excuse; we made Prague with very little money. The focus and precision are missing.

 

What are you doing next?

Subhash Ghai’s Kaanchi and Abbas Tyrewala’s Mango. Ghaisaab is a bit old-school compared to the directors I have worked with. Like I still don’t have a script. But I have a mail from him which says that ‘If you believe me, you shall fly’! I am enjoying it. With every passing day I am getting new scenes because he is supposedly very impressed with me. I think it’s a big thing for someone who comes from Karol Bagh to play the hero in a film made by the guy who made Kalicharan and Karz and Ram Lakhan and Taal. And I love it when he keeps telling me: ‘Theatrewaali acting mat kar! You are the hero!’ With Abbas, it’s like a literary experience for me. He is well-read and I learn so much from him every day. Mango is an absurd romantic comedy and it also stars Monali Thakur and Rannvijay Singha. It’s very well-written and I am really confident about this one.