Param and Koel play Ashwin and Sohini in Friday release Highway, directed by Sudipto Chattopadhyay and produced by Surinder Films

Blue BMW, long drive, aada cha and marathon adda made for a perfect lazy weekend afternoon when t2 hitched a ride with Highway lead pair Parambrata Chattopadhyay and Koel Mallick. The PK chat...

The last time you went for a long drive was...

Koel: Just a few days back, in Rajarhat.

Param: I too had gone to Rajarhat to a friend’s place. But Rajarhat is really not the definition of a long drive. I kind of beg to differ with Koel!

Koel: It’s not a long drive? Are you talking about going for a long drive to Spain then?!

Param: Nah, ototao bolchhi na! But I have done road trips in Europe and I loved them. I am planning one this year too, the south of Spain. The last long drive I went for wasn’t very far away. I drove from Calcutta to Mandarmani.

Koel: Bah bah...

Param: Right after my mom passed away I needed a break from everything, so for two days I drove down to the beach with my three friends.

ICE ICE BABY: Before hitting the highway for a spin around Rajarhat, Koel and Param tucked into a plate of kulfi from a roadside stall

What do you like doing during a long drive?

Koel: Listen to good music, maybe ghazal or nice western music, and if it rains it becomes the perfect long drive!

Param: The best part of going on a long drive is that it has its stages. When you start out, you have the breakfast stage. Then about an hour later, you want loud dhikchak dhikchak music! Two hours later, that energy subsides and it’s time for quality music. We do a lot of nonsense while driving and all of it without even a drop of alcohol!

What’s your favourite drink on a long drive?

Param: If I am driving then definitely non-alcoholic, but if somebody else is driving then beer! (Laughs)

Koel: (Thinks) I really have to think!

Param: Yeah! She drinks water, I am guessing! (Laughs)

Koel: Yeah.... I don’t remember having anything to drink on a drive!

Param: Nimbu paani!

Koel: No, do I have to say nimbu paani?

Param: Coffee!

Koel: Coffee on a long drive? Haven’t tried that!

Snapped: A selfie on the busy road

A place you want to travel to by car?

Param: After Durga Puja we are going to drive to Buxa Tiger Reserve, Alipurduar district. It’s a 13-hour drive from Calcutta. I also want to drive to Kanha in Madhya Pradesh in winter.

Koel: I really want to visit Kashmir. I’m not sure whether I would go by road but I definitely want to explore the place in the best way possible.

Param: I also want to do something that the hippies would do in the ’70s! They would start from England…

Koel: Maaney the absolute bohemian that you are…!

Param: They would cross the Gibraltar and then through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan they would come to India in search of themselves or in search of a lot of hash. (Laughs) I would like to do that someday!

Which is your favourite scene from Highway?

Koel: There’s an interesting scene which is also the film’s poster. I am wearing a black sari and Param is behind me. It’s the kind of scene that I have never done before in any film. I don’t want to divulge much because it’s the turning point of the film.

Param: I have got two. The last scene of the film, which is very short and I really like it.

Koel: Aah! That’s a very cute scene.

Param: The other is with Gaurav (Chakrabarty) and myself where the two of us are drinking. I see a lot of myself in Gaurav because I have seen him since he was very young. When we used to do the Feluda films he used to come to the sets with Benukaku (Sabyasachi Chakrabarty) and we used to be very thick. He is very smooth as an actor.

Can you recall a journey to a shooting place, which was very interesting?

Koel: I have amnesia after every film... let me think! Param, you start...

Param: I have done a lot of travelling for shoots. I remember one trip during Bombaiyer Bombete where Rajesh Sharma and I travelled on a bus with the technicians from Visakhapatnam to Araku Valley. It was raining cats and dogs and the bus was leaking! That was a fantastic journey. For Lorai, we made numerous trips to Purulia and I always enjoy the six-hour drive to Purulia and I know the road like the back of my hand. We would listen to Patakha guddi from the Hindi Highway.

Koel: Wow! I love that song. Okay, I really enjoyed the outdoor shoot of Hit-list in Malaysia. And I had discovered my split personality while shooting a song for my first film Nater Guru in Hyderabad, in front of the Charminar. I am an introvert and wherever I go I find my comfortable corner. But I danced in front of a huge crowd near the Charminar and that outdoor is special.

Param: You just got off and did the jig aarki!

OMG! This is what happens when the car breaks down in the middle of the road

Your favourite road movie…

Param: (Alfonso Cuaron’s) Y Tu Mama Tambien, Fatih Akin’s Im Juli (In July)... (Satyajit Ray’s) Abhijan is a huge favourite... The Motorcycle Diaries and On The Road by Walter Salles.

Koel: Your list is never-ending! I loved Highway and Alia (Bhatt) was so good!

Param: Quite a good film, yes.

Kushali Nag
Pictures: Anindya Shankar Ray
Where do you like to go on a long drive? Tell t2@abp.in