Vijay Varma. Naam toh suna hoga? Amitabh Bachchan’s hero in Deewaar is, in a curious twist of fate, the “face of wrong” in Pink. Only this time, the actor’s name is Vijay Varma and his repugnant character is called Ankit Malhotra. The actor is getting major hate for his portrayal of the chauvinist who hounds Taapsee Pannu in the Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury (Tony) film that’s become a She movement.
Okay, we hate you! Have you got that a lot after Pink?
During the trials and screenings, people would come up to me and say: ‘I don’t want to talk to you… just get away!’ (Laughs) A lot of women screamed at me (smiles). I knew what I was getting into when I decided to do this part, but to be able to create the response that I exactly wanted and what the makers expected from me, is a personal victory for me. But it’s incredible how ‘NO means NO’ has become a slogan. We wanted this word to resonate in every household and we are so glad it has. ‘Nahin mein magar ki gunjaish nahin hai’, is what has struck a chord. In an age where there is so much bombardment of information, for a film to stay in people’s minds even days after watching it is a huge achievement. Pink is no longer just ours... it’s become everybody’s film now.
Were there any apprehensions about doing this role because, first, the man is disgusting and second, the length of the role isn’t much?
I considered both these options, to be honest. The apprehension was of course there for the molestation scene. Even on paper, it sounds very gruesome. I thought over it for a day and I realised there is somebody who has to be the face of wrong in this film and I decided to put my face on it. This character is completely removed from what I am in life. As an actor, the biggest high is to crack a character and play it in such a way that creates an impact. And once you have done so, you can come out and say, ‘Listen, don’t be like this guy in life’.
What kind of headspace were you in for the molestation scene?
I didn’t really sit down with Taapsee (Pannu, who plays Minal) to discuss it. For me, the preparation was very internal and I just told myself that the person I am inflicting this on, I should assume that this person is absolutely at my disposal and I am free to do whatever I want to. I had to approach the scene with that kind of arrogance. On the day of the shoot, Taapsee was very supportive and she completely submitted herself to the scene. It went off in one go and people were not able to watch the whole footage. We shot it in a moving car, we connected it to the monitors, the makers saw it and they were like: ‘Okay, good, good’. It went off so smoothly because both Taapsee and I were ready to submit ourselves completely to the scene.
Do you know people like Ankit?
Yes, yes. I have seen chauvinism very, very closely. I have never been one and this role is not going to change that (smiles). Yes, I have seen men like Ankit, but within my own realm of geography… I am from Hyderabad. But to crack the Delhi code, I had to sit with a friend who is also an actor and get the Delhi lingo right… get the Punjabi twang right and also the north (Indian) arrogance right. Also, I watched a lot of the Delhi auditions for Roadies (laughs) and shows like Splitsvilla just to understand how these boys manage to have so much internal aggression and how matter-of-factly they are so sexist. I want to put on record that I have derived my biggest inspiration from these shows because we have become a country that makes heroes out of those who mistreat others. In shows like Bigg Boss, we make icons out of people who are abusive. When I watched those shows, I really felt that we are feeding our young minds some very contaminated stuff.
What’s been the experience of working with Tony in what is his first Hindi film?
I haven’t come across a more democratic, compassionate and inclusive director than Mr Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury. He’s a sweetheart of a person… a very empathetic guy who doesn’t like to hog the limelight. He is someone who is willing to take the opinion of even the lowest-ranked person in the unit because he feels everyone involved is equally important. He loved my auditions and he loved me. He just told me, ‘I want you to do this part and I want you to do it so well that when people come out, they should slap you!’ (Laughs) And now when people come up to say they want to slap me, I tell them, ‘Please kar do. These guys will release my last payment only when I get slapped!’ (Laughs) But yes, Tonyda is a funny guy… he’s an adorable guy and I love him.
Are you wary of being typecast after Pink?
Pink is my first big success. People have told me that typecast hone ke chances hain, but I am very secure because I have some interesting and diverse pieces of work coming up. I am playing a very cool ’70s character in Tigmanshu Dhulia’s Yaara (co-starring Vidyut Jammwal and Shruti Haasan) and in Raag Desh, also directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia (starring Kunal Kapoor and Amit Sadh), I play a very honest journalist committed to finding the facts about the INA Movement.
Priyanka Roy
SAY PINK
No means No: Pink brilliantly captures everything that is wrong with the system. The first half brought back all the horrors I’ve faced while growing up, like any other girl in this country. I could feel the helplessness and fear of the three girls. But all I felt in the second half was anger. Anger over how society does not take two minutes to start questioning a girl’s character and how consent isn’t ever a criterion. Pink sends out a loud and clear message: A girl might not follow any rule of the “safety manual” that society has framed for us, but no means No!
Arunima Pal, Student of Asutosh College
Bachchan oh Bachchan: In my housing complex, ideas of what constitutes ‘questionable character’ are so deeply ingrained in men and women alike that a woman who drinks, wears trendy clothes or parties often, is invariably talked about. This of course doesn’t apply to the boys. They can brag about their alcohol parties and nobody raises an eyebrow.
Pink brought all this and more into the limelight. We relate to the lives of the three women in every aspect. Their helplessness, fear and even the outbursts. At times I wondered how long one can hold on and stay strong when you’re being harassed in the worst ways possible.
There isn’t anyone else I can imagine in the role of Deepak Sehgal apart from Amitabh Bachchan. His little gestures, like pulling down Minal’s hoodie when a few men in the park recognise her, and a booming baritone in the courtroom had me in tears while I cheered him on towards the end.
What deserves a special mention is how they didn’t feel compelled to show what actually happened at the party until the very end. Also, the Bachchan voiceover during the end credits. It gave me goosebumps.
Rupsha Bhadra, Student of Jadavpur University
Save our boys first: As I write this, it hasn’t even been a couple of minutes since I have walked out of the theatre, and I have no words. As the credits rolled, there was an eerie silence. Pink. To me, it felt like an emotion. The film is everything that girls all around us want to tell society. Our clothes, our drinking, our smoking do NOT define our character. When we say NO, it means NO. As it is said in the film, ‘Na mein magar ki koi gunjaish hi nahin hai’. Yes, we should save our boys first, maybe then our girls will feel safer.
Sulogna Ghosh, Student of St. Xavier’s College
Female friendships should be celebrated: What really struck me when watching this film was the massive sense of solidarity and love that emanated from the three female protagonists. This gorgeous female trinity is seen playfully teasing each other, with the sign in the background saying ‘Home is who you make it with’. As the film continues, the heart-aching scenes where the friends are consoling each other bolsters this touching reflection of camaraderie. It seems to me that this strength of friendship, this female sisterhood was the core recourse of their power. The emotional and physical strength that they drew from each other was palpable. Even when one slightly betrayed the other two (I am being purposefully vague to avoid spoilers!) their friendship was like an elastic band; love retracted her back into their tight trio. It goes without saying that female friendships are an impressive form of kinship… and something that should be celebrated more often!
Emma George Anderson,
The student of Leeds University is presently interning with t2
