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What was your first reaction when Sujoy Ghosh came and offered you the role of Aladin’s genie?
I liked the concept of contemporasing the story and bringing in that tongue-in-cheek factor for the story.
Were you ever a big fan of the Arabian Nights or other fables and fairy tales? Did you ever want to play any character you had read as a child?
We have all grown up with these fables and have at some point or the other wished to be these characters — Superman, Batman, Peter Pan, etc.
You have worked with many Bengali directors, from Satyajit Ray to Rituparno Ghosh, from Shoojit Sircar to Sujoy Ghosh. Do they bring a Bengaliness to their films? Anything that makes them different from the others?
The Bengali is known for his or her sense of aesthetics. In all the Bengali directors I have worked with I have found this quality in their products. In the writing, in the music and in the treatment of the film.
Is shooting for a visual effects-laden film tricky given the fact that you have to emote mostly in front of green screens?
The visual effects were never disturbing our work and they were something that remained a part of the film which would only be seen after the effects had been put in. I did not have a problem with it. It was never a situation where they became too intensive.
You had once done a fantasy film like Ajooba. From Ajooba to Aladin how much has technology made life easier for actors? Do you think the visual storytelling has undergone a change too?
Yes technology has undergone a sea change and this is all for the betterment of filmmaking. Access to the most modern forms and to personnel that bring us quality work comparable to the very best in the world, is a great boon to the industry.
You have sung two songs in Aladin. Do you decide what you want to sing? Or does it depend on the music directors and the song?
I am not a singer and have never wanted to sing my songs myself. Some adventurous directors insist that I do and so I do it. But it is a nightmare for me.
Bhoothnath, Aladin, Pa... you are getting to play some wacky and wild characters now. Do you regret not being offered such a variety of roles when you were younger?
At this age one can expect only character roles to come my way. Earlier when I was younger the roles were somewhat defined within set parameters. Now, yes I get an opportunity to deal with different kinds of roles. I am fortunate that such efforts are offered to me.
If you were given three wishes by a genie, what would you ask for?
May Aladin the film be a success, be a success, be a success.
Bachchan blogs on Aladin Lacking the zing thing
Aladin is not garnering encouraging reviews and neither is it accommodating favourable reports. Some where that ‘zing’ of commerce and entertainment was missing is what the general opinion has been. There is the odd appreciation, but then it is as they say, odd. Life moves on and on to the next. This is the way of our existence and so shall it be.
Apart from the different ratings and the different comments about the review of the film, I did find one that interested me enough to make my observation. There were many that felt and did not hesitate in saying so that the performance of the Genie, Genius played by Amitabh Bachchan, was too over the top, extraneous and to a large extent hammed. There was reference to kohl eyes, outlandish jackets and a demeanour that was not genie like.
I wish not to defend this observation. It is after all the view of a critic that gets the privilege of a few columns every Friday in the daily news paper.
I have just one question that comes to my mind. How many of these purveyors of film seen a Genie in real life, to be able to assuage what his appearance ought to be? Just a random thought, not to be taken with any kind of ’ism’.
