In less than a decade, Namrata Rao has made tremendous headway in a male-dominated field. The 34-year-old, who studied IT but gave it all up to pursue her passion for films, is today one of Bollywood’s top editors. The latest biggie in her kitty? Shah Rukh Khan’s Fan, that releases on April 15. t2 caught up with the National Award winner (for Kahaani) on the challenges of being an editor and her “salad days” in Calcutta.

Growing up, you have been a Shah Rukh Khan fan. While editing Fan, was there ever a point when reel met real?

Fan has certain portions where we have a lot of footage from the ’90s. That was very nostalgic for me because that’s what I have grown up with. I had seen Deewana (1992, Shah Rukh’s debut) when I was 10-11 years old. So yes, the nostalgia bit was there, but now that I have worked with him on a few films, I don’t feel the same way (laughs). I still really like him… the nostalgia for his early films is very strong and I hope that reflects in this film as well. Most of us in this generation who are working in films now grew up in the ’90s and Shah Rukh Khan was god then. We have that kind of attachment and nostalgia to him as an artiste and we are able to appreciate what he’s done for cinema ever since. 

Fan is an ambitious film in scale and structure. What were the biggest challenges on the edit table?

First, there is a double role (Gaurav and Aryan, both played by SRK), so the question of balancing both on the edit table comes in. Then, the film has a lot of visual effects and to edit everything in green (screen) and to visualise what it would actually look like was a huge, huge challenge. Also, the film is set in a thriller space and it’s a huge responsibility on the part of the editor to ensure that the tempo and the tension is maintained throughout. I mostly had to operate on green and if the two guys (Aryan and Gaurav) were involved in a chase, I had to visualise how it would end up. It’s very difficult when you are working with VFX to keep changing the edit again and again. 

Your breakthrough film Kahaani was also a thriller. How was editing Fan different from editing Kahaani?

Both presented different challenges. With Fan, the big challenge, apart from the ones I have already mentioned, was to present the film in a way that the audience feels for both the characters. In Kahaani, it was a totally different ball game because first, it was a woman’s story and I identified with it. She’s in this foreign city (Calcutta), she’s lost her husband…. While I was in edit, I went into this zone where I started believing that I was Bidya Bagchi (Vidya Balan). As a woman, it’s easier for me to connect to a Bidya than a Gaurav, but because I have been a fan myself at some point of time — maybe not as crazy as Gaurav is! (laughs) — I could feel a little bit of how he feels… that feeling when you are this close to the person you have grown up admiring and yet there is this huge distance between them.

Apparently, Shah Rukh Khan told you to keep the edit of Fan ‘very tight’. Was he very involved in the process?

Shah Rukh had told me: ‘Jab Tak Hai Jaan bahut lambi thi, isko itna lamba mat rakhiyo’. It was actually a joke, but I don’t know how it got misrepresented in the papers. He’s not at all been involved. He, of course, came in and saw the edit… he’s loved the film. We’ve shown the film to him at various points, but beyond that, he’s not really been involved in the edit. In fact, he’s been so busy the whole of last year… he’s just been working non-stop. It’s actually been hard to call him and show him the edit! (Laughs) But he’s so good to work with… he’s very open that way and he doesn’t impose in any way at all.

Editing is a job carried out in isolation and one that requires a lot of focus. What’s the kind of headspace that one needs to have to become an editor?

Edit is the place where you actually ‘find’ your film. What the audience sees is what happens to a film on the edit table. I feel that it’s a really responsible job. I enjoy it and that’s why I do it… I don’t feel isolated or lonely while I am in edit because I really become a part of the film I am working on. I practically live in the rushes! (Laughs) To be an editor, first and foremost, you have to be a keen observer of life. You have to be a storyteller… you have to enjoy hearing and reading about stories and characters. You need to have a certain level of equanimity so that you are able to do justice to the film and present all the characters equally with all fairness. 

How does it feel to have broken the glass ceiling given that editing has been a male bastion in Bollywood?

Well, it is still male dominated, but that’s just a reflection of how our society is. There has been an improvement… I won’t say that things have changed drastically. I hope more and more women come in and change the equation, but not just in editing… I hope they work in various fields in films. We need a lot more women behind the camera and in the technical departments than what we have now. 

Have there been times when you have watched a film of yours and thought: ‘Damn! I could have done it better’. 

Every single time! (Laughs) Whenever I see it in the theatre, I always wish I had one extra day for the edit. But I guess you live with that. Every film is an experience and a learning and you always look forward to the next one, hoping that you will have more objectivity to make it perfect the next time (laughs). Though, honestly, no one knows what a ‘perfect edit’ really is. Because to sustain objectivity over a long time is tough. I have lived with Fan for over a year… 14 or 15 months now… and it’s really hard to see it every time like it’s a new film. Earlier I would be a lot more critical of my work, but these days I manage to forgive myself (laughs). 

What is it about Maneesh Sharma and Dibakar Banerjee that makes you work with them in film after film? 

When I did Band Baaja Baaraat with Maneesh, we became friends. We have very similar backgrounds… we are both from Delhi and have grown up in a similar space and have studied at Delhi University. So we struck a friendship and that’s why I continue to work with him. With Dibakar, I got my first break (Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!) and I learnt so much working with him. He was the first person who introduced me to Bombay. He’s a delight to work with. Now I am working with Sujoy (Ghosh) also again and I feel very grateful that filmmakers repeat me. 

You studied filmmaking at SRFTI in Calcutta. What were those years like and how much did they contribute to the professional in you?

Actually, that’s where my professional journey started. My time there completely altered my life because before that, I had studied IT. I had no idea about editing or cinema and had seen nothing of world cinema. Being in SRFTI felt like a storm had struck me. I watched some amazing films there and I met many great people and did workshops with people who had such different ideas. Those three-and-a-half years spent there really opened me up and I will always be grateful to SRFTI. 
Even just staying in Calcutta was an experience. I learnt the language and Calcutta mesmerised me because it was such a different space from what I had grown up in in Delhi and Kerala. I still keep going back… Calcutta is my second home.

Any special spots you like to hang out in?

I love Triangular Park. Whenever I am in Calcutta, I keep looking at houses there and wondering whether I can ever buy a retirement home there! (Laughs) I love that area. In fact, I edited the climax of Kahaani in a small guesthouse near Triangular Park. Sujoy is so well versed with Calcutta… every gali… every nook and cranny….

And he knows his food here too…

Oh yes! I had put on so much weight when I was in Calcutta and I am still struggling to get it off! But I really love Calcutta… College Street, Free School Street… all the joints we would go to… even just hanging outside of SRFTI on the Bypass. I learnt swimming there in Golpark. Those were the salad days (smiles). 

Did you know Namrata when she was in Calcutta? Tell t2@abp.in