Haranath Chakraborty issues instructions to Sayantani Ghosh and Rajesh Sharma. Photograph: Anil Grover

When you see some ?huge action? in NT-1 studios or wherever, you can bet your last deem-toast that it?s got to be Haranath Chakraborty at work. For his feature film, Raju Uncle, there was this school and a school bus and a bevy of mothers, sisters and guardians, and a group of ?fighters? as they are called in film parlance and a bus-full of chattering, yelling, tugging, pulling and tripping school kids. Cinematographer V. Prabhakar atop a crane and ?stunts director? R. Raja, a mountainous man with a beguiling benignness about him, directing his ?fighters?, among whom was the villain of the hour, Rajesh Sharma. Haranath, face covered with a dust-protecting kerchief and barking orders on a cordless mike, participating fully in the action scene which had a carload of goons tearing in and abducting the teacher played by the fragilely feline Sayantani Ghosh, another TV star hitching her wagon to the big screen.

Prosenjit, who stars opposite yet another ?new? girl, was patiently awaiting his turn at the scenes though still not fully recovered from illness and not being able to clean up his act before the attendance as chief guest at Crossword, where Javed Akhtar?s book, Talking Songs, was being launched. But it was the kids who kept everyone quite exercised. The several assistant directors had to tug and pull at some of them, the stunts director would shake his head and ask for another take because they charged in an uncoordinated manner, some of them would continue to hammer at Rajesh after the take, one began bawling that he was just too hungry... Till Haranath had to also scream, ?Stop! This is a shooting. This is a serious thing.? Cut!