Vishal Bhardwaj

After Maqbool, were you naturally attracted to more of Shakespeare?

There were many factors. After making Macbeth as Maqbool, I didn?t want to do another Shakespeare straightaway. So, I made a children?s film called Blue Umbrella which is yet to be released. Next I started working on Mr Mehta and Mrs Singh and finished the full script. Then Aamir (Khan) ? who was supposed to play Mr Mehta ? and I had creative differences. So, we decided to hold the film. I felt completely empty. I didn?t know what to do. I went back to Shakespeare and wanted to present either Julius Caesar or Othello to Indian cinema because both were great stories.

Why did you choose the UP heartland as the backdrop for your Othello?

The main reason is that I was born and brought up there, in Meerut. I had seen the UP political mafia from very close quarters. The politics there starts right from the school classroom. The Mumbai underworld has been seen so many times on screen, but the UP mafia politics has never been seen in mainstream Indian cinema. So I felt it could generate that universal appeal.

Ajay Devgan and Kareena Kapoor in Omkara;, which releases this Friday

Was the Sergio Leone sepia-tinted look deliberate?

It was a conscious decision. I wanted to bring that Wild West feel to the proceedings. If you look carefully, the West of the 60s in the US was very much like what UP and Bihar are today. From the underworld to the MLAs, the whole set-up is like the Wild West.

What was the inspiration behind the music of the film?

I was looking for rustic melodies that could be orchestrated with modern instruments. If you go to the UP-Bihar area today, even the band-baaja parties on the roads carry keyboards and guitars with them.

How did you manage to get such an incredible star cast?

Honestly, I didn?t try very hard. The film was destined to have such a star cast. First Ajay (Devgan) came on board; he was very excited to do Shakespeare. Next Saif (Ali Khan) read the script. He was free at that time and wanted to be Iago. Then, one by one, Viveik (Oberoi), Kareena (Kapoor), Konkona (Sen Sharma) and Bipasha (Basu) readily joined the cast. Naseerji read the Omkara script and said: ?I will play Bhaisaab.? So, you can say, the stars chose themselves for the film.

You have worked with the so-called arty actors like Shabana Azmi, Pankaj Kapoor and Tabu before. Was it difficult to handle the Omkara stars?

I never felt that I was shooting with stars. The problems and pleasures of Maqbool were very much there on the sets of Omkara. Only this time I was more pampered with money. We were able to erect a huge set of a couple of crores for the film. So, the only difference was money.

Saif Ali Khan in the film

Was it difficult to divide screen space and duration among such big names?

Not for me. I always work with a bound script and never hide anything from my actors. I never narrate a script from the actor?s point of view. I don?t say this film belongs to Iago or Othello. I just lay out my script and allow them to identify the characters and their scope, themselves.

But isn?t Iago the real hero of Othello?

That?s a difficult question to answer. Othello belongs to Othello, but yes Iago is the more juicy character.

So is Omkara an Ajay Devgan film or a Saif Ali Khan film?

See, Saif has a very author-backed role in the film. Iago is undoubtedly one of the finest villains written by Shakespeare. But I would also want to give full marks to Ajay, Kareena and particularly Konkona. She has a small role in the film but she could smell what I was trying to do with her character. Somehow at the end of everything, as an audience, you take back Konkona with you.

What was the response to the Omkara in Cannes?

It was great. The producer of Godzilla and Independence Day was overwhelmed by the showreel. There were people from other countries as well who loved the images and sounds of the film.

Do you feel Omkara will be accepted by the aam janata?

I?m just concerned that the audience shouldn?t compare Omkara with Maqbool. They are different stories and have different feels. Apart from that, I am very confident of the film. It is the best I could have written, the best I could have directed and the best cast I could have ever got.

So, will it be Julius Caesar next?

I am definitely not making another Shakespeare real soon. Right now, I am just working on a script that tells you how to have a good sleep.