Reservation Road

Jha clears the air about his fallout with Devgn and on choosing to team with Big B.

After the success of Raajneeti,filmmaker Prakash Jha went on to his next venture Aarakshan,which focuses on caste-based reservations. The subject did not come as a surprise as Jha has dealt with issue-based cinema for years. What did shock everybody was his selection of Saif Ali Khan over his favourite,Ajay Devgn,as the lead actor. In a conversation with Priyanka Pereira,Jha clears the air about his fallout with Devgn and talks about working for the first time with Amitabh Bachchan

While Raajneeti came five years after Apaharan,Aarakshan has been completed within a year. Was it an effort on your part to up the momentum?
Raajneeti required a lot of pre-production and I was also involved with a lot more activities in my home state,Bihar. Now,I have more or less wound up everything else and am doing films without any disturbance. Also Aarakshan was an easier film to shoot,but it is a better film than Raajneeti. It has a more focussed story.

Did the Supreme Court ruling on reservation for OBCs in educational institutions add more substance to the script?
The subject of Aarakshan is inherent to Indian society. We live in a caste-based society where even education is affected by the caste system. The SC ruling definitely forms a turning point in the film. The divisions had been simmering even before the ruling. The SC stamp is only a reality every section of society has to accept. But it does not end here. Everyday you hear more people,like the Gujjars and the Muslims demanding reservation.

Story continues below this ad

It is rather human to take sides when it comes to issues like these. Was it difficult keeping a neutral stance?
Who am I to take sides? This is just a way to let out the feelings that society has been suppressing for years. The pain is on all sides. I have tried to understand the reality of it.

Is it true that a Dalit group protested against Saif Ali Khan,a Nawab portraying a Dalits role?
They sent a letter to my Patna office. It could have been just some mischief as there was no address on the envelope. Hence,I cannot even reply to them. If they think a Nawab playing Dalit is discrimination,then somebody could raise their voice against a Dalit writing our Constitution. Their fears are unfounded here.

When Aarakshan was being scripted,Ajay Devgn was roped in to play the lead. Have things changed between you two since then?
Ajay would have definitely been there. But as I finalised the script,I realised that casting him would be too typical. I needed a newer face who would create a convincing persona. The film happened hurriedly because I got Amitabh Bachchans dates and Ajay was already occupied with two other films. As luck would have it,Saif stepped in and he has done an honest job.

Did the alleged fallout between the two of you post Raajneeti,fuel this decision?
Not at all. Everything is absolutely fine between us. People just assume that we are not okay with each other.

Story continues below this ad

You are working for the first time with Amitabh Bachchan. Was he a natural choice for the role of a principal?
He was the only choice. We needed an aged,towering and dignified personality to play the role of a principal and he fit in.

What is the next issue you are planning to base your film?
Its strange but the whole concept of development India surging ahead beats me. I fail to understand who really is surging ahead. If development has to happen at the cost of 80-85 per cent of the population not benefiting by it,then is it really worth it?

Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.