Ritesh Shah -Mainstreaming the meaningful cinema!

It is a surreal feeling when you meet first time the person, who you have admired for a long time. Any writer worth his salt would not hesitate to call Ritesh Shah one of the best screen writers of our times.  As luck would have it, we decided to meet at Prithvi Cafe. To me it felt like a pilgrimage, as I entered the Mecca of Indian theatre in anticipation of meeting Ritesh. Being an amateur playwright myself, I was wondering why it took me 15 long years to come to this place. But, then I realized such things just happen and can’t be really planned. Just like this rendezvous with Ritesh Shah.

He comes across as a very unassuming, affable and affectionate person. I got comfortable the very moment I shook hands with him. He met me very warmly and we settled in a nearby café. Rather than being disappointed that we could not get a place in Prithvi Café, we were happy for the fact that café is doing this well to supplement the theatre. Here is an account of what transpired next

RRB – First of all, let me congratulate you for the well-deserved Film Fare award for Pink for best dialogue

Ritesh – Smiles. Yes, it was very satisfying.

RRB – Ritesh, when someone looks at your filmography, one feels pity on one’s ignorance. All these landmark and path breaking films like Namaste London, Kahani, Kahani 2, Airlift and recent Pink, are the movies that we all have loved and admired. But am sure, not many of us knew that the man involved in writing of all these novel films is you.

So, let us first start with your professional journey to get over this mystery. Please connect the dots for us.

Ritesh - It all started with theatre. I had an inclination towards acting, but nothing more than just a hobby. There was a very good theatre group ‘Act one art group’ in Delhi. People like Manoj Bajpayee, Ashish Vidyarithi and Piyush Mishra were part of that group. I was studying Arts in Hindu college aspiring for Civil services or an MBA. This group came scouting for fresh talent in colleges across Delhi including my college.It was around 1994 that I joined this group, working as an amateur actor and a back stage assistant. N K Sharma was the director. Many people from the group left for Mumbai to pursue their dreams. One day even Piyush Mishra left. He happened to be the playwright of the play I was acting in.

While rehearsing a scene, I suddenly stopped. My director N K Sharma asked. “What happened? Why are you stuck”

I said, “I don’t know my lines beyond this. The play is incomplete as Piyush has left for Mumbai.”

What he told me next, changed my life forever. He said, “So, that means you just parrot the lines you get. If you had understood the character well, you would have instinctively known what to say next.”

This realization struck me like a thunderbolt. I not just wrote lines for my character but completed the entire play in no time. I liked the whole process. I found writing more satisfying and in tune with my nature. And, then the real shot in arm was, my name on the poster. I decided to pursue playwriting more seriously. I started getting offers from well-funded theatre groups who also paid me well. One of my plays, an adaptation of Othello named Othello A play in black and white, received an award in Edinburgh festival Fringe. It is the largest arts festival in world.

RRB – How did films happen?

Ritesh - Although the natural progression would have been to move to films but I didn’t have confidence to move to Mumbai. However, my father was too supportive. But, as is the trait with all Kashmiri Pandit parents, he wanted me to formally study this art and then plan my next move. I attempted FTII and Jamia. I scored well in Jamia and joined Jamia MCRC. I passed out with first class.

Playwriting continued and I wrote around 20 plays. One of my plays named ‘What! What! What! Police! Police! Police became very popular in 1999 and some well-known people from film industry also came to watch it in Delhi. That included even Sanjay Leela Bhansali and a few other directors. There was a feeler that Ram Gopal Verma might adapt it into a movie. A friend of mine from our theatre group who was already in Mumbai from a long time, called me, and offered to introduce me to Ram Gopal Verma (RGV). N K Sharma prodded me and I landed in Mumbai for the first time.

Many of my friends from our theatre group were staying together in Mumbai and I joined them. They were all elated that I am getting to meet RGV directly without any struggle unlike them.

It was a Friday when I spoke to my friend.  He asked me to call him on Monday as he had fixed the appointment with RGV on that day. I kept calling him for about a week starting Monday but he didn’t answer me.

N K Sharma consoled me on phone that these things happen – move on. I was getting ready to leave next day when one of the friends in the flat asked me to accompany him to a story session for a new series on Sahara TV. This was a new episodic TV series starting on Sahara. As their story session was heating up, I also shared some thoughts and was enjoying the exchange of ideas. A person tapped on my shoulder and signaled to me to go to the adjoining room. The producer of the show was sitting there and had been listening to the conversation. He offered me the job to write some episodes for the show. I was not sure. I was caught up in a dilemma.I thought it wouldn’t be ethical on my part to take up a job which my friend was supposed to get. However, my friend himself eased me out of the situation and persuaded me to take it up. I was told to prove my mettle by writing. They liked and I was on. I was paid handsomely for that. That friend of mine later went on to write many successful movies.

This show was very high on content and production values, with least interference from the channel. Hence, some of the best talent in the industry ended up working in it. People like Murli Nair, Hemant Chaturvedi and Raj Kumar Gupta were part of it.

RRB – Very interesting. Please go on…

Ritesh –One of the episodes in this series was based on vigilante genre much on the lines of Wednesday movie. Anurag Kashyap happened to watch that. He encouraged me to try for films and even introduced me to many famed film makers like Rakesh Mehra, Nikhil Advani, Raj Kumar Santoshi and Vipul Shah. But nothing materialized for over 7 years.

RRB – Did I hear it right. 7 years?

Ritesh – Smiles, yes, 7 years.

RRB – It seems your share of struggle was reserved for films.

Ritesh – I reckon, yes. I continued for write for TV. Although, none of my work worked any magic on TV but by the grace of God I continued to get work. My writing was considered too niche and hence more appropriate for film.

During these 7 years, I started off on lot of projects but nothing really took off. One reason definitely was destiny. Also, Industry had not matured enough to produce the kind of films I or writers like me were capable of writing.

Finally, Home delivery with Sujoy Ghosh happened.

To be sure that the shooting has actually started, I secretly visited the set early in the morning. The movie got completed in 8 months and released in 2005. To my dismay, it was a big flop.

RRB – Yes, I know. That must have been a big dampener. Did it again take lot of time to get another movie?

Ritesh – Luckily, no. Some people noticed my work irrespective of the fate of Home delivery. I started Alladin in 2006. While I was writing Alladin, around April in 2006, I was referred to Preeti Ali by Anurag Kashyap. This was my big break. The movie was Namaste London. Vipul shah helmed it and it was to star Akshay and Katrina. I was again told to prove my mettle by writing 10 scenes. I gave it my all. Used my knowledge of North Indian culture and Panjabi language. And, it worked.

But the Jinx seemed to linger around.

I was told to accompany the crew and cast to London for shooting. But then 7-11 in Mumbai happened and visas were rejected en-mass. I could not go to London.

When the movie finally released it clashed with the India – Sri Lanka match in the World cup.

RRB – That must have been really unnerving

Ritesh – Yes, it was. I was anxious since morning on the day of release. I could not hold it anymore. In the evening, I asked my wife to accompany me to Chandan Cinema in Juhu to check the reaction of people. I was pleasantly surprised to find around 50-55% occupancy even while the match was on. The reaction of people also was encouraging. The movie went on to gross 64 crores in 2 weeks.

RRB- So, finally you had your first official hit movie.

Ritesh – But that didn’t result in lot of offers. I continued to get work only from people like Sujoy and Vipul. However, offers from outside this group still eluded me for some unknown reasons. It was 2011, when finally, my success streak started. You may also call it my second inning or breakthrough year

I met a very talented and interesting person Nishikant Kamat. We have lot of similarities and thus we connected very well. We did Force together which was successful. Then Kahani, D Day and B A Pass happened. I also did Lai Bhaari, a Marathi movie starring Ritesh Deshmukh. It is the third highest grossing Marathi movie after Sairaat and Natasamrat. Things started changing not just for me but overall in the industry too.

RRB - Past few years have witnessed an evolution of Indian Cinema and audience taste. There are no two ways about it. And, I believe you are an important part of this positive shift from the industry side. It would have been difficult to imagine a movie like Airlift or Pink about a decade back.

Ritesh – For both of these movies many things fell in place automatically. It was like the universe conspiring. Shoojit Sircar had done Piku with Amit ji and that is how we got to narrate the script to Amit ji. He agreed in Nov 15 and movie released in September 16.

Akshay was expanding his horizons and hence he was willing to do a movie like Airlift.

I am enjoying this second phase as long as it lasts.

RRB – Why are formula films not working any more. We have loved the formula movies of 70s and 80s. Something seems to be missing now…

Ritesh – The Manmohan Desai era formula movies used to have newness. There was something fresh about the characters which we loved. A movie like Sholay would feel fresh today too.

I think Indian cinema is seeing golden age after 70s. We produced around 20 good films last year. Many would not have done well on box office but all were appreciated. This, I think, is a very good sign

RRB – Do you write a movie keeping a particular genre in mind because the producer wants so or you just have a story to tell. Does the commercial aspect override the creative aspect at times?

Ritesh – For me, itis always the story first. I have been lucky to find people who believed in such subjects. We keep the commercial aspect in mind only from the reach perspective. We made Pink dramatic in second half only to increase the reach. This we managed to do without trivializing the issue. Two things are very important in this process; the intent and the technique. Our intent was to make good meaningful movies and the technique was to find a balance.

RRB – I can’t help but remark that it has been quite a journey from Anantnag to Airlift.

Ritesh – Smiles. Yes, indeed.

RRB – You belong to Anantnag in Kashmir, right? Were you in Anantnag itself at the time of exodus of Kashmiri Pandit Hindus from valley?

Ritesh –I was born in Anantnag. My Father worked in SKUAST (Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology) as Asst. Professor. My mother was Head mistress in a school. We lived in Shah Mohalla in Anantnag. Then we moved to Srinagar and I studied in Tyndale Biscoe School. I was in 10^th standard when the turmoil started.

We lived in a relatively safer area near Residency Road and hence I wasn’t witness to the terror activities. But, a couple of terror killings in Anantnag including that of Pt. Prem Nath Bhat shattered us. Him and a few more relatives being killed resulted in our decision to leave.

Then there was mass exodus and our family also left Kashmir in April 90. That was a very difficult time. First we came to Jammu but after a few months, we moved to Delhi. It was very emotionally disturbing to start the life all over again. I went to Cambridge school first and then the Hindu College. And you know the story after that.

By nature we Kashmiri Pandits manage to find silver lining even in most adverse circumstances. That is the reason we moved on in life. We did get opportunities and we also progressed. But that is just one aspect of it. The damage it did to us is beyond measure. Not just us, but the whole place. Today’s Kashmir is not a place of my memories. The psychological damage is beyond repair. I think with age, the pain of being rootless seems to grow on us more and more. The two generations of our grandparents and parents were totally destroyed. They were achievers there but were rendered hapless after displacement from their homes and hearths. Our third generation may have managed to achieve something, but what about the cost! We have paid too heavily for it.

RRB – I can identify with every word of yours. I have seen the terror and pain from even closer quarters in Kashmir as well as Jammu. But, isn’t it unfair? Not a single good movie has been made yet in Bollywood which gives a correct account of our side of the story.

Ritesh – I think there are many aspects to it. If a Kashmiri Pandit is involved then the chances of bias or propaganda are seen by others. Then there are commercial considerations and so on. Having said that, I think the issue of Kashmiri Pandits has started to get visibility in recent times thanks to social media and some parts of mainstream media. I think Rahul Pandita’s book My moon has blood clots did a wonderful job to this cause. Probably, if Haider is based on Curfewed nights, a movie on KPs could be based on this book.

RRB – You mentioned bias. Do you think every writer has some bias? Can a writer totally be devoid of any political leanings?

Ritesh – If any writer is saying he or she is totally apolitical, then that is a lie. Having said that, I think every writer tries to balance things out. It is our duty. We should not let our ideology affect our truthful narrative. Two wrongs never make a right. Whoever is wrong, is wrong. We should not lose our objectivity. The problem today is people have started viewing everything from the prism of Right and Left. It is not a good sign. Our allegiance should be towards truth and justice

RRB – Have you been caught up in any such dilemmas because of the interference of producers or directors.  

Ritesh – I have been lucky to be associated with very intelligent people who understand the craft very well. I am not averse to suggestions if it is coming from a person like that and I don’t mind incorporating such suggestions. Today, I am involved in every stage of the movie till the trailer is cut. What more can I ask for?

RRB – Are you also having any plans to move to direction like many other writers.

Ritesh – No, I have no such plans. I have many stories left in me which I am very keen to bring out. I am happy that I am able to make a living out of my passion that is writing. Some writers move to direction for more fame, more money or to have better creative control. In my case I think I would be better off writing 4 movies in 2 years rather than directing one. Direction is very cumbersome. I don’t think I will enjoy that.

RRB – This one question I have been waiting to ask a film writer. Why do we have so many confusing credits for film writing like Script, Story, Screenplay, Dialogue

Ritesh – Even though I got the Filmfare award for Best Dialogue, I would still say that this credit should be done away with. In west, Screenplay and Dialogue is not seen separately. If one cannot write dialogue, one is not competent enough to write the screenplay. I guess the Dialogue credit was created because many non-Hindi (or Urdu) speaking people wrote and made movies. They needed help on dialogue. But it is about time that it is dropped. Person helping on dialogue should get second credit in screenplay.

RRB – Understood. So, who’s your favorite screen writer

Ritesh – Salim – Javed. Their body of work remains unmatched.

RRB – I had a wonderful time talking to you, Ritesh. We now know so much more about you. Now, when I look back at your movies, I can easily make out all those have been written by one person and that is you. Because, your movies too carry parts of you; character, sensitivity, depth and empathy.

We parted with the same warmth as we had met with.

Rakesh Roshan Bhat (RRB)

Can be reached for comments / feedback on rakeshroshanbhat@gmail.com