'The only formula is to defy formula'

Subhash K Jha

Director Sanjay Gupta, whose earlier Hollywood-inspired slick films like Aatish, Ram Shastra and Jung failed, is ready with the very ambitious Kaante.

"I made Kaante in my own way because I produced it myself. I am no longer answerable to a producer who, in turn, is answerable to a broker who doesn't know the ABC of filmmaking," says Gupta.

The crime caper Kaante features Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt (who co-produces the film), Suneil Shetty, Kumar Gaurav, singer Lucky Ali and director-actor Mahesh Manjrekar as six desperados who plan a bank robbery.

"Though the film is shot in Los Angeles, I haven't used the city in a touristic way," Gupta says. "At the risk of making the film looking ugly, I've gone into those areas of Holywood which suited my gritty narrative. I shot in places where Hollywood action films like Gone In 60 Seconds were filmed earlier."

Kaante seems to be the most 'Hollywood' flick ever made in India. Apart from being filmed entirely on location and telling the story of six LA-based characters, it also features an entire Hollywood crew. "The cameraman, costume designer and background music scorer are from Hollywood. Even the post-production work has been done in LA," Gupta says.

Kaante, set for an early June release, may be a new beginning for mainstream commercial cinema. The film has been funded by the NRI Hollywood producer Raju Patel and India's Pritish Nandy Communications. Gupta plans to release the English-language version of Kaante.

Sanjay Gupta has a lot of plans for his newly established production house. At the recent International India Film Association Awards ceremony in Malaysia, Gupta launched his next production Plan. The film, directed by long-time associate Hriday Shetty, will star Gupta's close friend Sanjay Dutt (who has been in all his films except the Saif Ali Khan-Kajol starrer Hamesha), with Sanjay Suri, Bikram Saluja, Rohit Roy and Dino Morea.

Revealing his future plans Gupta says, "My next directorial venture will be based on the infamous Bhagalpur blindings (where the police had blinded criminals). I want Amitabh Bachchan to play a lawyer, Aamir Khan to play the journalist who did the sensational expose and Sanjay Dutt as a ruthless cop."

Determined to break the formula-ridden nexus of Hindi cinema, Sanjay Gupta says, "The only formula to success is to defy the formula. In Hollywood, stars are willing to reduce their prices for a good script or a promising new director. But here, stars don't want to take risks. They would rather wear their colourful dhotis and dance in the dales."