SHABANA AZMI

Javed wept after watching 15 Park Avenue

Posted online: Friday, January 06, 2006 at 0000 hours IST

Her films are few and far between. But every time one is up for release expectations soar because Shabana Azmi never repeats herself and invests every role with a soul. 2006 flags off with 15 Park Avenue that brings Shabana together with one of her favourite directors, Aparna Sen and brightest co-stars, Konkona Sen Sharma. Taking time off from the hectic schedule of JP Dutta’s Umrao Jaan and the New Year celebrations, the actor talks about her latest cinematic experience.

Tell us about your character in 15 Park Avenue?
Anjali is a physics professor who is always pressurised for time like the quintessential modern urban woman. She is intelligent and compassionate without being sentimental. She is the caregiver in the family but not in a tapasya kind of sacrificing way. She is impatient, short tempered but also very reliable and available 24x7 for her sister and mother.

Are you satisfied with your performance?
I am very critical of my work and can only see the mistakes. Once in a way I like a couple of scenes or am satisfied with some unexpected moments. I work hard and feel very energised when I am working with good actors—like everyone in the cast of 15 Park Avenue. I enjoyed playing the role immensely and worked really hard on my dialogue delivery. In Hindi films all dialogue sounds premeditated and laboured, like dialogue rather than conversation. Post sync sound adds to the artificiality. The challenge for actors, whether in film or theatre, is to speak previously rehearsed lines in manner that gives the illusion of them being spoken for the first time and sounding real. Silent close-ups are far easier to do and critics place a lot of value on them. Directors can get terrific silent close ups even from non-actors. Aparna (Sen) writes lines that are devoid of theatricality and that is a big help.

Is it true that Javed Akhtar wept after he saw the film?
Yes, he sobbed uncontrollably. Aparna was so overwhelmed she just went and hugged him. The producer Bipin Vohra was so thrilled, he said, “I have already got my reward.” Javed loved all the performances and feels my work in 15 Park Avenue is completely different from all the work I have done. The credit is entirely Aparna Sen’s. She is one of the finest directors in the country, an auteur in the true sense of the term. She sparkles with story ideas. I wish I could find the money to help her make all the films she wants to.

That’s what it boils down to finally, doesn’t it? Money?
Money is available. To Bipin Vohra’s credit he has produced 15 Park Avenue with total faith in Aparna and no interference. The real challenge lies in marketing. I am convinced there is an audience for films that do not traverse the beaten track but they need huge publicity and distributors who have the courage to hold on for word-of-mouth publicity to build up. In the present scenario exactly the opposite happens. Yash Chopra doesn’t need huge publicity. He has a fixed audience that will rush in to watch Veer-Zara. A film like Morning Raga needs publicity to coax the audience but doesn’t get it due to budget constraints...and then it ends up being accepted for the Oscar nominations!

What was it like to work with Konkona?
Konkona’s performance is deeply felt and very moving. She is an actor with a very bright future because she has the courage to take on unconventional films without worrying about their commercial value. I love her as my own.