Ram Gopal Varma known for some memorable movies like ‘Satya’, ‘Rangeela’, ‘Company’, ‘Sarkar’ among others is often known for his style of taking close-up shots of actors. Many of his movies zoom in straight into an actor’s face and most actors get a lot of praise for their performance in his movies. During a chat with ETimes, Ram Gopal Varma said that he has different ways of getting a performance from an actor who may not be good enough. However, there are some actors like Nana Patekar or Amitabh Bachchan who have gone beyond what he expected out of them.
When pointed out to RGV as to why he sometimes uses so many pauses at the most important junctures in his movies, he laughed and said, “That could be one of my best techniques of getting a performance. Like Katrina Kaif when she came new and I cast her in Sarkar.”
He added, “She had no clue about anything as she was so new. Both Abhishek and Amitabh asked me. In this kind of a film, how will Katrina fit in? I said, that’s the point. Because she’s such an outsider in the gritty atmosphere of Sarkar. I said, that’s the reason, you know. And then Abhishek said, how will you get a performance out of her? I said, I won’t have your close-up. I’ll have only her close-up”
RGV further recalled a scene and said, “There is a scene in the film where they are sitting on the sofa and she tells Abhishek to choose between her and his family. Abhishek then decides to choose his family. What I did was, I put a camera in the direction of Abhishek. And close-up of Katrina. And I told her, ‘Katrina, forget it. If you don’t remember the dialogue. You just wait. Drink water. Then you’ll be thinking about it. And they’ll keep on prompting. Try to say it whenever you remember the dialogue. If you still don’t get it, have another sip of water. And Abhishek was wondering what the f**k is going on,” laughed Ram Gopal Varma and further elaborated, “And then I cut! I cut it as if the discussion happened for a long time. And I only showed the highlights of whatever the scene is. So, she came across as a fantastic actor. Because even in real life. If you want to say something, and not able to tell something. You’ll take some time. You’ll have a sip of water. And then you’ll come back. And the expressions will change. Without any linear kind of progression.”
Ram Gopal Varma laughed as he described this incident at length. He further added, this doesn’t mean that most of his actors perform well just because of his direction. “Many times I’ve had actors. Who take it far beyond what I could. For example, Nana Patekar in ‘The Attacks of 26/11’. I think he’s gone far beyond my direction or expectations. Bachchan also does that.”
