How a news is converted into a Breaking News? 
By Bhavna Chopra, April 5, 2007 - 08:50 IST
Believe it or not, It’s Breaking News to hear Vishal Inamdar’s foray into Hindi Cinema!
Well you may ask who Vishal Inamdar? Vishal like many other theatre personalities is not just another stage artiste turned into a methodical screen actor
but is a Theatre director turned into a film maker who is here for a cause. A cause that is more of a passion, a passion that is more of a need, and the need
is nothing more but to propagate good cinema. By good cinema we do not mean offbeat or parallel cinema but films that are sensible, entertaining and at the
same time also introspective along with ones that have a soul aka subject. “I do not want to be a film maker who does a particular genre of films neither
do I want to be a social worker. I want to make all type of films but films that are good, something like Dor and Munnabhai,” informs Vishal who seems
conscious as well as careful while treading into the industry’s arena. Ask him about the sudden shift or shall we say the obvious glamour lure and he says
“Theatre is my first love but my shift towards big screen is to explore the medium as it has always fascinated me. In theatre you cannot change
locations, one cannot experiment much with screenplay and cinematography so I’m fortunate enough to get this opportunity.” sounds all excited Vishal
about his new venture.
And to talk of his venture, his debut film…
‘It’s Breaking News’ may be a hard hitting subject, attempting to project the darker side of a prevalent world of media organization, but is it
really breaking any grounds to understand that today media and media ethics have taken to shoddy ways and is being dealt with as frivolously as our moral
values. If not, then what is it that makes this film any different from the other tried and tested formulas? Years back films like ‘New Delhi Times’
starring Shashi Kapoor and directed by Romesh Sharma proved to be an eye opener and recently, Madhur Bhandarkar’s claim to fame, ‘Page3’, starring
Konkona Sen Sharma, gave a glimpse into the perils of our beloved Glamour Bazaar. But when the two films, Page3 and It’s Breaking News get compared,
Vishal the theatre immigrant into Hindi cinema strongly believes that his film is ‘zaraa hatke’. The film is hatke because it explores a
different world altogether and doesn’t talk of the over hyped filmy duniyaa that people are overdosed with. The film gives an insight into the world
on the other side of the fence. “My film showcases the working of the news organization in an electronic media. And I think audience will be quiet keen
to know how a news is converted into a Breaking News!” believes the director and writer of the story, Mr Vishal Iinamdar.
In theatre you cannot change locations, one cannot experiment much with screenplay and cinematography so
I’m wanted to explore the medium of cinema.
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What made him think of such an unconventional subject…
Vishal takes offence on calling his film an offbeat cinema. ‘No it’s not an offbeat film but a film with a thought provoking subject.’ He was so
perturbed by the famous-infamous Sting Operation and specially a particular episode, where a DIG was shown molesting an aadiwaasi girl that he decided
to make a film reflecting the controversial issue. “The whole episode was quiet vulgar and kept on disturbing me. And to consider the facts there wasn’t
even any follow up on the story elsewhere. I have no clue what happened to the DIG? It made me think that was it just a sensationalized issue or was it jig,
a stint carried out by the organization for the TRP sake. It felt that the whole thing was being staged! If the media is participating in the drama and is
privy to it then it is as good as shooting a Blue film”, feels quiet strongly a definitely irked, Vishal. So does his film It’s Breaking News questions
today’s morality? “Definitely”, he reverts. “It does because today to be corrupt is considered to be practical and the sound of it seems so senseless to me
but sadly we, the people have accepted it pretty easily. Today people who support corruption are accepted and those who oppose it are outcast…”
So hold the thought for it is exactly what his story is all about….
It’s Breaking News revolves around Koel Puri, who plays an over ambitious girl who unknowingly gets caught in the chakravyu of the so called
‘system’. Till the time she is succumbing to its policies, she is applauded but the moment she realizes her moral values and her integration is put to test,
she gets criticized and gets stuck in another ball game altogether. On asking Vishal, what made him choose Koel Puri as the lead protagonist he says, ‘I
had seen Koel Puri’s work in films like ‘White Noise’ and ‘Mixed Doubles’ and quiet liked it. I knew she would be able to carry the role perfectly but was
skeptical on her Hindi speaking skills’. But what you might call fate, Koel was not only comfortable with the language but also had worked as a
Journalist and therefore was well versed with the tricks of the trade. While praising Koel for her dedication and adaptation of the character, Vishal also
gives a special mention to hers and Swati Sen, the victim’s relation in the film. “I think it’s so beautifully portrayed and the end result is what I
completely desired” , exclaims a satisfied Vishal….
Hmmm… But what about his cast and his crew…?
Vishal unlike other debutantes in the field of direction hasn’t explored or experimented much with the narration as he wanted the classic feel to his film
and mainly did not want to disturb the story. Having written the story himself, he roped in his screenplay writer-friend, Jayant Pawar to pen the script,
with which he is quiet content. And talking of dialogues, then Vishal cannot stop singing praises for Sanjay Mone who has been very contemporary in his
approach. “The dialogues are just the style I wanted, Sanjay has perfectly caught the gist of it all. There isn’t any Phule na samaana and heavy
melodramatic lines, the language used is very colloquial,” informs Vishal.
And when it comes to acting, his cast is D-force behind. From Atul Parchure to Vinay Apte, Harsh Chayya to Abhimanyu Singh, they all belong to theatre
background and have sound knowledge of acting. In the end he says that all of them from his cast to crew have contributed in shaping the film and made a film
that they call it their own.
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If the media is participating in the drama and is privy to it then it is as good as shooting a Blue
film
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Any memorable incident that he remembers…
A studio was built to replicate the News Agency, the problem was that this open air studio did not pose any problems or grief when it was being built,
neither did it look problematic at the time of final location. “But during the shoot especially in the morning, God knows from where this huge swam of
flies would surround us and make us take a single take at least 8-10 times. It was such a mess that we even named our menu as “Dal makhi- nee… and Dal Fly”
recalls Vishal laughing over the hilarious and a helpless situation he had faced.
And the final note would be…
This classical music lover, who if given a chance would like to direct Lage Raho Munnabhai feels that today the audience has become very smart and is
accepting a diverse variety of subjects, as long as the film is good and sensible, it does not matter whether it is commercial or has big stars. And coming
back to It’s Breaking News, the aim is not to show media a mirror and point at the losing ethic scenario but to prove that in a given situation, it is
after all individual morals that come to play. His film is not giving gyaan, neither a solution but is showing Vishal’s perspective, his ideology to a
given circumstance taking the protagonist as a role model.
On asking what the USP of the film is, Vishal feels it is up to the audience to decide but his USP is his confidence.
Let’s hope his film is a reflection of this attitude he so confidently sports.
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Koel Puri’s Breaking News
