AISHWARYA-FOREVER [dot] COM - Sarkar 2 inspired by Narmada Project

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Sarkar 2 inspired by Narmada Project

by: Subhash K. Jha
- mid-day.com

Sarkar 2 is about a huge project for rural Maharashtra. While Sarkar (Amitabh) is against it, his son Shankar (Abhishek) feels you can’t stop industrial advancement because some people would get displaced, says Ram Gopal Varma.

This is your first issue-based film, inspired by the Narmada project?

It is. But the issue wasn’t forced into the plot. Any man with the power that Sarkar possesses has to tackle issues. These are the new adventures of Sarkar, if we can put it that way.

How much more intense is the interaction between the two Bachchans in Sarkar 2?

There are lots of shared silences between them. The plot line of Sarkar 2 is much more complex; I feel the first part is very simplistic in plot.

Sarkar 2 is about a huge project for rural Maharashtra costing Rs 1,00,000 crore and the various people opposing it. Sarkar (Amitabh Bachchan) is against it because he feels it would displace lots of people.

But his son Shankar (Abhishek) feels you can’t stop industrial advancement because some people would get displaced and affected. Sarkar decides to go along with his son. But the opposition has its own financial gains to think of.

Where does Aishwarya Rai come in?

She plays a ruthless businesswoman, another face of the corporate world. She wants to make money out of any project she touches. While she works only for money; Abhishek’s character believes money must be used for the people’s welfare. Hence they are in a moral conflict. They’re both good people but ideologically opposed.

Abhishek and Aishwarya aren’t related in Sarkar Raj?

Not at all. Aishwarya’s character goes through a metamorphosis. Aishwarya has been an incredible surprise for me. I had seen her films. But I never thought about her calibre as an actress.

To start with, I used her in this role because she’s beautiful and elegant and has a certain presence. And I somewhere had this directorial arrogance that she would fall short of my expectations as an actress.

Once we started working with her, I was shocked. I found her on par with Mr Bachchan. She stood up to him in every scene. I had also heard stories of how long she takes to come on the sets. But she was on the set on the dot whenever she was required. She wasn’t even 10 minutes late. And she came completely prepared.

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