Konkona Sen Sharma on going from Life in a Metro to Metro In Dino: ‘I knew Irrfan isn't going to be there, that broke my heart'
It helped that Konkona was there too. Ever since her Hindi film debut in 2005, the actor has represented the modern young Indian woman, who relocates to Mumbai in order to chase work, freedom, and identity. Whether it's Madhur Bhandarkar's Page 3 (2006), Life… in a Metro, Ayan Mukerji's Wake Up Sid (2009) or Zoya Akhtar's Luck By Chance (2009), Konkona was navigating Mumbai as cluelessly and adventurously as a lot of us.
Her real life also reflected her reel life, as Konkona moved to Mumbai from her hometown Kolkata in mid-2000s to pursue a career in movies. 'I really feel Mumbai is my home now. I've lived here for 20 years. It's a city, which like many big cities, has opened its arms to so many migrants from all walks of life. There are so many people here from outside here,' she tells SCREEN in an exclusive interview.
Konkona is still trying to fit into Mumbai and make space for herself in the city, but she's at peace with that process now. 'Being an outsider gives a very unique and interesting perspective. It allows you to have some objectivity. And I enjoy being an outsider a little bit. The struggle to belong is a part of the human condition. You feel like you want to belong, you struggle to fit in to belong, and sometimes you don't want to belong to certain things. It's a way of expressing and identifying yourself,' she explains.
Konkona is the only actor who's made it to Metro… In Dino, Basu's spiritual sequel to Life.. in a Metro. She wasn't surprised because going by Basu's impromptu style of working, she wasn't too clued in with the rest of the cast both the times. 'I have to say, I didn't really know very much, the first time around and the second time around also. There's not that much interaction between the four stories,' she reasons.
But Konkona was aware the one actor who would definitely not be in the follow-up was her co-star from the first one, Irrfan, who in fact gave Basu the idea to make a spiritual sequel. 'I just knew Anurag is making this, so that's fine, I don't need to know anything else. In that sense, I didn't know who else is there. I just knew Irrfan is not going to be there this time, and that broke my heart,' she confesses.
Konkona admits she missed working with Basu, despite his eccentric style of filmmaking. 'You can be very organized, you can have a hard-bound script, you can have all systems working in place. But that doesn't ensure a good film. It's the creativity, the artistry, the craft, and all of that is there in spades, where Anurag is concerned,' she says.
'I've been shooting for 20 years plus. In today's day and age, when you're shooting, very often, you're working here and the video village is there. Often, even your DOP (Director of Photography) is not operating close to you. You feel alone. But in this case, the director and DOP are right behind the camera with you, so it's instant communication, and you feel supported,' points out Konkona.
Basu began writing Metro… In Dino with Konkona and Pankaj Tripathi's track, out of the four tracks featuring Anupam Kher-Neena Gupta, Ali Fazal-Fatima Sana Shaikh, and Aditya Roy Kapur-Sara Ali Khan. So he always had Konkona in mind for the part, but admits it was different directing her this time, since she was now also an established filmmaker.
'I was directing a director. The first two days, I asked Koko, 'Frame, all okay?' And I love her work as a director. So when you have respect for someone as a director, then you're completely nervous because there's another director on set,' says Basu, only for Konkona to dismiss him promptly. 'Don't believe him at all! I didn't do anything, I didn't say anything. There's nothing like that,' she says.
Konkona, who turned director with A Death in the Gunj in 2016, followed it up with another critically acclaimed directorial, The Mirror, a segment in the 2023 Netflix India anthology Lust Stories 2. But unlike Anurag, she's a meticulous director, who has everything from the script, shot breakdown to workshops and rehearsals in place before she goes to set.
'Anurag is such a creative person, whether it's singing, dancing, acting, writing, or directing. He responds to the stimuli around him. When I'm directing, that's very difficult to do. I'm very scared because I'm not that experienced. I keep everything ready because I have to be prepared. Anurag is a visionary so not only him, but also everyone around him have the confidence that he'd pull it off,' says Konkona.
But Basu doesn't mind giving some dialogues to Konkona in advance. He explains, 'Koko gets upset if I don't give her dialogues in advance. She has a problem. She still gets stuck in Bengali Hindi, between 'ki' and 'ka.' So I know I have to help her there a bit,' says Basu, much to Konkona's embarrassment.
'I've tried to blackmail, scold, and beg Anurag to give me the lines in advance,' says Konkona, laughing. That was the most crucial for her in a scene she had to do with Neena Gupta, who plays her mother in Metro… In Dino. 'I can see her scared even in a long shot. Koko's face is so transparent, which also makes her such a good actor. Whenever she's feeling upset and trying to hide it, that never happens,' says Basu.
Also Read — 'Anurag Basu wanted me to compose for Saaya too, but Mahesh Bhatt didn't want to bet on a rank newcomer': Pritam
Konkona agrees and says, 'I also feel Anurag really understands his actors well. There are things which I'm feeling but I'm not aware of, and he'd say, 'Feeling like this, na?' He can read my face. I'm trying to be well-behaved, but he can tell what's happening inside my head also. Now, what to do?'
Metro… In Dino releases in cinemas on July 4.
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