Anant Mahadevan: 'Gaur Hari Dastan' is a metaphor for all those who struggle to keep the truth alive

Anant Mahadevan entered the film industry in the 1980’s and has created a niche for himself in the past two and half decades. From being a well known face in films like ‘Baazigar’ as well as TV to a National Award winning screenplay writer, Anant dons caps of various talents perfectly.

The multi talented star is now preparing for his upcoming directorial venture ‘Gaur Hari Dastan’ starring Vinay Pathak, Konkana Sen Sharma and Ranveer Shorey. In an exclusive interview with IBNLive.com, Anant Mahadevan talks about his upcoming film, a biopic on Oriya freedom fighter Gaur Hari Das and the concept behind it.

According to Mahadevan it’s the pain and humiliation suffered by Gaur Hari that motivated him to make the film. He says, “The film story is based on the real life Gandhian freedom fighter Gaur Hari, who fought the Indian bureaucracy for 30 years to claim his rights. It’s more than underlining the working of Indian system; it’s about the struggle on a common man for his identity.”

He further adds that the film highlights the irony of Hari’s life. “How a man who fought for a dream of free nation, never really fulfilled that dream. After the British rule, the Indian bureaucracy ruled his life. And all he was left with was a fight till the end of his time”

On casting such a polished starcast, Anant says that he wanted a starcast that knew what they were doing perfectly without overpowering the script. “Vinay was chosen for the lead because he has a certain ‘common-ness’ about him that made the character real. He is a brilliant actor because he knows that a character is always bigger than the actor”.

Anant feels that Pathak doesn’t have the tag of a superstar behind him so it was easy for him to blend in with Hari. About Konkana, Anant says that the actress has a depth that no one else in the industry can match. “I wanted an actor who could register every nuance of a 45- 50 year old woman effortlessly and Konkana seemed the right choice.”

When asked whether winning the National award motivated him to make films with a common man’s narrative he said, “The concept of ‘common man’s narrative’ is way beyond getting motivation from an award. An award is a token of appreciation of your work, after it has been done; a narrative is your work. If I’m getting award for one man’s narrative in one film, it might happen that I won’t be able to justify that narrative in my next film, but this doesn’t mean I’ll get demotivated.

Anant feels that he aims for much higher skies for his films. “I want my movies to stretch beyond all this. I want my work to cross all boundaries and resonate from every corners of the world. I want my cinema to be called a part of world cinema.”

On the recent ‘crore club’ trend Mahadevan comments, “People in India go to a movie hall to see a star. The recent box office collections prove that ‘star syndrome’ is quite prevalent here. In recent times audience have become undemanding and drugged.” He feels that now is the time when entertainment should get more stimulating. According to him, the need of the hour is to encourage films that provide good concept and storyline and not just a circus, to make films that stay with the audience after exiting the theatre.

According to Anant Mahadevan’s ‘Gaur Hari Dastan’ is a story of each one us who are there fighting for truth. The story is a metaphor that fits perfectly in the current scenario, for all those who support the

truth. The film which has won accolades in various Internationl film festivals is all set to release on August 7.