Ultimate Bollywood » Bollywood Features » 2008
Interview: Ashok Amritraj
Our very own Raj Rangarajan speaks with the producer of the hip and timely flick The Other End of the Line.
RR: How has your foray from tennis to film making been?
AA: I continue to enjoy playing tennis but now I have fun playing Saturday evenings in my home as a sport with friends and other film industry colleagues.
RR: What triggered the switch from tennis to movies?
AA: In 1975 when I was playing in California the movie bug hit me and in 1981-82, I decided to switch. I had grown up with English movies and Hollywood films. Initially, it was a tough in the movie business but slowly things have worked out.
RR: You have made so many films now. In what way was The Line significant for you?
AA: We have had action movies, comedies, limited budget movies, but what I wanted was a cross-cultural film where we could sort of create a bridge between Asia and the West, and this film has done that. It is multi-cultural and humorous and with movies being a major medium we can create a new awareness for India. When Tracey Jackson came up with the idea 4-5 years ago, we discussed the idea with MGM and soon it was reality.
RR: Now that you have dealt with Indian and foreign actors regularly is there a way to compare their performances from an acting standpoint? Are their work ethics different?
AA: Both film industries – Indian cinema (I wouldn't like to call it Bollywood) and Hollywood – have their plus points: we cannot compare their work ethics, since its like comparing apples and oranges. Both industries are good and run on parallel tracks. From an audience standpoint to writing of scripts to production to even setting up shots, everything is executed differently.
RR: With cross-national trends now in movie making and with some Indian actors being cast in Hollywood or in TV serials, sitcoms and reality shows, from a business standpoint, is a merger of Hollywood and Bollywood a good thing for the film industry?
AA: Within five years I do foresee an investment merger between Hollywood and Indian cinema and it is bound to improve further. There is so much talent on both sides that it will be a natural fit though each set of people has different norms, work ethics and formalities to follow. I hope this will launch a sound platform for Indian talent as well.
RR: What's next on the horizon for you in a cinematic sense?
AA: Street fighters based on a popular video game is being released in February 2009; Dead of Night based on a comic book and a remake of Ten [where Bo Derek debuted in 1979] is on the cards. Commenting on the experience of filming in Mumbai, Director James Dodson says, "I've filmed in Bulgaria, Slovakia, Czech Republic, but nothing prepared me for the hustle and bustle of Mumbai... imagine 22 million people all alive and celebrating life at their loudest…now imagine trying to get them all to stay quiet for 2 minutes so we can shoot an intimate scene." Amritraj adds, "We couldn't have done this film anywhere else... I was so touched at how India opened up her heart to us... and it shows on the screen."
Catch The Other End of the Line, in theaters now.
Raj S. Rangarajan is a New York-based trend writer, reports on the art market, reviews movies, books and plays and has written for publications in the U.S., Canada, Australia and India. He can be reached at raj.rangarajan@gmail.com.
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