Search

FILM INTERVIEW: RANI MUKHERJEE

‘No One Killed Jessica’ Has High Entertainment Value

By: Simran Mody

January 2, 2011

If a movie is anything, it should be entertaining. While social commentary and issue awareness are worthy cinematic themes, the overwhelming masses flock to multiplexes and movie theaters in the name of being entertained. Bollywood actress and one-time Hindi film icon Rani Mukherjee is one such person who believes films should place a high premium on entertainment value, and she says Raj Kumar Gupta’s No One Killed Jessica fits the bill.

Also starring the Filmfare Award-winning actress Vidya Balan, Ms. Mukherjee, who plays an investigative reporter in the film, joined the cast of No One Killed Jessica on the expectation that both the film and her character would actually entertain audiences.

“For me, the criteria was that No One Killed Jessica has to be entertaining. If one has seen the promos, they will come to know that my character in the film is entertaining. There is lot more in the film than just an issue-based story,” Ms. Mukherjee told the press. “When Raj (the film’s director) came to me, my immediate reaction was I will not do the film. ‘How are you going to make it entertaining for the audience?’ was my first question. He answered the question in the script.”

Releasing on January 7th, No One Killed Jessica is based upon the actual chain of events that occurred in 1999, when model Jessica Lall was shot in a Delhi-area nightclub by the son of a Haryana politician, Manu Sharma. With such a serious subject matter, Ms. Mukherjee’s insistence that the film be entertaining makes perfect sense. Yet, just in case she did not make her point clear, Ms. Mukherjee laid it out to the media.

“The medium of cinema is to entertain people. With the term 'entertainment,' I don’t mean the film should have an item number,” she informed the press. “Every film has a different genre, so it requires entertainment in different fashions, like in an action film, one entertains the audience with action; in romantic, with romance; in comedy, with funny moments.”

Gracing 2011 as the first major release of the year, Ms. Mukherjee told reporters, at a press conference on January 1st, that she learned quite a bit through her character, Meera.

“My character is that of a crime reporter. In brief, she portrays the power of media,” Ms. Mukherjee stated to the press. “Working on such an issue is like a learning experience. This film carries a lesson with it. It is based on how media can help them gain justice.”

Speaking of power, Ms. Mukherjee herself appears to be quite powerful in her rendition of a fiery investigative journalist, what with her use of rather strong and heavy words in her interactions with authorities and concerned family members (including Jessica’s sister, Sabrina, who is portrayed by Ms. Balan).

In expecting it to be entertaining enough for audiences to enjoy, Ms. Mukherjee also believes No One Killed Jessica has an important story to tell, albeit properly falling short of being “preachy.”

“To put (a message) … on a film’s shoulder is too much, as cinema is a medium of entertaining people. The moment your film becomes preachy, people are not interested to watch it,” Ms. Mukherjee opined. “But if there is a story that needs to be told and if it is in an entertaining way, I think people like to take it.”

Such mature perspectives are expected to be heard by Ms. Mukherjee, who not only is a 13-year veteran of Bollywood cinema but also a descendant of actors. Oddly enough, Ms. Mukherjee pointed out that her understanding of the way the business operates came into focus only recently.

“From the time I began to now, the only change in me has been that I have become more confident. I was very naïve and innocent before. I have become smarter now, because you have to be smart to be in this industry,” Ms. Mukherjee revealed to reporters. “When I started, I used to get hurt about certain things, but today I have been able to develop a slightly thicker skin than I had. That has been the only change in me.”