Directed by Aparna Sen, ‘The Rapist’ narrates the trauma of a sexual assault victim. The film had its Indian premiere at the International Film Festival of Kerala recently.
Directed by Aparna Sen, ‘The Rapist’ narrates the trauma of a sexual assault victim. The film had its Indian premiere at the International Film Festival of Kerala recently.
“Some movies just happen and rapist was one of them,” says Arjun Rampal. The film, directed by National Award winner Aparna Sen, recently had its Indian premiere at IFFK 2022 in Thiruvananthapuram. A gripping drama following the life of an academic Naina (Konkana Sen Sharma) who survives a brutal sexual assault, the film had its world premiere earlier at the 6th Busan International Film Festival, where it eventually won the prestigious Kim Jacques Award.
The story explores how the gruesome incident changed the lives of three people: Naina, a professor of criminology; her husband Aftab Malik (Arjun Rampal), also a professor; and Prasad Singh (Tanmay Dhananiya) who has been convicted for the crime. When Naina, who has been dealing with physical and emotional trauma, decides to understand how Prasad’s mindset works, her relationship with Aftab takes a turn for the worse.
In a telephonic interview, Arjun spoke at length about his journey with the project. “Aparna ma’am has adopted a different approach to a subject that has become pervasive in our society. She has handled it with such sensitivity that she takes the audience by what happens after the incident. The characters The emotional trajectory of the film is bang on; I hope it makes people realize that it is the worst thing to do to someone,” he says.
The model-turned-actor says he was surprised when he got the role. “I asked myself, ‘Am I really working with Aparna Sen?’ She’s such a beautiful person, and I think she must have felt the same way about me! We had talked about several other projects many times before that never materialised, so I wanted to work with her. Me Mentor Ashok Mehta used to say that I should do at least one film with him.
getting close to the character and fixing it
Arjun further says that Aparna’s characters are not fictional or superficial at any point: “I just love her heart… you just have to be there. Once she took me through the script, she Asked for my input on enhancing the character and how I would feel in certain situations. She went back and rewrote a lot; she did it with every character I believed in.”
Arjun Rampal and Konkona Sen Sharma in a still from rapist
, photo credit: special arrangement
The actors also went through a workshop before shooting. “I had never met Konk (Konkona) nor had I ever spoken to her before. We didn’t have any friendship before. But in the film, we were playing the role of a husband and wife who share such a delightful bond. So, in the workshop we sat and talked about each other, did some scenes, did some exercise, meditated… and a lovely friendship organically developed that brought us comfort,” he explains.
Produced by Applause Entertainment in association with Quest Films Pvt Ltd, the film was shot in Delhi over 27 days, that too during the short window between the first and second wave of the pandemic. “There was tremendous pressure on all of us… cast, crew, producers. Aparna ma’am was working 14 hours a day on some special occasions. She is this lioness! I haven’t seen the full movie yet, and can’t be in Busan for the premiere. But just before the awards were announced, I sent him a message, ‘Our film is going to win,’ and it just happened. There is a lot of purity, integrity and honesty in the effort he has put in.”
acting process and coming into your own
Arjun also elaborated on how each actor approached their roles. “It is a very realistic film and we all had our own process to reach the required intensity and keep it authentic. In my case, I usually pace myself and think about what to do before shooting. I believe that as long as I am honest with myself, I am in the right zone. Tanmay got into the character’s skin by losing weight and living in the slum where his character belongs. He didn’t meet us because Aparna ma’am didn’t want him to be friends with us. As far as Konkona is concerned, she probably thinks through the scenes in her head a million times; By the time she’s on set, she’s like, ‘Please finish this part, I’m going to die!’
But did he ever get scared of working with a brilliant actor like him? “I’ve never been afraid of anyone in my life! (laughs) I think everyone is beautiful and there is no reason to be afraid. An actor means to care, love, give and share; Only when it doesn’t, I am sure to be disappointed. Luckily, I have worked with such good actors that I am not scared,” says Arjun.
Actor, who made his debut with Affection, romance and love (2001), has come into its own over the years, losing the image of just being a pretty face. He received the National Award for his performance in rock on!! (2008) and has been praised for his other performances in films such as The Last Lear, Politics, Incarceration, D-Day, Story 2 And Father,
last seen nail polishArjun says he tries not to be swayed by the lack of good roles or the box-office fortunes of his films. “If you think like this you get depressed. What you get is what you get, that is the truth. I am ready to embrace it and move on. The beauty of my profession is that every film, which is a journey, It’s unique. You try to make every experience unbelievable. Sometimes a lot of such people come together and the whole journey becomes special.”
His upcoming projects are films like dhakadi With Kangana Ranaut, T That battle of Bhima Koregaonperiod war drama, three monkeys Web-series, directed by Abbas-Mustan Return,