As Raajneeti turns 15 today, director Prakash Jha confirms Raajneeti 2 is in the works, script and cast being finalised!

Hindustan Times

4 days ago

Filmmaker Prakash Jha's Raajneeti (2010) earned cult status due to the storyline, a huge star cast and a successful soundtrack. The film, which clocks 15 years today, was believed to be a modern adaptation of the Mahabharata, starring Ranbir Kapoor (reluctant Arjun), Ajay Devgn (cursed Karna), Nana Patekar (the knowing Krishna), Katrina Kaif (victimised Draupadi), Arjun Rampal (golden hearted Bhima), Manoj Bajpayee (stubborn Duryodhana), Sarah Thompson (Subhadra) and Naseeruddin Shah (the guilty God).
Speaking to us as the film achieves the 15-year milestone, Prakash confirms that a sequel to Raajneeti is in the works. 'Raajneeti (politics) ki yatra toh anvarat (constant) hai, chalti hi rehti hai! There's always been a plan for Raajneeti 2. While there is nothing concrete in terms of casting and shooting yet, I am currently working on it,' says the director.
The film's pre-production went on for a year. 'We cast 8,000 actors for an authentic crowd scene, which was quite a task,' says Prakash.
Sharing how he managed to put such a big star cast together, he adds, 'The good thing about casting was that whoever we approached, liked the script and came on board. They felt challenged to perform well. People say it was a commercial success. For me, Damul (1984), Mritudand (1997), Gangajal (2003), Apaharan (2005) or Satyagraha (2013) are just films. But, it feels nice when people talk about them.'
The movie had a hit soundtrack, featuring four composers — late Aadesh Shrivastava, Pritam, Shantanu Moitra and Wayne Sharpe, with lyrics penned by Gulzar, Irshad Kamil, Sameer and Swanand Kirkire.
Prakash shares that Aadesh came up with the song Mora Piya Mose Bolat Naahin 'much earlier' during a creative sitting and it perfectly fit the situation in the film. He adds, 'He sang it beautifully, too.'
Singer Kavita Seth, who also sang the song, says, 'I took extra time to prepare the song, as the situation was intense. It is one of my biggest hits till date. It's a part of my set list at all the concerts along with Ek Tara (Wake Up Sid).' Bheegi Se also became a big hit.
Separate helicopters were needed for different characters. So, to save the cost, one helicopter was painted in two colours on either sides. It was shot from different angles for different scenes.
Katrina Kaif, Ranbir Kapoor and Arjun Rampal became friends during the film's shoot. They would often be seen together playing cricket and savouring delicacies together. They named the trio BhoPALS.
The film's assistant director Ritam Srivastava, director of OTT series like Rafuchakkar (2023) and Raktanchal (2020), tells us, 'Ranbir Kapoor was very excited when he shared the screen with Manoj Bajpayee. It was also the first time that Ranbir used a pistol in a scene.'
Manoj's chase sequence was shot over three days at multiple locations in Bhopal. Ritam shares: 'While doing the chase, Ajay Devgn jokingly said: 'Teen din ho gaye seene mein goli lagey, ab to marr jaao'.'
In 2016, Prakash Jha authored book Raajneeti - the Film and Beyond which has lot about the making of the film. Katrina, who was seen in a saree in most parts of the film, was apparently not sure about her look. The book mentions: She would ask the Director of Photography Sachin Krishn, 'Will I look beautiful?'. He would say, 'You would look real'.
For authenticity, Prakash Jha refused 'good quality' flags for the shoot just a day before filming. So, 12,000 party flags were printed with cheap material, shabby printing and cheap technology, and were aged.
Costume designer Priyanka Mundada used 40,000 metres to dress 8,000 cast members. Tea was used to age the dresses. To accommodate them, hotels, guest houses and lodges were booked in Bhopal. Extra bathrooms were constructed for junior artistes. Caterers were called from Mumbai.
Cross-country collaboration was done to create 'international, yet Indian music'. New York-based musician Wayne Sharpe, who also composed the score of the film, created western melodies and then recorded with Indian sounds. He recorded melodies in his studio in the US, the orchestra was recorded in Prague, Czech Republic, while the Indian instruments were recorded in Mumbai.