Exclusive: Stories like Bhaag Milkha Bhaag don't fade, they mature with time, says Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra

Time of India

7 days ago

Director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
As
Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
turns 12, director
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
looks back at the film's journey, relevance and longevity in an exclusive conversation with Bombay Times.
'I grew up in Delhi idolising Milkha Singh, Dara Singh and Dhyan Chand. They were our Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. Milkhaji didn't have shoes at one point, so he ran barefoot. I identified with it because our whole generation grew up without having proper facilities'
What makes Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (BMB) relevant even today?
Some stories don't fade out. They mature with time. Samay ke saath aur gaadha ho jata hai. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag is one of them. The story is timeless not topical, so it does not lose its relevance with time.
I always wanted to tell a story weaved around the partition of the country and in Milkha Singh's biography, I found that. Besides being the first biopic made on a sportsman in our country, there were two tracks in the film. One was Milkha Singh's journey, and the other was one of the most seminal point in modern Indian history -- the partition of India. The plot and the character are intertwined in each other. They coexist because of each other.
I am glad it's re-releasing in theatres on August 8. Certain films are meant for the big screen. We should develop a culture of revisiting our classics. Not just for business, but legacy. That's more important for me.
Why did you want to tell a story that was woven around the Partition?
The partition is a seminal point because millions were celebrating the independence of the country, and millions were suffering the partition.
I was born in the 60s. I grew up listening to both horrific and beautiful stories of partition. They left an indelible mark on me. When I entered college, we shifted to a colony in Delhi which was given to refugees of partition, and they rebuilt their lives from scratch there. Everybody had come from Pakistan there.
I used to hear their stories of how they loved their land. Vatan aur desh mein farak hota hai (sentimentally).
A Sindhi will consider Sindh as his land. A Punjabi will consider Punjab as his vatan and three-fourth of Punjab is in Pakistan. Borderline politics is another thing. I see myself through the lens of human beings. I don't see it from the lens of aaj kal kya ho raha hai, log kya soch rahe hain. I am drawn to common man. Ek aam aadmi kya kar raha hai, kya soch raha hai, uske sukh-dukh kya hai. What moves them is very important for me.
As a filmmaker, you get to choose your gaze and mine is human.
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra and Farhan Akhtar on set of Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
While the story belongs to Milkha Singh, it also resonates with your past. Tell us about that.
It is a story of have-nots. Milkha had nothing to lose. When you don't come from privilege and you make it, that resonates with me a lot. I grew up in Delhi. I used to swim and play cricket in the National Stadium. Before my time, Milkha Singh, Dara Singh and Dhyan Chand used to practise there.
We grew up on these three names. They were our Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. Milkhaji didn't have shoes at one point and ran barefoot.
We all identified with it because our entire generation grew up without having proper facilities. I come from a lower middle-class family. I could relate to characters who were thrilled when they got to wear a Team India blazer like Milkhaji did. He won his first race for a glass of milk and two eggs.
He didn't win to make a world record or become a great athlete. I have practiced swimming because at the end of the practice section, we would get a glass of warm milk with Horlicks and two boiled eggs. It was great breakfast and that too for free. This is everybody's story in India.
The late Milkha Singh on sets of Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
At three hours and six minutes, the film's duration was much talked about. In hindsight, would you make any changes in terms of length or otherwise?
It was a difficult story to mount because everyone said where is the romance, hero is just running.
Where is the action? Athletics kaun dekhta hai India mein? Saare sawaal sahi thay. But it was important for me to prove the detractors wrong. If I didn't believe in what I made, I wouldn't make it in the first place. Pacing derives its essence from the story and how it is told. A length of the film is the length that works. A two-hour film can feel long and a three-and-a-half-hour film, can seem perfect.
Look at the modern-day epics like Avatar, Oppenheimer, Brutalist (3 hours, 34 minutes).
Lagaan, was longer than these at 3 hours and 44 minutes. When you're enjoying a movie, you are completely lost in that world and time flies. This whole length concern came from distribution. It never came from the audience or critics. It was a distribution thing because they believed they could pack one more show if a film is shorter. Longer films mean lesser shows and perhaps lesser business, but they are totally mistaken.
All these films including Milkha dismissed that notion.
Director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, still from Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
The casting of the film was one of its highlights. Take us through that process.
If you cast the right actor for the right job, that's half the battle won. Every journalist has asked me if
Farhan Akhtar
was my first choice to play Milkha. He was the right choice. Let me put it like that. His eyes reminded me of Milka sir. They have the same intensity and depth, the way he looks at you. Farhan doesn't have many lines in the film because his eyes speak.
We bumped into the club almost every day. I knew he's an athlete. He's good on the treadmill. He's good at sports. He's kept himself fit. So, the getting into shape part I knew he will cross the bridge.
It was painful for him to go through that body transformation process in 18 months, but pain is a part of sports.
Rishabh Pant
met with an accident. He was out of action for a year. Look at the way he's bounced back. It's not a miracle. It's a story of inspiration and determination.
When you're playing a character like Milkha, something intangible happens to you. Farhan didn't play the role. He became the part which is my brief to all my actors. Don't play yourself. Play the part.
'Sonam only charged Rs11 for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag'
'When I approached
Sonam Kapoor
, I clearly told her she would appear for 15 minutes. Her character changes Milkha's life by making him question his choices. I told her she won't appear later in the film, and I don't know if she will appear in the trailer or the poster. She heard me out and said the film must be made, and she will charge me a bomb for it. I told her bata dena fees, koshish karenge. Her contract came, and she had only charged me `11 as a shagun. She brought so much dignity to the part.
'