Baramulla was released on November 7 on Netflix with extremely positive reviews. The one-of-its-kind supernatural film set in Kashmir has been loved for its treatment, performances, cinematography and the unpredictable climax. In an exclusive interview with Bollywood Hungama, its director Aditya Suhas Jambhale spoke about the film, how it was made and a lot more.
EXCLUSIVE: Aditya Suhas Jambhale reveals Baramulla’s shoot was one of the TOUGHEST shoots in HISTORY: “BIGGEST of actors refused to do the film as they thought the topic was sensitive…every day, 5-6 crew members would be absent due to HYPOTHERMIA attacks; production team SCREAMED at me for shooting intro scene SECRETLY”
How has the weekend been for you?
It’s been crazy. I got so many calls and messages. I am so bad with all the social stuff and I struggle a lot (laughs).
Who all from the industry reached out?
A lot of producers contacted me. Anand Tiwari reached out to me. I got a call from Kunal Ganjawalla. He was zapped. A lot of people are literally contacting me the moment they get done watching the film. Hence, these calls go on for 20 minutes to 30 minutes, as so many of their emotions are coming out (smiles). Many told me that they had an assumption about the genre and the film and those assumptions got shattered.
At the beginning of the film, Baramulla is mentioned in English while Varmul is mentioned in Hindi. What was the idea behind it? Any other filmmaker would have mentioned Baramulla in Hindi as well…
Varmul is the colloquial name of Baramulla. The original name of the place is Varaha Mul. In the slang language, it became Varmul. Even today, if you go to the villages in Kashmir, they don’t address the place like Baramulla. They say, ‘Varmul jaana hai’. I was intrigued by it and felt that it would be a great way to give Varmul its due.
What was the original cast of the film?
After we locked the script, the first name that came to mind was Manav Kaul. I had seen his work in theatre and drama as well. I was a fan. Hence, I felt that it would be interesting to see him bulking up his body and doing action.
It was a tough film. Everyone predicted that it would require shooting for 60-70 days. Hence, to get that kind of budget in order to shoot for so many days, we needed a bigger name. So, initially, we tried to get an A-lister on board. I would definitely not like to take names, but I narrated Baramulla to some of the biggest actors. Everybody loved it, but they declined. They were worried since Kashmir is a sensitive topic. Some other factors also came into play as the agencies got involved. For 3 ½ months, I was only narrating to various actors and I was getting tense as this was my first film.
This is when I put forth the idea that we should cast Manav. It was critical for Jio Studios to back us with his casting and thankfully, they did. Then I approached Manav. I sent him the script in the morning and the same day, he gave his nod in the evening. He told me, ‘Let’s do this. I was born in Baramulla. This is a role that any actor would want to do’. That he was born in Baramulla also motivated me to sign him, as I realized that I’d get an amazing cultural chemistry that I would get with the film and script.
And what about Bhasha Sumbli?
She had just delivered a baby a month or two before the filming. We were in the process of casting someone else. But it was not working and the topic veered towards legal aspects. This is not a film where the actor can demand a lot, not in terms of acting fees or entourage, since we were shooting in minus 8 degrees. Hence, the producers were going back and forth with different actors. Meanwhile, Bhasha is a Kashmiri and on Aditya (Dhar)’s suggestion, I had approached her to understand certain aspects of the culture. Aditya asked me if Bhasha could be cast and I realized that it was a good idea. She was in Jammu and she flew down with her baby and husband to meet us. It was a shock to her when we told her that we plan to cast her, provided she was ready. We were just a few days away from the shoot; it was a bizarre scenario!
Thankfully, she agreed. Then she shed 13 kgs, that too, after pregnancy and was also okay shooting in minus 15 degrees.
Sanjay Suri’s lovely cameo was a surprise. I guess he’s also a Kashmiri…
Yes. He lost his father in the Valley. Me and my writer friend Monal Thaakar were very keen to get Sanjay sir. We narrated the whole story to him. He was so generous that he told me, ‘Don’t ask me anything. I’ll come and shoot. Don’t worry about anything else.’
You shot the film in just 23 days, that too in challenging conditions. Also, you had a limited budget. How did you manage?
My crew members were having hypothermia attacks every day due to the sub-zero temperatures. I never shot with the entire crew a single day out of those 23 days. Every day, I would get a list informing me that 6-7 members won’t report to the set as they were sick. Some of them were a part of the direction team. There were days when my DA (Director’s Assistant) was not there, who was like my right hand.
Also, as a director, I faced a challenge as I couldn’t shoot enough. There was much more to the film. The scene where the kid goes on the bridge and touches the tulip was supposed to be a frozen lake sequence. I was literally going to shoot inside the frozen lake! So, it was a heavy-treatment-oriented, ambitious project.
The other thing that happened was we didn’t have time. A fear during such times is that you might have to skip shooting some sequence. In such a scenario, I shot how Quentin Taraninto shot a film like Reservoir Dogs, that is, you shoot quickly. I told my producer that I need a Steadicam operator every day, no matter what my budget was. It saves time as one doesn’t need to put a camera on the tripod or jimmy jib. I come from an engineering background. I used that training and also did a lot of jugaad to pull off the film!
Trust me, every scene had just 2-3 takes. We didn’t have the luxury to go for more than 3 takes. Of course, there was a greed that I could do better with these actors. But at the same time, I was also apprehensive as I might lose the next scene, which was even more crucial than the current scene. Every day was heartbreaking because of this factor.
There was a snowstorm in Pahalgam. My crew had to walk 2 kms in 3 feet of snow from the hotel as roads were blocked completely. My set got drenched in Aru Valley. I had to change location 4 hours before the shoot. The Army helped us in going down. An earthquake also happened while we were shooting!
The first ever scene of the film was shot secretly. The production team refused as it was on a height. It was genuinely difficult for them to reach, as it was not possible to carry generators there. Only 6 people went to shoot – me, the DOP, gaffer, actor and two more crew members. We climbed up a hill where the temperature dropped even more, that too by minus 5 degrees. But we were clear that we wanted to shoot at that place, come what may. The rest of the 100 people in the team were in the hotel. They had no idea that we had gone to shoot. We returned and informed the production team. Everybody started to scream at me and I got the calls from the producer (laughs).
Why did they scream at you?
Because I went out of the line. It was a risk to take 5-6 people in this way. But that was the only way to do it. The good thing was that locals were involved and they knew their terrain very well. They used to tell me, ‘Ho jayega. Tension mat lo’! That comforted us. The child actor in that scene had no fear. He could climb up and down even 10 times, as they probably did it every day.
I was influenced by Anurag Kashyap as well. I had also made a short film with limited resources. Nevertheless, shooting the film in 23 days was a havoc. I always keep saying that it was one of the toughest shoots ever in the history of Kashmir.
My daughter was born just 7 days before the film went on floors. She was born prematurely by 20 days. I was worried about it as well. I could spend time with her for only 6 days. I used to wonder, “She would grow up and learn that her father was absent during her birth. I would tell her that I was not with her as I was away shooting Baramulla. What if she sees the film and says, ‘Kya gandi picture banayi papa ne’”! Every night, after finishing the shoot for the day, I used to get this thought and it used to scare me.
First Baramulla and then Article 370 (2024). What next?
I am working on a revenge action and dark comedy. Again, I am dabbling in genres that I have not done before. With horror, I was clear what I didn’t want to do and wanted to create something new in that genre. Similarly, I want to do the same with the (aforementioned) two genres as well. One of them is pretty much in the talks right now and you’ll soon hear an announcement.
More Pages: Baramulla Box Office Collection , Baramulla Movie Review
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