Neena Gupta & Vikas Khanna On The Last Colour & Making Films In Unrest
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Chef-Producer-Filmmaker Vikas Khanna made his feature debut as a director with ‘The Last Colour’ that stars Neena Gupta in the lead. The film, that is set in the heart of India, is close to both the actor and the filmmaker. Both Vikas and Neena joined Koimoi exclusively and spoke to us about their movie. While on that, they shed light on making content amid the current times of unrest. Read on to see what both of them have to say.
When asked if the unrest holds them back from showcasing the flaws in our society, ‘The Last Colour’ writer-director Vikas expressed how no country is perfect. Neena Gupta, on the other hand, feels that people make stories or work towards something they strongly feel about.
Vikas Khanna said, “There are flaws in every society, which society is perfect? Is America perfect? It is constantly working towards progress. It is the most progressed innovative country, but is it perfect? No. Progressing nation means they are alive. ‘The Last Colour’ is not just highlighting the fractures of society; it is highlighting the success of an educated girl. It is a celebration of quality, a tradition which is very inclusive.”
Neena Gupta added, “I think everyone is touched by something in their lives. Like I get very affected when I see the condition of women in my country. So that touches me and I want to do something about it. So every human being has a thing, you like or dislike something, then there are some who want to do something about it. Sonu Sood has done something about it. Vikas made a film about something that touched his heart. So that happens to everybody.”
Talking about the film Neena Gupta revealed that ‘The Last Colour’ is very close to her heart. She said, “Well this film is very close to my heart. One thing that I am very happy about is that fact that people will see it on the big screen. But I am also nervous, nervous not about whether people will like it or not, I am sure whosoever goes to see it will like it. I am nervous because of the pandemic. I hope more and more people g and watch it. I am very excited.”
Vikas Khanna, on the other hand, has a fun story to tell. The filmmaker expressed how nervous he was before approaching Neena Gupta. He even paid a visit to the Kashi Viswanathan Temple. Khanna said, “My meeting with Neena ma’am was for an hour or so, but my preparation was huge. I cannot be that lame, that I convince her to do the film and I don’t even have a team. So I had my co-director with me, and we had a full production unit on sets in Varanasi. Anupam Ji had told me that Neena ma’am is very instinctive, the moment she feels something has gravity, she is going to jump into it. She is like yes or no.”
Vikas Khanna added, “And I am afraid of people who deal in yes and nos, who are too honest. So before I messaged her, the preparation took the life out of me. She doesn’t know, but I visited the Kashi Vishwanath temple before approaching her.”
