Anuj Saini On ‘Gandhi Godse Ek Yudh’: Rajkumar Santoshi Isn’t Just A Director, He’s A Full-Fledged Film School

Talking to Prateek Sur, Anuj Saini speaks up about the movie, the controversies that the film had to bear with, working with Rajkumar Santoshi and lots more. Excerpts:

How did the film ‘Gandhi Godse’ end up on your plate?

When I moved to Bombay I started off as a junior artiste. After that, I started doing theatre with Rajat Kapoor and Vinay Pathak. I gradually moved towards doing TV commercials and ads. Then I did a lot of music videos. After doing many music videos, one day I got a call from a casting director called Kashyap Chandok. He told me that he was casting for a film to be directed by Rajkumar Santoshi. He wanted me to send my pictures where I looked like someone from the 1940s-50s. Obviously, I didn’t have anything like that to wear. So, I went to a friend’s house. Borrowed some clothes from him, and then clicked some pictures from my phone. They weren’t any professionally shot pictures, but when I sent those to Kashyap and he then presented them to Rajkumar Santoshi, he liked those pictures. He called me for a meeting. He narrated the whole story to me at that meeting, and that’s how he locked me for the part.

Did you know about the entire difference of ideologies between Gandhi and Godse before you signed up for the movie?

We read a lot about the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, since our childhood. But a lot of facts about Nathuram Godse were not available in the public domain. Therefore, people are unaware of his mindset, his thinking and his perspective. So, I wasn’t much aware of what Godse used to think. But yes, I knew a lot about Gandhi. So, while doing the prep for the film, I read a lot about him. Even Rajkumar Santoshi taught us a lot about him. He narrated a lot of stories about Nathuram Godse to us, and that’s how we got to know many more things about his life.

We all are taught Gandhi’s story in our history books but hardly do we get to ever know about Godse’s story. Do you think that has been done intentionally by the governments in power to not let out Godse’s story?

I agree. We have been reading about Gandhi since our school days and right from our childhood, but many people aren’t aware or don’t have enough knowledge about Godse. But I don’t think it’s done intentionally by any governments in power. It was just Rajkumar Santoshi’s vision, and he has just stated the facts. I don’t think it has got anything to do with the government.

Has doing the film changed your perception of either Godse or Gandhi?

To date, right from childhood, I respect Mahatma Gandhi, and his ideologies a lot. Now also I respect his ideologies a lot. He is the father of the nation. About Godse, I didn’t know much about him. So, I would suggest everyone watch the film so that you get to know a lot. So, my ideologies haven’t changed but I have gained a lot of knowledge, especially about Nathuram Godse.

There are some protests as well happening ever since the film’s trailer was released. Do you think people in India nowadays are ready to protest against everything?

Yes, it’s true that there are some protests happening, ever since the film’s trailer was released. But I am not very concerned with that, because once you see the film, you will get to see that we haven’t glorified anyone. In the film, we have just stated the facts. So, nothing has been manipulated. No one has been demeaned or put down. About the protests, well, India is a very emotional country. So am I. Therefore, when any sensitive topic comes up, people protest. But I genuinely believe that one should see the whole content and then take a call. So, I would request everyone to watch the film, and then you would realise that there is nothing in the film to protest about.

How was Rajkumar Santoshi as a director?

Not many people know about this that when Rajkumar Santoshi is directing, and he is narrating the scenes to the actors, then he will enact the entire thing for us. From how to do the action, to what tone to speak in – he does it all and shows it. Thus, it becomes very easy for actors. That way he is one of the best and one of the finest directors we have in the country. He is not just a director, but he is a whole full-fledged film school. Plus, the perfection he works with. He is so particular about everything. Be it the art department, or the makeup department, or the costume department, he is so particular about everything that it was amazing to work with him. I got to learn so much from him, not just about acting but even about things that happen behind the camera as well. Working with him was like a dream come true.

What about the rest of the cast? With whom did you have the maximum scenes?

I have a few scenes with Mahatma Gandhi, who is being played by Deepak Antani. Then I have scenes with Nathuram Godse, who is being played by Chinmay Mandlekar. Then I have a few scenes with Tanisha Santoshi also. Her character’s name is Sushma. It was amazing working with all of them.

Tell us a bit about your character and whom you’re playing in the movie, etc.

The name of my character is Naren, who is a university professor. My love interest in the film is Tanisha, whose character’s name is Sushma. It is a very important character because to an extent it helps in building a relationship or an equation between Nathuram Godse and Mahatma Gandhi. So, it’s a very pivotal character.

What next can we see coming from your end?

After this film, I have already signed one more film directed by Pradeep Kherwar, who has been an associate director with Ram Gopal Varma. Kashika Kapoor will be playing the female lead in the movie. It’s a romantic love story with a social message about women's empowerment. Apart from this, a couple of TV commercials are coming up, one of which is with Janhvi Kapoor. A few music videos are coming up from different music labels like T-Series, Sony and Zee. A lot is in the pipeline, and I am hoping for the best.