For the first time, I threw my script away: Rituparno Ghosh

Rituparno Ghosh shares his on-screen Tagore connection as his readies to shoot his documentary on the Bard
His love for Tagore is well-known and Rituparno Ghosh can go on exploring the life and times of the great Bard of Bengal. Scheduled for the principal shooting in December, Rituparno is well into his pre production at various levels. It is during one such occasion while Rituparno is experimentating with the desired looks of the actor-characters alongwith costume designer Darshan Shah that we chance upon two Tagores ��������� young and old ��������� to be played by Samadarshi Dutta and Sanjoy Nag respectively.Rituparno looks visibly distracted.
���������I realize that the more I work on this documentary of Rabindranath, the more I am possessed by a sense of wonder... How is it possible to end a film on a man whose talent and personality were so boundless?... I began working with a script but, for the first time, I decided to throw it away. Because it suddenly occurred to me that I would not be content to put a time frame to this man���������s influence... that it would be somehow unfair to an influence so deep to be captured by preordained thoughts... that it touches lives in many different ways even today.���������
Samadarshi, who had kept haunting Rituparno as he walked out, mesmerized, from the premiere show of ���������Ichchhe���������, was cast as young Rabindranath overnight. ���������Trust me, I am not trying to essay Rabindranath, rather I am trying to be him. This role is a like a dream-come-true for any actor. As suggested by Rituda, I am now reading Jibonsriti ��������� Tagore���������s autobiography, and intensely looking at the photo biography by Nityapriyo Ghosh, to get a feel of the time. For both the look test and photo-shoot, Rituda is helping us out, trying to correct our postures and body language right. I���������ll have to work on my look as my eyes, according to Rituda, are a little too big for a thoughtful Tagore. Both Sanjoy and I have been instructed to write a lot, and that too with ���������doyat-kolom���������. Touching computer keypad has been forbidden for the coming few months. Thank God, my Blackberry has not yet been confiscated.���������
Sanjoy, director of ���������Memories in March���������, plays Tagore in his post youth period. Says the director-turned-actor, ���������Ritu bullied me into accepting the role of Rabindranath Tagore. I felt it would be a different kind of a challenge. After the look test when I first saw myself as Rabindranath, I felt (and still do) that I am greatly inadequate. Tagore is not only a matter of appearance, he is also about a supersensitive mind and mythical charisma. Both of which are impossible for me to capture. Especially, since I am not a regular actor. Ritu wants more of an impression than a replica. The screenplay itself is more impressionistic, as opposed to Ray���������s documentary on Tagore, a vivid and descriptive narrative. To me, this is a more appropriate way of approaching Tagore. I am trying to understand the person as much as possible.���������