The screams give way to tears, and Phoolan collapses on the ground, sobbing desperately.īiswas, who reads the entire film script every day to ready herself for the role and who has more or less secluded herself from the unit to bring an intensity to her performance, feels a change happening within herself.
The two start off playfully but then, all of a sudden, Phoolan turns violent - the way Mallah puts his hand on her face reminds her of the rape. (Phoolan was married off to a man 20 years older than herself, who eventually brought a second wife.) "Whenever she tried to be happy, something or the other would happen," she says.Īs an example, the actress cites a love-making scene in the film between Phoolan and her lover, Vikram Mallah. "I'm not saying that she is innocent - that is for the viewers and the courts to decide."īiswas feels that Phoolan never grew up because her very childhood was taken away from her. "I see a great deal of innocence behind all her actions," says Kapur. I've got to delve into my own consciousness to find the reasons for her actions."Īs Kapur and Biswas search within themselves, a common perspective has begun to emerge: both believe that essentially Phoolan's was a case of lost childhood. "And the process is filling me with venom and turmoil - I don't know how a girl who was raped at the age of 11 feels.
"I'm still trying to understand her," he says. Turning his back on the deadline, Kapur talks about his interpretation of Phoolan Devi's life.