I'm influenced by Mani Ratnam's style: Bejoy Nambiar

Mumbai: Filmmaker Bejoy Nambiar on Thursday said he grew up watching Mani Ratnam's films and the director has had a significant influence on him.

Best known for “Shaitan” and "David", Nambiar said he has assisted Ratnam on multiple projects, including "Ponniyin Selvan".

"I'm definitely influenced by his style and storytelling. I try not to get too influenced and incorporate his things (in my films). But that’s my school and I’ve learnt from him. So, somehow subconsciously, it finds its way, it’s great. It’s my homage to him,” the Kochi-born filmmaker told reporters here at the press conference of OTT series, “Kaala”.

Nambiar was asked about his association with Ratnam and how he has continued to assist the "Dil Se" filmmaker despite being an established name now.

"I still assist him and I’ll assist him on his next film as well. He is one of the reasons why I got into filmmaking. I’ve grown up watching his films. I don’t think we can ever stop learning. When I have access to a mentor and master like him, I always look for an opportunity to go back and learn," he said.

Nambiar, who has directed Madhuri Dixit Nene-headlined Hindi series “The Fame Game” and a Tamil original series, “Sweet Kaaram Coffee”, said the experience of working on OTT shows is different from making films.

“It has been a long journey. I’ve done some other (OTT) shows before as a director but that was my testing phase because I’m not used to this format. I’ve only made feature films. I was trying to figure out how long format works and what kind of challenges you face."

But directing "Kaala" for ‘Disney+ Hotstar’ felt like venturing into a new territory, he said.

"It was a new turf for me and nothing prepared me for what entailed ‘Kaala’. This show took almost three years to make. There were writers, a creative team from ‘Hotstar’, ‘T-series’ team and my team. So, this show has been a massive collaborative effort as there’s an army behind me for this show.”

Billed as an edge-of-the-seat crime thriller, “Kaala” follows the story of an Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer and a game of power.

Nambiar is known for making dark crime thriller movies like “Wazir” and “Taish” and he said he is drawn towards such stories.

"As a director, I’m drawn to certain kinds of stories. It is not that I would like to restrict myself to do only that. I’m also trying to explore other areas. I’ve done a dysfunctional marriage story, in which no one dies, then I did a film for ‘ZEE’ called ‘Dobaara’. I make these kinds of films,” he added.

“Kaala” features an ensemble cast of Avinash Tiwary, Rohan Vinod Mehra, Nivetha Pethuraj, Taher Shabbir and Hiten Tejwani.

Tiwary said after collaborating with Nambiar for a music video, 'Khoya Khoya Chand' from the director's movie "Shaitan", he wanted to be directed by him.

"Over the years, there were some instances when we came close to working with each other. One day, he called me for this (show) and said, 'You will have a great opportunity to perform'. When the story came to me, it touched me. Also, it is a very engaging thriller," he added.

Tejwani said he is grateful to Nambiar for offering him a different kind of a role in "Kaala".

"Bejoy always wanted me to do something different and I was happy that he offered me something different. For an actor, it is a good thing if they get to experiment. People have seen me as a good looking, very positive boy. Everybody has shown me that way, but to break that image and show something else is what got me hooked with this show," he said.

“Kaala”, produced by Nambiar, along with T-Series’ Bhushan Kumar and Krishan Kumar, is set to release on September 15 on ‘Disney+ Hotstar’.