‘My story begins where Devdas ends’

Shoma A. Chatterji

Sarat Chandra Chatterjee’s classic work Devdas, written in 1917, remains the most filmed non-epic story in India. In its latest variation comes Sudhir Mishra’s Daas Dev, wherein he presents his perspective on the iconic novel. Excerpts from an interview:

Why the title Daas Dev?

When Pritish Nandy asked for an adaptation of Devdas, it struck me that Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Sarat Chandra Chatterjee’s Devdas were similar. Paro and Devdas were connected through their respective families which brought in the class difference. I wrote in Paro’s father as the political secretary of Devdas’ father. The separation between Paro and Devdas becomes a political separation because after Devdas’ father dies, there is a rift between the two families. When Paro emerges from their section of the mansion, it is as Devdas’ political rival. My story actually begins after the original story of Devdas ends. It is a modern-day story. There is class distinction structured into the story and there are political schisms within love. So, Daas Dev.

Where does it place Chandramukhi?

Since my story moves ahead in terms of time and space, I decided to write Chandramukhi as a political fixer, a manipulator, a seductress, who makes deals between politicians and businessmen. She is close to today’s politicians. Daas Dev is  the story of three main characters with power and politics in contemporary India as backdrop.

How did you decide on the film’s cast?

Rahul Bhatt, a relatively unknown face, is a good actor and does not carry the baggage of a star. He had to portray a breakdown, and then emerge as a hero. I cast him as Devdas. Paro, I feel, would today be seen as a funky, independent but rooted, very-much-her-own person. Richa Chadha fit the image of Paro. Chandramukhi, despite her manipulative, seductress attitude, commits the mistake of falling in love with Devdas. She had to be versatile in her beauty, softness and grace. I thought of Aditi Rao Hydari.

What about others?

There is Saurabh Shukla , whose character is more from Shakespeare than from Devdas. He plays the antagonist, the person, who is the power himself. There is Vipin Sharma as a complex, older man, and Anurag Kashyap because I wanted a UP-bred actor. 

Five lyricists & five music directors have given the film’s music. That’s quite unusual.

I wanted each song to have a distinct personality. I liked a Punjabi sher. I have put that in the film. There is a poem by Muneer Nazi, which becomes part of a ghazal in the film. All the songs are on the soundtrack. Another song that goes “Sehmi hai dhadkan” is integral to the film’s theme. I worked with a new lyricist for the last song “Azad kar”. Another song “Aadhi roti” sung by Rekha Bharadwaj and composed by Sandesh Andhele is a folk song from UP, originally sung by folk singer Gulab Bai. I worked out an amalgamation of music and lyrics to take the story forward.

The first line of the brief synopsis states “power gets in the way of love.” How do you explain this and the phrase “reverse tale”?

Power is the most lethal kind of addiction. In my version of the classic, Dev moves from an addiction to alcohol to an addiction of power. My film revolves around the lust for power on the one hand and the purity of love on the other. Will Dev and Paro, both trapped in an addiction to power, be able to overcome the lust for power and find love?