'I thought Indira Gandhi was powerful but...': Kangana Ranaut ahead of Emergency release

Kangana Ranaut, who plays the role Indira Gandhi in her new film Emergency, said she did extensive research and now believes the former prime minister was not powerful as she had thought but "weak" and "unsure of herself".

The first-time MP from Mandi, often in the headlines for her provocative comments, also said there is no director today who deserves her.

“I'm very proudly saying that today there is not a single director in the film industry that I want to work with because they don't have that kind of quality… that I feel that they deserve me,” Ranaut told PTI in a video interview ahead of the release of the much in the news Emergency.

Ranaut, who has directed and produced the film that documents the 21 months of Emergency imposed in 1975 by the then prime minister, said she has empathy for Indira Gandhi and viewed as very powerful until she started working on the project.

"But when I did my research, I understood it was quite the contrary. It also strengthened my belief that the weaker you are, the more control you would want. She was a very weak person and she was also very unsure of herself and really vulnerable. "She had many crutches around and she was constantly seeking a kind of validation. She was also hugely dependent on many people, one of them was Sanjay Gandhi... I didn't have that kind of empathy for her before 'Emergency'," she said.

The "Queen" star said she took "no liberties at all" in the portrayal of Indira Gandhi and the Emergency months. Ranaut also said she ran into Indira Gandhi's granddaughter and fellow MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Parliament and brought up the issue of the film.

"I met Mrs Priyanka Gandhi in Parliament and she complimented me on my work and my hair. So I was like, 'You know, I made this film Emergency and maybe you should see it'. And she was like, 'Okay, maybe'," Ranaut said as she recounted her brief interaction with the Congress MP from Wayanad. "And I think if they have a little bit of acceptance for what has been, they will appreciate the film," she added.

The film, Ranaut said, has not been made with the intention of hurting people or their sentiments so the cuts don't matter. "As the film is not made with that intention, even if that was removed, it doesn't impact my story."

"Emergency" will release on January 17 after months of controversy over its censor certificate and allegations that it misrepresents the Sikh community. It missed out on its September 6, 2024 release date as it was unable to obtain the clearance certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

Ranaut had then accused the CBFC of stalling the certification. The matter went to the Bombay High Court where production banner Zee Studios eventually agreed to comply with the changes suggested by CBFC's revising committee.

She did not reveal the number of cuts the CBFC directed but said she would have liked the film to release the way she had made it. According to Ranaut, people tried hard to stop "Emergency" from releasing. "I was completely devastated. I thought maybe it will never see the light of the day. Because there was earlier a film on Mrs Gandhi called 'Kissa Kursi Ka'. "I thought maybe it's jinxed or something that you can't make a film on her... And I had also put some investments into it. There were a lot of issues, obviously I was disheartened," she said.

Describing "Emergency" as an "unusual and controversial" film, Ranaut said audiences are used to watching traditional song-and-dance movies from Bollywood. "But when you have something so unusual, people are a bit unsettled about it. 'How come she made a film like this?' This is controversial and talks about a very important chapter in history." The 38-year-old, known for films such as "Gangster", the "Tanu Weds Manu" franchise, "Fashion" and "Panga", said she believes in the "power of authenticity". "Since my film was deeply scrutinised, I had to present proof of the documentation, the source, everything. I had to face a lot of setbacks, challenges, scrutiny and all kinds of pressures.

"They say truth eventually trumps over everything. We presented all the proof. Different communities, (political) parties, historians, common man, anyone who has seen the film has said there is nothing objectionable in it," she said.

She rebuffed the suggestion that she is difficult to work with. "No, there is no such thing that I can't collaborate with anyone. But it's just that I find deep satisfaction in people who are quality people. Somebody like Shreyas (Talpade) sir or Anupam (Kher) ji... I'm a person like that and these are the kind of people I deserve," she said about her "Emergency" co-stars. "Whoever I want to work with and I deserve, they are with me, whether it is the director of photography (Tetsuo Nagata) or my action director (Nick Powell ), who is also the one who did 'Gladiator'. My prosthetic artist (David Malinowski) is the one who's done Gary Oldman's 'Darkest Hour'...."

Has acting taken a back seat after she became an MP last June? "Not really a back seat but yes being a parliamentarian is also a very demanding job. I have been going to Parliament almost every month. There has been a little bit of a setback in terms of my shootings. I'm not able to, but I will resume," she said.

Emergency stars Anupam Kher as Jayaprakash Narayan, Shreyas Talpade in the role of a young Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Milind Soman as Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, Mahima Choudhary as Pupul Jayakar and the late Satish Kaushik in the role of Jagjivan Ram. It is produced by Manikarnika Films. Ranaut is no stranger to playing real-life characters on screen: she portrayed freedom fighter Rani of Jhansi in "Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi" and the late Tamil Nadu chief minister-film star J Jayalalithaa in Thalaivii.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from PTI)