Unlike Mumbai, Kolkata still remains very authentic: Garth Davis

Lion — his directorial debut — that had roared at the Oscar stage with six nominations was partially shot in Kolkata. As part of the Australian delegation to the 24th Kolkata International Film Festival, director Garth Davis is here for the screening of his next — Mary Magdelene — starring Rooney Mara and Joaquin Phoenix. The director talks to CT about Sunny Pawar
Oscar miss to Harvey Weinstein’s #MeToo allegations and all things in between.Excerpts:
How has Kolkata changed since the time you came filming here?
I have been around for some time to suspect that nothing much has changed in Kolkata. Unlike Mumbai, Kolkata still remains very authentic and untouched. It is the same beautiful place. Every time I go back to Mumbai, I find that the place
has changed. That hasn’t happened in Kolkata.
Don’t you feel that Kolkata has undergone an external change?
We have come at the end of the Diwali festival and all the lights are on. The city looked really beautiful when we drove from the airport. A few locations where we had shot for Lion had undergone a lot of changes. We had shot underneath the flyover (near Esplanade) and I noticed that it is being redeveloped.
Sunny Pawar
Decisions of juries at the awards are always subjective. When you look back at the Oscars, do you feel the Academy was a little too unkind to Lion?
The one thing that was undeniable about Lion is that it had moved so many people. I am not surprised that we didn’t win and also surprised that we didn’t win (laughs). It is such a random event that just to be nominated is a celebration of how much people loved the film.
You had multiple Oscar nominations and it yet didn’t win a single award…
When we were doing the Oscar parties, I had got the feeling that at the end we were gaining momentum. I don’t know if Harvey Weinstein’s involvement pulled us down a bit (IMDB mentions Weinstein as the executive producer of the film). At the end of the day, the film moved a lot of people. That’s the greatest award one gets.
What’s your take on the #MeToo allegations against Weinstein? He owned the original American distribution rights of Mary Magdelene too…
Here is the ironic part. Mary Magdelene is a movie that says that a woman’s voice needs to be told. It is a little uncanny that this had to happen at the very moment when Harvey Weinstein got exposed and the #MeToo movement began. May be, Mary kicked him off the perch (laughs). A lot of people felt that we were cashing in on the #MeToo movement. That’s not correct. We were making the film way before all this started.

This whole incident seems to be very weird...
Yes, it is. You never know who you are working with and you don’t know what is round the corner. Now, nothing surprises me.
Did you ever get any idea about the things being said in context of Weinstein? Many have said they
had a hunch but never disclosed it earlier…
You could say that about so many people in advertising. The point is people in positions of power often disappoint us. Every day in the papers there is some respectable person in position of power who is getting exposed. However, at the end of the day, I didn’t work directly with Harvey. I worked with See-Saw Films. I am very much protected from this exchange. In relation to Lion and Mary Magdelene, he is very removed. He is very passionate about films as well.
Many believe that most of those accused have split personalities. Not everything about them is dark…
I have met Harvey and he is formidable. He will make things happens no matter what. His understanding of cinema and the kind of notes he gave me on Lion — you have to listen to what he has to say about these. He has a lot of experience and knows what kind of things connect with the audience. People nicknamed him Harvey Scissorhands. He had a good idea about audience’s instincts.
Many feel that Sunny Pawar should have got a nomination for Lion. Do you agree?
We were all very surprised that he didn’t get anything or even be nominated. Let’s also not forget Abhishek (Bharate) in the film. He was beautiful in the film.
Sunny shot another film in Kolkata. Are you in touch with Sunny?
I want Sunny and Abhishek to lead their lives. I don’t want them to feel that I am always there. Abhishek had once got in touch with me while he was shooting in Sri Lanka or a beachside location. Occasionally, we say hello.
It is said that your latest film — Mary Magdelene — is an attempt to revise the myth about her and is an “unexpectedly austere” and “solemn follow-up” to Lion. Why did you direct such a movie after Lion?
Mary Magdelene is both different and also not different from Lion. I am not a religious person. I am spiritual and have always been fascinated by this period of history. I always loved Biblical movies. Two things struck me when I read the script. One, Mary Magdelene’s contribution to this history has been unacknowledged in a popular way. I found that incredibly distressing. So, I felt an urgency to tell her story. Two, I understood what Jesus’ message was. It had profound spirituality. It really connected with me. It is not dissimilar to Lion since it talks about how unconditional love is what gives birth to miracles. It is about unconditional love and that god is in each of us. That is fascinating too since there are a lot of fundamentalists who believe that the kingdom of god will come through a revolution. But, here was Mary — a woman who was very spiritually connected and didn’t trust that idea.

Your narrative about Mary seems to be a huge departure from what has been circulated for centuries…
Some of the people know the true stories about her. But a lot of them don’t. It is interesting to see how some are surprised and embracing of this narrative while others are skeptical of it. That is what interests me. However, my film isn’t
controversial.
With religious intolerance all around, there is a lot of hyper sensitivity. How difficult is it then for a film-maker to take up such subjects when you have fanatics, sceptics and believers in the audience?
It’s very challenging. I feel very proud knowing that there is a film now which acknowledges Mary’s contribution and has been narrated from a woman’s point of view. My film is gently radical and I feel it will find its life.
There have been reports saying that Joaquin’s mannerism and accent in this film make him look like a Californian New Age cult leader. Why did you cast him as Jesus?
(Laughs) I wanted to know how Jesus was when he was living. How did he campaign his message? How did he move? Did he feel his life was at risk? I was interested in his divinity but also the human side of him. I was thinking of actors who could play that role. There weren’t many who could. Then I thought of Joaquin. For me, he is a very sensitive human being. I just thought he would be able to bring to life that idea more than any actor I knew.
What was his reaction when you first asked him to play this role?
(Laughs) There was a part of him that really wanted to do the role. Another part of him was terrified. But as a human being, I know that he has a strong belief about forgiveness and love. He really worked hard for the role.
You’ve directed Rooney Mara as Dev Patel’s girlfriend in Lion. After doing The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and The Social Network, what did Rooney have to unlearn to play Mary?
When I work with Rooney, I hopefully bring out a very warm human side. I know a side of her that may be, you don’t see in other movies. I love to celebrate that. For me, Mary was very connected to God and spirituality. But she lived in a world that didn’t allow her space to explore that. She had this kind of sensory abilities. Rooney, in her silences, has the same quality.
Tannishtha Chatterjee — who acted in Lion — has turned director with Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the cast. Did you exchange notes with her?
I didn’t know that. This is fascinating. Both were so good in Lion.
On Joaquin
You have to give him the freedom to feel that something is really happening. He is very natural. He works hard on the script beforehand so that he knows that he understands every word that comes out of his mouth. He ensures that he understands the truth of the scenes
On Rooney
She is very self-sufficient and will do her own research. You will very rarely do more than two takes of her. She had to learn to work with fishing nets. So I had to take her to the water so that she could learn how to drag fishing nets
from there
On Dev
He does a lot of preparations. He is a director’s actor. I was trying to push him into a new territory. Once he discovered that, it was fascinating to watch him fly. Remember the Google scene where he was searching for home? It was an intimate scene and I just watched him fly
On Nicole
She is very hard working and an incredible professional. She is slightly a method actor. She is slightly wild at times in her method. I loved it. I wasn’t expecting that
Favourite films of his actors
Rooney Mara
Carol
Joaquin Phoenix
The Master and The Gladiator
Dev Patel
Slumdog Millionaire
Nicole Kidman
The Birth and Dead Calm