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Friday, May 29, 1998

Men in black

Chatura Poojari  
Ha, ha, ha," resounds in your ear as you pick your way to the sets of Gang. Expecting nothing less than two-horned demons a la Mahabharata, you step around an overturned drum and a barricade of weathered metal and plastic drums piled haphazardly. The source of this manic laughter, you discover, is not one but many: a muddy Jaaved Jaffery and four hefty and equally mud-soaked men.

A mustached Jaaved assumes an I-don't-care air, as the goons corner him, laughing. The scene is cut. And Jaaved joins co-star Jackie Shroff. Together they look like the night. Both sport black outfits decorated with generous patches of mud. The ubiquitous cloth bandana is also in place Jaaved's is pink and Jackie's is white, soaked in blood.

They fit right in with the Dharavi-chawl look of the set. And as producer-director Mazhar Khan explains the plot, things fall into place. "We look at the life of gangsters after their work is done," says he. The story revolves around four friends and the scene being shot is post the turningpoint Jaaved's sister has been killed and the friends are taking revenge.

"Well, my role. Let me see, earlier I was a chicken roll, then I become a veg roll," says Jaaved, unable to leave his Channel [V] brand of humour behind. "It's a love story of four friends. I am Garry, the youngest, who generally plays the fool and doesn't waste time thinking. The kind of guy, who, when he sees his friends fighting, will join in," says Jaaved.

So when he is asked to take his position before a tank of water he does so without complaining. The camera rolls and the goons start laughing and adopt hostile positions. Someone yells, "Louder, laugh louder". The pitch rises.

"Aur zor se hanso," someone calls out. Suddenly loud laughter erupts from behind the drums. "Ha, ha, ha, Zor se," yells Jackie.

And he too takes his position Jackie gets into the tank, squatting on its edge as the make-up man sprays water on his face. Mazhar points out that it is not enough and Jackie asks for water from the pipe. As the five menare doused in water, Jaaved quips,"Aur pani dalo." The camera starts to roll.

Jackie grabs the two goons next to him and starts banging their heads against each other. One more retake and the shot is canned.

As they are preparing for the next fight scene, Gulshan Grover walks in. He is accosted by a group of eunuchs from Delhi, who want to pose with him. Next, they grab Jackie and Jaaved and finally leave the set showering blessings.

It's back to work. "I play Gangu, the mechanic, a Maharashtrian character. The rest of the gang are Nana Patekar who plays Abdul and Bunty who's Nihal. Jaaved is Garry," says Jackie. And that is where the film gets it's name from -- Gangu, Abdul, Nihal and Garry -- the GANG.

Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.


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