Why Did Department Take So Long?

Ram Gopal Varma is known for finishing his films in a jiffy. In fact a regular Ramu film is completed in 30-40 days. However Department has taken quite some time to reach the finishing line. The film was announced over a year ago and is clearly one such film on which RGV has worked for the longest duration. One wonders whether it was due to the film’s scale, stars (read Sanjay Dutt, Amitabh Bachchan) involved or the fact that the director himself was being extra conscious while filming it.

“Well, I won’t say that it took too long; it’s just that the canvas was really big,” says RGV, “In the recent past I have been concentrating on thrillers and psychological dramas and they don’t take so much time. However ‘Department’ is different from other movies. Even ‘Sarkar’ was big and had huge stars but then it was shot in 30-35 days because it was more of a dramatic outing.”

Meanwhile it was no less a challenge to fit in all stars into his big budgeted affair and it is quite apparent that the core story of the film revolves around a setting where cops Sanjay Dutt and Rana Duggubati lead the show. One wonders though how exactly does the character played by Amitabh Bachchan add on to the film’s plot.

“Mr. Bachchan is playing an ex-gangster who has left underworld and now turned into a politician,” Ramu divulges, “His background is quite intriguing since for people out there, he is still the same man who once had criminal connections, even though now he has become a public figure. This very setting invokes a lot of curiosity. Of course as I have mentioned earlier, comparisons with the likes of Arun Gawli are mere speculations and when you would see the movie, you would realise that it is just a fictional character who might have inherited shades from real life or people.”

We would love to see how the drama indeed unfolds and if the year long wait for Department was indeed worth it!