"I paid Rs. 5000 to a bookie for an interview" - Kunal Deshmukh 
By Joginder Tuteja, May 12, 2008 - 11:02 IST
Kunal Deshmukh, debutant director of Jannat, may not have imagined that he would have to shell out Rs. 5000 from his own pocket just to schedule an interview with a bookie. Since it was essentially for him to be interacting with a real life bookie in order to get his research right for his film which deals with the nexus of cricketers, bookies, match fixers, umpires and referees, he had no other option but to agree to the proposal and pay the 'signing amount'!
Remembers Kunal, "I was amused when I was actually told by the bookie that he won't start the conversation until and unless I paid him Rs. 5000. I wasn't too sure if he was serious since this was a first of its kind."
Considering the fact that bookies earn (and loose) money in lakhs in a matter of minutes, wasn't Rs. 5000 a pittance for them?
"Exactly the point", says Kunal who has been associated with Bhatts for quite a few years now, "I understand their point of view though. I am sure so many people want to interact with them to understand their psyche and modus operandi. They have to be sure if the people they are speaking to are really serious about their job and indeed want to gain this knowledge for their research purpose. By charging an amount for a meeting, howsoever nominal it may be, they are cutting down on any frivolous visitors."
Adds on Emraan Hashmi, the film's lead protagonist, "Man, it was quite funny to be visiting a shady bar in order to have the 'meeting' with the bookies. Imagine trying to be incognito while wearing cap and glares alike. You do all this in the movies for the camera but I never knew I would have to do something like this in real life too. It was quite some experience, especially while seeing Kunal extract Rs. 5000 from his pocket. We did have a laugh at his expense!"
So how did the meeting go?
"Frankly, we wasted time in our initial meetings. Since we had gone through a punter, we had to first get familiarized with the bookie. We had a couple of drinks, wasted some more time, become a little friendly and only after that did we get started with the business", informs Kunal.
Emraan concludes, "We started observing bookies closely on how they talk on phone, how 'bhaav' goes up and down with every delivery being bowled and stuff alike. I learnt a lot about the particular lingo of the bookies and I believe it has come out quite convincing on screen. In the end, it was a trip well made."
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