'Seeing Urmila Matondkar dance to AR Rahman's tunes,' is the lasting memory of 'Rangeela' for Ram Gopal Varma; he reveals why he cast Aamir Khan

Ram Gopal Varma's 'Rangeela' completes three decades and the film is now a cult for more than one reasons. From the way RGV shot the film to his interpretation of characters and of course, Urmila Matondkar's dance, chemistry with both Aamir Khan, Jackie Shroff and to top it all, AR Rahman's soul-stirring music - all of it, makes 'Rangeela' iconic even today. The film is loved even today and is relatable to the Gen Z as well. In a recent interview, Varma opened up on the film and revealed that he actually shot 'Rangeela' at the same locations as 'Satya'.

He said during a chat with PTI, "Most love stories before Rangeela used to be shot in exotic locations, diffusion filter photography, whereas Rangeela was shot in chawls and the mean streets of Mumbai which creates an authentic reality. Interestingly, I shot both Satya and Rangeela in similar locations." He added further, "I first visited Mumbai when I was making Rangeela, and Satya happened because of the locations I was trying to search for Rangeela. The people here excited me like — two or one-year-old children just about two feet away from the local train track. Then you see rich and poor people living side by side, pavement dwellers and Mercedes Benz cars… That kind of unimaginable contrast, I doubt if it’s there in any other city."


Ram Gopal Varma revealed that his college friend Ramesh's unrequited love inspired the film. He said, "That girl started seeing a very rich good-looking guy, and Ramesh said that she deserved the best. The idea of Rangeela took birth at that moment."

When asked about the memory of 'Rangeela' which has lasted with him, he said, "Urmila dancing to Rahman's tunes." RGV spoke about his brief to Urmila and said, "For her role in Rangeela, I told Urmila that if you feel beautiful you will come across beautiful and if you feel that you are doing something bad, then you will come across like that.”

Talking about casting Aamir Khan, Jackie Shroff, the director said they were the apt choices for the film. He said, "I loved Aamir in Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, his innocent boy next door look coupled with his demeanour of a strong and self-respect guy, was such an ideal match for Munna’s character."