Exclusive 'Rocket Boys' director Abhay Pannu on landmines he evaded, Gandhi family and telling India's stories

'Humongous Titanic effort went into making 'Rocket Boys'...'

'You had the Prime Minister (Nehru) of the country telling you (Dr Bhabha and Dr Sarabhai) to do whatever you wanted to do. If today the Prime Minister of the country tells any businessman to do whatever he wants to do, we have seen what happens....'

'Idea of the show was to reach out to the GenZs and the millennials, re-acquaint them with these characters and what they managed to do against all odds...'

'Rocket Boys was not an easy show to make...'

'If I have shown the good that the Congress party did, I think I also have the right to show what was not good...'

'I have not tried to show anybody as perfect; I have tried to show them as humans, the Congress party included...'

'We, as filmmakers, have run out of stories and resorting to the same old formula in the films or shows that are coming out....'

'We tend to look towards the West for inspiration, whereas the inspiration lies in our roots, our history and our country...'

The second season of 'Rocket Boys', which hit SonyLiv on March 16, has received a fantastic response from viewers. The show, which narrates the story of how a newly-independent India embarked on a journey to touch the 'space' and attain nuclear parity with the global powers, has been widely discussed and appreciated. In an exclusive interview, Asianet Newsable deep-dives into the era of 'Rocket Boys' with writer-director Abhay Pannu. Read the edited excerpts below  

What was the rationale behind choosing 'Smiling Budha' as the moment around which Season 2 would focus on? Was Aryabhata, India's first satellite, ever considered?

See, Aryabhata, right in 2020, we had thought about it. But we did was Season 1, we tried to focus mostly on the building of the rocket, and in season 2, we thought we should focus mostly on the building of the bomb. Though the show is called 'Rocket Boys', but it is not just the story of how rockets are made. It is the story of Dr Homi Bhabha and Dr Sarabhai. We called it 'Rocket Boys' because it is a good title. But the story of how India launched its space program and how India tested its first nuclear bomb under the able guidance and leadership of Dr Bhabha and Dr Sarabhai. That was always the idea. In Season 1, we focused mainly on how India started its space program, and Season 2 was about 'Buddha'. 

When we started doing our research, we realised that it was not just Vikram Sarabhai who played an important part in the testing of the first satellite (Aryabhata). When we started writing, we thought that maybe, if we do make a third season, we will talk about Aryabhata in that. 

Can you revisit the time and effort that went into making the look and feel of Rocket Boys period specific?

Well, we shot both seasons together. As I said, we already knew what Season 1  and Season 2 would have. We had written both scripts together. Eighty per cent of season 2 was shot while we had shot season 1. Only some last 15 days of the shoot were done in October-November last year.

But if I have to talk about what all went into the making of the show, humongous Titanic effort went into making the show. In a film, you get a lot of money and every possible resource. But on shows, because of the nature of the medium, you do not get abundant or excess money to do whatever you want to do. So to be economical and yet be able to transport people to that time and era is very, very crucial. So, kudos to my production designer, cinematographer, and costume stylist... I keep telling everyone that it is not me, it is them. They put in the hard work, they put in day and night the last three years of their lives to ensure that they got everything absolutely right, as good as it could be. They built the right reactors; they built the (cryogenic) control rooms; they got all the right references; they went to the right libraries to find the right books; my cinematographers did the right kind of research, finding the right kind of lights from that era -- we could not use LEDs, only tungsten lamps. So kudos to them and to my assistant directors, who deserve more credit than I do for making the show the way it looks. 

The story of Dr Homi and Dr Sarabhai already had a lot of intrigue and conspiracies around their work. Why was there a need to introduce fictional characters like Raza and Mathur?

I am not trying to say that my characters did not have enough conflicts in their lives. But I feel that Dr Bhabha and Dr Sarabhai, at least till Jawaharlal Nehru was around, had it very easy. They could get into whatever rooms they wanted to, they got the money they wanted, they had JRD Tata, and they had Nehru. Dr Sarabhai was the Ambani of that era. They had everything with them. They could do whatever they wanted to do with the money. So, as a storyteller and as a critic, I am sure you would agree that without conflict or obstacles, there cannot be a story.  

I understand that once Nehru died, Shastri came into power. That was the first time that the nuclear programme was put on hold. But to be able to tell a story where your characters are constantly being questioned and opposed, or there is some sort of opposition to my protagonists' journey, it is very important. So I don't think people understand that life wasn't as difficult for them. You had the Prime Minister of the country telling you to do whatever you wanted to do. Without taking any names, if today the Prime Minister of the country tells any businessman to do whatever he wants to do, we have seen what happens.

Could I not have put fictional characters in the story? Maybe three years later, I would say, 'okay, maybe I could have done without them'. Maybe I could have just said a story which did not have any conflicts and went like without any upheavals or turbulence in the characters' lives. But would I still have made an engaging watch? I am not sure right now. I think it would not have made as engaging a watch for your family or the GenZs, who don't care if there is a fictional character or not, who are not purists. You and I are purists. I would, of course, detest why he put a fictional character on the show. But the idea of the show was to reach out to the GenZs and the millennials, re-acquaint them with these characters and what they managed to do against all odds with so many challenges in their lives. So, in order to do that, there was a need to introduce these fictional characters. 

Saying that the (American espionage agency) Central Intelligence Agency was against Dr Bhabha; of course, they were against him, and they were trying to take him out. But what is the manifestation of the CIA in India? CIA can be remotely operating from America without my character feeling any obstacles or conflicts in his life. What is the impact of the CIA trying to stop Dr Bhabha or trying to take him out is what comes across the character of Mathur. Again, as I said, maybe a few years later, I might not agree with myself. But today, I feel that no matter what I do, whatever story I tell, I would always want to tell a story that has a conflict or some opposition to my protagonists. And that is what these characters were doing.

Did it ever feel like you were walking through a landmine when dealing with subjects like Tashkent (where Lal Bahadur Shastri died mysteriously) and Kanchenjunga (the mysterious Air India crash that killed Dr Bhabha)? You have deftly gone through these subjects.

Of course, I was. It wasn't an easy show to make. It was a very difficult show to make because not just were we talking about some incredible legends and stalwarts -- not just Dr Bhabha or Dr Sarabhai, but also Dr Kalam, Homi Sethna, Ramanna, Indira Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Mrinalini Sarabhai. All of them were stalwarts. So to be able to do justice to their contributions and lives was, first of all, a challenge. Then to talk about Tashkent and Kanchenjunga, and for that matter 'Smiling Buddha', they were all very challenging to depict. I would not say that I was not scared. I was. I was apprehensive about how people would react to it. And I think we just said enough without really hammering it down people's throats that this is what happened. 

I think we smartly navigated around, in writing only, the events without clearly establishing anywhere that this is what I am telling you happened. So yes, it was a landmine, but had I not done it, say not done Kanchenjunga, imagine what people would have said. Today, people can say, 'oh, why did you put Kanchenjunga?' but if I had not put Kanchenjunga, people would have said that the show was not bold enough to show that. So it was something that had to be done. We tried to do it as smartly as possible. But we were all a little apprehensive. 

You showed the infighting within the Congress when Nehru was on his deathbed. I hope the Congress party leaders aren't chasing you after watching that...

I think it actually happened (infighting in Congress). I am sure you also know about how (Kumaraswami) Kamraj came in; he was the kingmaker. He was the one who ensured that Shastri came to come to power and not Morarji Desai because he knew that if the latter came to power, the Gandhi family would never be able to rule again. I have also spoken about how that Gandhi family was -- in a very subtle way I have tried to show it -- trying to hold on to power, which they believed was rightfully theirs. I tried to show what actually happened. It was not something I cooked up. Did it actually happen on the day of Nehru's passing? No! But did it happen? It definitely happened!

There are a lot of things I read before writing the third episode (Rocket Boys 2). I think I have shown the Gandhi family in a very good light. I have given the credit of 'Smiling Buddha' to Indira Gandhi, which rightfully belongs to her. I have given the credit for India becoming an independent nation and embarking upon a scientific journey to Nehru, which he rightfully deserves. So if I have shown their good, I think I also have the right to show what was not good. That is how I have written most of my characters. I have shown that Dr Bhabha was ambitious and did great things, I have also tried to show certain things that were not so good about him. Similarly, Dr Sarabhai was great, but he did end up having an extra-marital affair. So I have not tried to show anybody as perfect; I have tried to show them as humans, the Congress party included. 

Perhaps, one of the biggest compliments to come your way is how you have taken one of the rarely spoken of moments of post-independence India and made it into a history lesson to the younger generation. What are your thoughts on it?

Absolutely! That is the need of the hour, I feel. That's not just because we must educate our people about our rich history. We, as filmmakers, have run out of stories and resorting to the same old formula in the films or shows that are coming out. I know that there is an abundant history or stories from our history that can really inspire and engage. 

One of the reasons why people do not tend to make shows like these is because, as you rightly said, it can be a landmine. It can cause a lot of problems. How do we deal with so much stress? How do we get the research right? How do we ensure that despite it being a historical or a science-based show, how does it still stay engaging? How do people come and watch it? The proof is in the pudding. Today, the show has done well. And the kind of messages that I get on Instagram and Twitter is incredible. If you put in that effort and time, people want to watch, and people need to watch. So, as storytellers, we need to pull up our socks and work harder on our scripts. We need to, as filmmakers, tell these stories more often because there are such stories. We tend to look towards the West for inspiration, whereas the inspiration lies in our roots, our history and our country.

What next?

I am writing a film that I will hopefully announce next month or maybe in May. I am in talks with an actor. So yes, very soon, there could be an announcement...

Will it be another period thriller?

No, it's not a period thriller. It is about India, and it is an inspiring story. So let's see... fingers crossed.

Also Read: Rocket Boys 2 Review: Masterpiece on 'ignited minds' who powered a nation's dreams