Sage
and screen
After
more than 40 years of making films,
Ismail Merchant has become a
real movie guru, says Rebecca Broadley
 |
Ismail Merchant
attended his first film premiere aged 13. He was the guest of its
young star, his childhood friend Nimmi, who was starting her career
as an actress. 'Nimmi was 17, glamorous, elegant and beautiful. She
was my heroine; I was 13 and something like her stalker. We arrived
at the cinema for the premiere of Barsaat. It was extraordinary:
the anticipation and adoration from the fans; I remember it so clearly...
Nimmi and I leaving the car and marigolds falling from the sky. I
knew then that I wanted to make movies and be showered in marigolds.'
These aren't all Merchant has been showered with. Between then, his
films have picked up six Oscars, and numerous nominations. His prolific
career has seen him act, direct and produce in India, Britain and
America. In 2002, Merchant Ivory Productions, his partnership with
American directory James Ivory, was honoured with a prestigious Bafta
Fellowship. Their films include the early Indian pictures Shakespeare
Wallah (1965), The Guru (1969) and Bombay Talkie (1970),
and the acclaimed literary adaptations A Room with a View (1985)
and Howards End (1992).
'If you want to express something, it has to be said with subtlety.
Subtlety preserves a kind of beauty. The power of subtlety is in
a moment - like in The Remains of the Day (1993), when Emma
Thompshon, coming down the stairs, holds Anthony Hopkins' look, which
says "I understand". That moment captures amazing chills,' he says.
Merchant was born in Mumbai, on Christmas Day 1936. As a student
at St. Xavier's College, he staged star-studded shows. He then went
to New York, to study for an MA and to seek his fortune. Here, he
courted investors for his first film - and a few celebrities too.
He shared an interest in Indian mythology with Aldous Huxley. And,
being a huge fan of Paul Newman, Merchant talked his way backstage
on Broadway to meet his hero. Impressed by his enthusiasm, Newman
offered him a lift home on the back of his bike. Twenty-eight years
later, they would be making a film together (Mr and Mrs Bridge)
and reminiscing about this early meeting over supper.
Merchant's first film, a 14-minute short clled The Creation of
Woman (1960), was nominated for an Oscar, before being taken
as the US entry to the Cannes Film Festival. 'It wasn't that I felt
I had to leave India to enter the world of movies, but forging a
career in film outside India has proved both challenging and greatly
rewarding; it gives you enormous confidence.'
How does he explain the success of his 41-year partnership with Ivory?
'We work together so well because we have such different personalities.
I am the north to his south; but, on set, he can drive me mad.'
Of equal importance to the team is Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, the screenwriter
of many of the company's films. 'There is a word in Sanskrit, sangam,
which translates as the meeting of three holy rivers,' says Merchant,
laughing. 'That defines us: the coming together of our energy, and
the satisfaction we take in our work.' This synthesis between producer,
directory, and writer has resulted in massive and continual success.
How did he cope?
'All you can do is keep your feet on the ground. Success and failure
are part of the same process - to taste one, you have to taste the
other, and simply not give up.' The details of these highs and lows
are outlined in his new book, My Passage from India, which
tells of an amazing life and career spanning many decades and continents.
Merchant, who now lives between New York, Paris and London, says
that he would love to direct a comedy next. 'Laughter is such a
natural instinct. I'd really love to make a film like Billy Wilder's Some
Like it Hot.'
MY PASSAGE FROM INDIA
by Ismail Merchant
Viking Studio; ISBN: 0-670-03163-1
On-Sale: November 25, 2002
Price:$35.00; Pages:160
For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact:
Gretchen Koss, Director of Viking Studio Publicity at 212-366-2440
gkoss@penguinputnam.com
