Dhahanam: Ram Gopal Varma on reuniting with Isha Koppikar after almost 20 years

Ram Gopal Varma’s first web production Dhahanam was released recently. The web series saw him collaborate with Isha Koppikar yet again after a period of almost two decades. The actress had made an appearance in Varma’s film Company(2002), in an item number for the song Khallas. The filmmaker recently opened up about their recent collaboration.

In conversation with The Free Press Journal, Varma recounted Koppikar’s reaction when he first offered the part in Company to her. As she was just getting started in her career, Varma recalled how ‘innocent’ the actress seemed when she asked her if he thought she could do it. Varma had replied that although no one could ‘guarantee’ that, the song certainly held a lot of scope for the actress to express herself as it wasnt a ‘regular item song’. The way the actress said ‘Khallas’ in the song was the ‘soul of the film’ and Varma assured Koppikar that she would get a lot of exposure from her role.

“She took two minutes to think and said yes instantly,” added the filmmaker. Company, which also starred Mohanlal, Manisha Koirala, Ajay Devgn and Vivek Oberoi, is available to stream on ZEE5.

Varma also opened up about Koppikar’s character in Dhahanam, where she essays the role of a police officer. “Isha is the only person who is to put on a performance in Dhahanam,” he said. The filmmaker spoke about how her character is an ‘outsider’ who comes to the region where the story takes place to fulfill her duties as a police officer. The story unfolds through her character’s eyes.

• ALSO READ: Dhahanam: Isha Koppikar is a tough-as-nails cop in Ram Gopal Varma’s crime thriller series 

In addition to Koppikar, Dhahanam also features Naina Ganguly, Abhishek Duhan, Ashwatkanth Sharma, Parvathy Arun, Sayaji Shinde, Abhilash Chaudhary and Pradeep Rawat in pivotal roles. Agasthya Manju has directed the series.

Dhahanam can be streamed on MX Player in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil.