Priyanka Chopra seems to have a thing for superheroes. After romancing Hrithik Roshan in Krrish, she turns to Abhishek Bachchan’s superhero avatar in Drona. Directed by Goldie Behl, Drona also stars Kay Kay Menon and Jaya Bachchan. The film is slated to release on October 2.
Priyanka tells Patcy N more about her unique role as Abhishek’s bodyguard.
What is Drona about?
Drona is a fantasy film. It’s more like a comic book. If you have read Amar Chitra Katha and Phantom, you will like Drona. It is not a period film; not is it a futuristic film. I cannot give the time dimensions for this film.
Drona is a story of what happened centuries after the Sagar manthan. According to Hindu mythology, Sagar manthan was when the ocean was churned, and many magical things came out of it. Those things are called the 14 ratnas (treasures).
When the Gods saw the ratnas, they decided to hide them in different parts of the universe. One of them, Amrit (nectar), was hidden on earth. Amrit makes you immortal, so a Maharishi was given the responsibility of taking care of this amrit. But soon, demons started attacking the Maharishi.
The Maharishi needed protection, so he went to Maharaja Virbhadra Singh, who promised him safety. The Maharashi told him that since he was protecting the amrit in a dron (a special vessel), he will be called Drona henceforth. All his descendants, who will take care of the amrit in future, will also be called by the same name. That’s how Abhishek gets the name Drona in the film, as his forefathers were Dronas.
My forefathers, in the film, were given the task of protecting this Maharaja. So that’s what I am doing.
The film is about the journey of Drona. It is a story that we haven’t seen. It is got 1,500 special effects! The entire film has special effects, and Goldie has managed it well.
Tell us more about your character.
This is the first time where you will see a female playing bodyguard guarding a male character. I have done a lot of action in the film.
I am excited about my character, Sonia, because it is understated and subtle. Drona is Godly, as he has a direct responsibility from the gods to protect the world. My character has a lot of reverence for Drona.
Tell us about Kay Kay Menon’s character.
His character Riz Raizada is very important to the story. He is a magician, who has telekinetic powers. He can teleport himself, stop things midair, and create water, fire and illusions. He wants the Amrit. So it is a story of good versus evil.
Tell us about your look in the film.
It is a powerful, strong and wild look. But at the same time, my character has to look very feminine. That’s why the jacket I wear has zardozi and silk brocade. I wear flowy chiffon around my waist. For the tough effect, I wear leather on my turban. We wanted to have a turban to control my hair, as I have long, wild hair in the film. The turban has braids to give it a feminine touch.
I wear kohl in my eyes. My character is not into beauty; she is only aware of her duty of protecting Drona. What she wears is her uniform.
Did you undertake special training for your action sequences?
Yes, I learnt a martial art called Gathka. It is a Sikh form of martial art.
There is a school in this village called Hoshiyarpur in Punjab, where they teach this art. The teachers came to Mumbai to teach me this art for 20 days.
The weapon looks like a wheel with ropes, with small balls tied to it. You have to spin it to make it a huge circle to protect yourself, and deflect any weapon coming towards you. It is very heavy.
Plus, I also used daggers to protect Drona and myself. Abhishek uses a special sword gold rubies and emeralds. It is a magical sword that gives power, and has Sanskrit shloks written on it.
