Rajiv Rai’s 1992 film ‘Vishwatma’, starring Sunny Deol and Naseeruddin Shah, was the first Indian movie extensively shot in Kenya, mainly Nairobi and Mombasa. During filming, two actors were arrested for violating strict night-time rules. Rai explained the foreign shoot was chosen due to story and cost, with local collaboration. Quality support helped navigate tough local laws.
Rajiv Rai’s 1992 movie ‘Vishwatma’, starring Sunny Deol and Naseeruddin Shah, was the first Indian film to be mostly shot in Kenya, in cities like Nairobi and Mombasa. The filming had some problems, including an incident where two actors were arrested during the shoot abroad. Despite that, the movie was very successful and is remembered as an important action thriller in Indian cinema.
Why Africa was chosen
When asked by The Friday Talkies about why he chose to film in Africa, the director explained that there was no particular plan to shoot internationally. He said, “There was no specific reason behind going international. The story said that the villain runs away, then it’s interesting that he goes abroad. Africa was a cheap country to shoot for me. Moreover, there’s an action flavour there. I had contacts as well. I did some collaborations with them as well, got so much support from them.”
Strict night-time regulations lead to arrests
He revealed that Nairobi enforces strict regulations on moving around at night, which led to two actors from Vishwatma being detained. He explained, “You can’t roam in Nairobi at night. And, you weren’t allowed to carry dollars along with you, not even a single penny. So, we were in a foreign country, the actor’s had 10-15 dollars on them for shopping. If you get caught there, they can shoot you. It was a tough rule country”.
Arrest incident and environment
“Like this, two actors were roaming around at 2 am and they got arrested for no reason. The sequence was like that, a foreign country, army everywhere, shooting down somebody was normal”, he added.
Network helps release and cautions
Once the actors were released from custody, thanks to his close network, they were cautioned against venturing out at night. Rajiv explained, “My co-producers had many contacts. They were respected citizens there and had political friendships locally. They got them (the stars) out and asked us to not go out anywhere. They instructed us to not go for a walk on roads, goli vagerah na lagjaaye. It was a military rule type. Every country has its own political law and culture, you have to follow that when you’re there.”
Star-studded cast
Apart from Sunny Deol and Naseeruddin Shah, ‘Vishwatma’ also includes notable performances by Chunky Panday, Sonam, Divya Bharti, Amrish Puri, Raza Murad and Jyotsna Singh. Go to Source
