Komal Nahta

Ramgopal Varma's much-hyped Company rolled on April 13 at Versova in Bombay.

The film is a joint production of Ramu, Boney Kapoor and Ashwini Dutt from the South. It may be recalled that Ramu and Boney had earlier made two small-budget films, Raat and Drohi, both of which were released in 1992.

Company, which stars Ajay Devgan and Malayalam giant Mohanlal, is an extensively-researched project. While Ramu's Satya depicted Bombay's underworld as a microcosm of the mafia universe, Company deals with the larger scenario.

In order to understand in detail how the underworld operates, Ramu consulted D Sivanandan, joint commissioner of police, Bombay, on several occasions. Quite a lot of ground was covered over several meetings, including a dinner with the police top brass, reveals Ramu.

A unit member squealed, "It is a very difficult subject. Company will show how dons like Dawood Ibrahim are born and how they operate."

While the filmmaker was busy collating material for his script, Boney Kapoor had several meetings with lawyer C B Wadhwa. The reason? He wanted to ensure that all the contracts and paperwork between the three producer-partners were as thorough as the film's script.

Boney explains, "It was actually Ramu's suggestion that we put every clause in the agreement in black and white, so that each one of us is aware of what his liability is should there be any problem."