Isha Koppikar: Ram Gopal Varma made cult films

MUMBAI: Actress Isha Koppikar reunites with filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma in an upcoming untitled web series. She feels although the filmmaker is going through a bad phase in career right now, no one can downplay his contribution to Indian cinema for the cult films he once made.

"I have finished shooting a major part of the web show. RGV is the showrunner and presenter of the show. The web series has been directed by four directors and after they finish the shooting of all episodes, they submit their work to RGV. He will look after post-production and hopefully create magic," Isha told IANS, about her latest collaboration with the filmmaker.

Isha shot to fame for her dance number "Khallas" in Varma's 2002 film "Company", which is till date considered one of the most powerful films about the underworld that Bollywood has ever made. Later, she also worked in Varma productions such as "Darling" and "Shabri".

Varma's last few Hindi releases like "Veerappan" and "Sarkar 3" fared below expectation and the filmmaker has also courted controversy for his comments on socio-political issues. Isha hopes with his upcoming show, RGV will get out of his rough patch.

"Ram Gopal Varma is a genius. Look at the kind of films he has made, those are cult films of Indian cinema. The first Hindi horror film that I watched and loved was "Raat". Then all the other films, whether it is "Bhoot", "Rangeela", "Satya" -- you name the film and the genre -- horror, romantic-musical, gangster-action -- and he has made a cult film in that genre," she said.

Isha continued: "In our lives, at times we go through a low phase but that does not mean that the person is finished. It is true that in the entertainment industry, every Friday could be a �good Friday' or a �bad Friday'," she laughed, adding: "I hope with the upcoming web series, RGV claims his space back again."

Apart from the web series, Isha is also working on the Tamil science fiction film "Ayalaan". Directed by R. Ravikumar, the film also features Rakul Preet and Sharad Kelkar.

According to the actress, the film will offer a unique experience to the audience.

"Ayalaan will be an interesting film to watch out for because in the film we are using VFX quite interestingly. In fact, that is why the film will take more time than any regular film in post-production. Most of the time we use prosthetic but in this one, we are focusing on VFX," Isha said.