Ready with his new web series Aarya, director Ram Madhvani shares how he convinced Sen to return to acting after five years
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; June 10, 2020)

Following up the masterfully told Neerja (2016) is a tall order. But director Ram Madhvani is set to return with another promising outing, Aarya. Even though the series — based on the Dutch drama Penoza — has the tonality of a thriller, the director views it as a story about a family. "To me, Neerja wasn't as much a hijack story as it was a mother-daughter tale. Here, I wanted to explore the interpersonal relationships in a family. I watched Penoza nine years ago and fell in love with the protagonist," recounts Madhvani, who then set out to create an Indian adaptation. "Two years ago, I spoke to the original creators [Pieter Bart Korthuis and Diederik van Rooijen], appraising them of the changes we are making. It was important to have it rooted in our reality."

The Disney+ Hotstar show marks the return of Sushmita Sen, who was last seen in the Bengali film, Nirbaak (2015). Madhvani considers himself "blessed" that she gave her nod. "She is a star, in the position of saying yes or no [to a project]. When I met her, I walked her through our process. The opportunity and the story excited her. She put her faith in me because she had liked Neerja. In some ways, she is a true star who has an unusual aura."

Though Madhvani is currently writing a comedy, one wonders about the fate of the ambitious historical series, Bodhidharma. The 10-part show, which was to be helmed by him and penned by Prasoon Joshi, was reportedly shelved after a fallout between the duo. "Prasoon is a friend and one of the most talented artistes. But, shows are hard to make. It took nine years to make Aarya, and 14 years for Neerja. I hope the universe conspires to develop this show."