Richie Mehta can’t stop smiling ever since he heard that his directorial, Delhi Crime, won an International Emmy for the Best Drama Series. “It felt amazing and also shocking when it was announced. Since then, congratulations have been pouring in from all sides and every waking hour has been spent speaking to family, friends and well-wishers. In 2020, when there are so many other things on one’s mind, this was pleasant,” says Mehta.

The show has got recognition and acclaim on many other international platforms but an International Emmy is special for him. “An award like this means Indian talent and the messaging we want to discuss within the country and internationally is being received well. An International Emmy, to me, represents that we are in the global market and that Indian content has a big seat at the table,” he explains.

While the viewers loved the performances, story, direction and writing of the show, Mehta admits that what helped the most was the four years of research that he put in.

He shares, “Sometimes, you are lucky to work in a project that seemed to come together at every stage. It helped to have four years of prep and writing in solitude. As a result, when the show launched in March 2019, it had six years of work put into it, more than any other series at that time. There is a lot of gestation in the story and the reasons why the show should exist. I put in a lot of scrutiny on why I should do the show.”

The Netflix show was about the aftermath of the 2012 Delhi gang rape case, which starred Shefali Shah, Rasika Dugal, Adil Hussain and Rajesh Tailang among others.

The show’s win has been warmly welcomed by most but there have been reactions on social media with some people feeling that the awards celebrated a show that was about a terrible crime.

Mehta doesn’t agree. He says, “Delhi Crime is not a show about a terrible crime but how the people fought and solved the crime. Had the show been about the crime, I would have shown it, which to me is un-showable. The cops who solved the crime need to be celebrated, especially the women officers, who have so much strength.”