Bandish Bandits is a refreshing break from what Anand Tiwari calls “bhed-chaal” or herd mentality. His 10-part series, after all, focuses on a subject that is truly indigenous yet often ignored in mainstream entertainment — the conflict and confluence of classical sangeet and modern music. As the show is nominated in the Best Series and Best Romance/Comedy categories of the upcoming mid-day and Radio City Hitlist OTT Awards, the creator-director is proud that it launched two new talents, Ritwik Bhowmik and Shreya Chaudhry.

“The credit goes to Amazon Prime Video officials, who never pressured us to cast known faces. We had a detailed audition process through which Ritwik and Shreya earned their parts. Today, they are two of the most sought-after actors,” says Tiwari.

As he developed the musical romance with long-time collaborator Amritpal Bindra, Tiwari wanted to maintain a purist approach to the subject. Enter Shankar-Ehsaan- Loy, who not only composed the show’s score but also gave insights into the world of Indian music. “We had spoken to music experts when we wrote the bible. But when we went to Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy, they helped us add nuance to the script. Many scenes were rewritten after our music sessions with them. In episode four, Radhe [Bhowmik’s character] is being trained by Pandit ji [Naseeruddin Shah] and by Tamanna [Chaudhary] in dramatically different ways. That scene was changed once Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy decided the beats that Pandit ji and Tamanna would teach him. Music supervisor Akshat Parikh too guided us with details.”

Currently developing the script for its second season, the writer-creator says he will be mindful of the use of expletives. “If our audience includes grandparents as well as grandchildren, we want to be economical in our use of abusive language. In our show’s universe, few characters use cuss words — Radhe’s friend and Arghya [Tamanna’s manager]. But I will try to refrain from that as well.”

- Bandish Bandits has been nominated in the Best Series category. The other nominees are:  

- Asur (Voot Select)

- Paatal Lok (Amazon Prime Video)

- Panchayat (Amazon Prime Video)

- Scam 1992 (Sony LIV)

- The Forgotten Army (Amazon Prime Video)

- Log on to www.hitlistottawards.com to cast your vote.

- You can also vote via SMS. Send HITLIST <space> category name <space> your choice (a/b/c as on the website) to 57575.

- Voting lines close on February 9.

- Anand Tiwari was Naseeruddin Shah’s student in theatre and even featured in a play by Motley