Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; April 12, 2017)

After his turn as a tough-talking lawyer who defends a rape survivor in Pink, Amitabh Bachchan now features in an awareness promo for a leading channel’s public service awareness initiative.

The campaign seeks to address society’s failure to empathise with women who becomes victims of sexual abuse. It is an extension of a new show, Kya Qusoor Hai Amala Ka, which highlights the plight of a gang rape survivor and aims at changing people’s mentality towards her. The show is inspired from Turkish series, Fatmagul.

Joining the cause, Big B shot for the promo recently. “The idea that a woman loses dignity if she is sexually assaulted is instilled strongly in our cultural mindset. The shame should be on the perpetrators instead of the victim. We need to foster a safe, secure and supportive environment where victims can seek refuge, especially from those who they turn to for protection like authority figures, family and society. There is a strong need to step forward and talk about this through stories, which can trigger this change in people’s mindset. Kya Qusoor Hai Amala Ka is an effort in that direction,” said Bachchan.

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 22, 2017)

The popular Turkish show Fatmagul, originally titled Fatmagül’ün Suçu Ne? (What Is Fatmagül’s Fault?) which has enjoyed a successful run in India over the last year, now has an official Indian adaptation that will air on Star Plus. Kya Qusoor Hai Amala Ka? has Pankhuri Awasthy stepping into Turkish actress Beren Saat’s shoes.

The show revolved around a village girl, Fatmagul, who is engaged to marry a fisherman, Mustafa Nalçal, in a month’s time. Her dreams of a happy married life are shattered after she becomes a victim of a gang rape.

The setting has moved to Dharamshala in the Indian adaptation but will continue to chronicle the anger and sorrow of the rape survivor as the people around her, including her own family, start judging her.

“I learnt Himachali so I’d look like I was from Dharamshala and met a psychiatrist who deals in rape cases so I can project the pain and turmoil of her character convincingly. The writer of the Turkish show Ece Yorenc was flown down to speak to our team about the original show which I watched as part of the prep,” says Pankhuri who likes the simplicity of her character. “There’s no melodrama and every character has a back story.”

Is she prepared for comparisons with the original? “Yes, we are. The audience loved the original so we will not divert too much from the main story,” she signs off.