Showing posts with label Priyanka Ghose. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Priyanka Ghose. Show all posts
We knew Zeenat Aman's health challenges; we handpicked scenes, calculated screen time-Priyanka Ghose
10:25 AM
Director Priyanka Ghose discusses Zeenat Aman’s limited screen time, and why Ishaan Khatter and Bhumi Pednekar’s casting was the right choice for The Royals
Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; May 14, 2025)
It wasn’t Ishaan Khatter and Bhumi Pednekar, the new pairing, or the curiosity surrounding royal lives that drew us to creators Rangita Pritish Nandy and Ishita Pritish Nandy’s latest show, The Royals. It was to see how yesteryear actor Zeenat Aman marks her comeback on the screen. However, when we confessed that to director Priyanka Ghose, she clarified that they had every intention for the senior actor to have more scenes.
When we said we only began rooting for Khatter and Pednekar’s love story after episode six, she said, “That was by design. I knew that by then people will want them to get back together.”
The Netflix eight-episode series follows the clash between an entitled prince and a tech startup entrepreneur amid a contemporary fairytale setting. In conversation with mid-day, she discussed the casting choices and why she had to hand over direction to Nupur Asthana later. Excerpts from the interview.
Zeenat Aman was the biggest pull to watch The Royals. While it was a cameo, why did it feel that she was under utilized?
When you’re writing a script, writers shouldn’t be limited by restraints. The minute you get to execution level, you know the challenges. You’re aware that you’ll get an actor only for a limited time and shoot only so much. As a director, you have to be clear on what to cut and what to keep. We had written and wanted more of Maajisa, but by the time we cast Zeenat ma’am, we knew her health challenges. We had spoken to her and her management, and learnt that her health would permit her only a few days. So, I worked backwards. We handpicked the scenes and calculated how much screen time to give her. I knew the key scenes she had to be part of, even in the royal ensemble during the charity fashion show. Her scenes with Sakshi [Tanwar] ma’am were non-negotiable — we needed the emotional arc. In the royal gathering, there were earlier scenes for her, but since she couldn’t shoot more days, I had to remove her from them. I shot the polo scenes for three days and the fashion show for two. It was difficult to have Zeenat ma’am sit through all that. I had to finish her parts all at once. The next day, I would shoot the opposite axis to avoid her angle. The intention was more, but the reality differed. Still, we did our best to include Maajisa in the right proportions across the season.
When did Nupur Asthana come on board as a director?
We brought in Nupur to direct episodes four and seven, which we shot last. The schedule had shifted because when we were to shoot in the mahals, it was peak wedding season in January and February. The dates shifted, and by the time we got to episodes four and seven, I wasn’t available. Rangita and I actively went out looking for a director to take over. Nupur had little to shoot in Rajasthan because her episodes were set in Mumbai and Madurai. Even the royal ball was shot in Mumbai. It broke my heart — I had done all the homework — but I had already committed to another project.
How many palaces were used in the show?
That’s like giving away secrets [she laughs]! Across six episodes, the entire schedule was in Rajasthan, then a short one in Goa for the opening episode, and some bits in Mumbai like the Gastronomics competition. I did three rounds of location recces. I picked different palaces because one palace doesn’t offer everything. We needed a bat-pooping corner, a dancing hall, darbar hall, exteriors, a swimming pool, and a polo ground. I went out with my production designer — incidentally, my sister Payal Ghose. The challenge was to make different locations seamlessly look like one palace. Even when we got access, we were only given empty barren halls. Payal dressed them up from scratch. Yuvanath Singh’s [Milind Soman] room was a giant open hall with no artwork or bathroom. Everything was constructed on-site by Payal and her team, including painting the walls.
How much of the state of royal estates shown is true?
Each royal family from different provinces is positioned differently — financially, socially, or politically. On our recce trips, I had met some royals. Through those interactions, I realized every family’s trajectory is different. They might be holding onto a title from the past, but some of them are very affluent doing well after foraying into fashion, polo, politics and other fields. We showed different shades inspired by them.
How did you convince Sakshi Tanwar to play such a controversial role?
I knew of Sakshi ma’am through casting coach Atul Mongia, who directed her in Mai [2022] and spoke highly of her. I had to convince her of Padmaja’s arc across the season. This was new to her, and she was skeptical, but that was the challenge she took as an artiste. She was also going through a personal crisis, but I saw a hungry artiste wanting to prove herself. In three days, she found her rhythm. Watching her scenes with Ishaan on camera was a joy.
Ishaan was the epitome of thirst trap in this series. How did you blend his emotional and sexy sides?
Ishaan in real life is a sexy, endearing, sensitive man — that was easy to portray. I was surprised no one had tapped into that before. He made Aviraaj far more likeable than he is on paper. If you just read the script, he’s a brat who behaves badly — during the will-reading and post a one-night stand. No one would root for him. But Ishaan brought more to the table. Yes, the ‘eye-candyness’ helps. His shirtless scenes didn’t feel forced and he is comfortable in his skin. I never used an inch of body make-up on him. He carried the trauma of the crown taking his father away and ran from it. Ishaan brought those layers effortlessly.
Was it intentional to show the leading lady as a knight in shining armour instead of a damsel in distress?
Yes, that arc was always in the story — Sophia is the one pulling the royal family out of its misery. Full marks to the women creators who thought of the female character in a wholesome way.
Sophia is ambitious, but also impulsive. Was that due to Bhumi playing the part?
Her impulsiveness was on paper. We leaned into it knowing Bhumi could pull it off without making it overbearing. With any other actor, I’d be skeptical. In India, we don’t easily accept authoritative women. But Bhumi has softness and vulnerability. Sophia is flawed, and only Bhumi could make her likeable. Sophia is Bhumi in real life.
Zeenat Aman, Bhumi Pednekar, Ishaan Khatter shoot Mumbai leg of Royals
8:37 AM
Zeenat, Bhumi and Ishaan shoot Mumbai leg of Royals, said to be partly inspired by Rajasthan’s aristocratic families; rom-com series mounted on a grand scale à la The Crown
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; April 18, 2024)
Imagine The Crown in an Indian setting. That would be a fascinating world. Soon, Zeenat Aman, Bhumi Pednekar and Ishaan Khatter will take us into that universe with Royals. While talk about Pednekar making her web series debut with the show hit headlines earlier this year, little was known about it. Now, mid-day has learnt that producers Rangita and Ishita Pritish Nandy wrapped up the series’ first schedule in Rajasthan in March-end and are currently shooting in Mumbai.
So, does Royals trace a particular aristocratic family? Not really. Sources tell us that the Netflix offering is a blend of fiction and facts, with some parts inspired by the different royal families of Rajasthan. Pednekar, who leads the series, apparently plays a big-league entrepreneur.
A source reveals, “The desert state has seen generations of royal families, from Jaipur to Mewar and Alsisar. Bits and pieces have been taken from the lives of these families, marrying it with a generous dose of fiction. The show will travel back and forth between two eras—the present day and the past decades. Like The Crown, it is being made on a grand scale, depicting lavish palaces, extravagant parties, and polo matches. At its core, Royals is a romantic comedy that will delve into the style, politics and fabulous lives of the aristocrats. Four More Shots Please’s success showed that the producers have a finger on the audience’s pulse, and this time, they are putting out a stylish and emotional drama.”
Pednekar, Khatter, Sakshi Tanwar, Chunky Panday and Milind Soman were a part of the first schedule that kicked off on February 10 in Rajasthan.
The source adds, “The unit shot at real locations like the City Palace and the Rambagh Palace. Simultaneously, the production design team was building huge sets reflecting the interiors of a palace, at a studio in central Mumbai. As soon as that schedule was wrapped up, the cast and crew kicked off the month-long stint in Mumbai. They will have a short schedule in Goa before wrapping up.”
Apparently, Rangita has chosen Four More Shots Please director Nupur Asthana, and The Night Manager’s Priyanka Ghose to helm the offering.
Women aren’t trusted enough to handle action, says The Night Manager co-director Priyanka Ghose
8:29 AM
Lamenting that action has long been a male bastion, The Night Manager co-director Priyanka on how she fought stereotyping and detractors to enjoy helming the genre
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; June 16, 2023)
Call it the Hindi film industry’s bias or what you may, but action movies are always associated with men. Which is why Priyanka Ghose co-directing The Night Manager could be viewed as an anomaly by many around her. When we sit down to chat with her ahead of the thriller’s second part dropping online this month, Ghose states matter-of-factly, “[Action offerings] are a male bastion.”
So, when she got the opportunity to helm the Anil Kapoor, Aditya Roy Kapur and Sobhita Dhulipala-led action series, she “ran with it”. “Over the years, female directors rarely took up action. It could be a mix of both — a lack of interest from their side, and they are not trusted enough to handle it. I got the opportunity here, and had a lot of fun doing the action extravaganza. There are elaborate set-pieces directed by me. All it takes is one man to trust you, and Sandeep [Modi, showrunner-director] trusted me. He saw value in my interest in the genre,” she says.
However, there were different issues on the ground level. Stunt crews are male-dominated, and Ghose heading them was out of the ordinary. The trick, she says, is to know your job so well that those around start respecting you for what you bring to the table.
“I studied the process of [setting up fight sequences] and understood their technicalities early on in my career. I knew my edit beforehand, I knew how to budget it correctly. At the end of the day, if you know the craft, the technical crew will respect it. Our action director Paramjeet Dhillon has worked with me a lot. But sometimes, there would be a local line producer, who would think, ‘Arre, isey kya pata hoga?’ But I was so thorough with my homework that no matter what they threw on the table, I knew how to solve it.”
Having a woman at the helm benefited the Disney+ Hotstar series, which is an adaptation of the Tom Hiddleston-led British series of the same name, in many ways. A case in point being the depiction of women.
“During the London screening, many studio executives told me that the female characters were stronger in our adaptation than in the original. It was heartwarming to hear that. During the pre-production, we did a lot of back and forth on our female characters. I would keep changing things, saying that women don’t talk like this. I ensured that Lipika [Tillotama Shome’s character] did not come across as a feminist propaganda mouthpiece.”
Her belief was only reaffirmed by Hiddleston who, at the London screening on March 17, couldn’t stop raving about the adaptation. “He spent the evening discussing scenes and asking us how we did a certain sequence. He felt that Aditya was better than him in certain parts.”
So, do we see a crossover soon? “We’re talking of a multiverse set-up. I hope we get enough love to pursue that route.”
Anil Kapoor says his long-delayed Abhinav Bindra biopic with Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor will roll next year
9:40 AM
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; July 15, 2022)
When we catch up with Anil Kapoor, he is neck-deep in the universe of 'Captain', the Indian adaptation of 'The Night Manager' (2016). The actor, 65, also has 'Animal' with Ranbir Kapoor, and 'Fighter' with Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone in the pipeline.
Tell him that’s a busy line-up, and he says he wouldn’t have it any other way. “There are times when you look at someone’s work and admire it. I am looking forward to working with Ranbir and Sandeep [Reddy Vanga, director] as I liked 'Kabir Singh' [2019]. I liked the story that Sandeep narrated to me. It was the same with Siddharth Anand’s 'Fighter', and 'Captain'. 'The Night Manager' has been wonderfully adapted by Sandeep Modi [showrunner-director] and Priyanka Ghose,” says the senior actor.
These three projects may be ambitious, but it’s the fourth offering that has Kapoor consumed. In 2017, he had announced a biopic on Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra, with actor-son Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor playing the rifle shooter. Five years on, the film — adapted from Bindra’s autobiography, A Shot At History: My Obsessive Journey To Olympic Gold And Beyond — has yet to roll. Though rumours were rife that the project has been shelved, the senior actor clears the air.
“Bindra was always happening, but it is a tough film to make. It needs a lot of planning. All good filmmakers work on scripts for years to make them happen. The pre-production work is on in full swing. I plan to start the film by 2023.”
After 'Thar' and 'AK vs AK' (2020), the father-son duo will reunite for the project, with Kapoor senior on double duty as actor-producer. A producer’s job, he says, is the toughest. “Producing is a thankless job. Being a producer’s son, I give a lot of credit to [those in the field].”
Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt shoot for short film to call for entries from filmmakers for MAMI
7:52 AM
The duo is joined by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani, Karan Johar, Chaitanya Tamhane and festival director Anupama Chopra in a short film which calls for entries from young filmmakers
Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; May 15, 2015)
This year, in an effort to make the 17th edition of the Mumbai Film Festival (MAMI) the country's biggest film event, the organizing committee has come up with brainwave--a 60-second short, with a 30 second cut, calling for entries from young filmmakers. The short boasts of the star power of Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, and also features filmmakers Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani, Chaitanya Tamhane and film critic Anupama Chopra. It will release digitally on May 18 and play in PVR theatres from the first week of June.
Anupama, who is also the festival
director, describes this film as one of the many miracles that is
enabling this festival to survive and thrive. "Four production houses, artistes and crew gave us their talent and time free of cost and made this happen," she informs. Priyanka Ghose, who came up with a script overnight and directed the film, shot for five days over a couple of weeks to get the conversational bites she wanted from these B'town A-listers. She spent another two-three days to edit and set it to music. The support of four major production houses made the job easier.
"It's not a gimmicky film, it's hand-held, vox-populish and gets into real space. I've invaded homes, sets and even Karan Johar's cabin which no one is allowed to enter, to capture my 'stars' in their day-today life. And returned with lots of interesting takes and tales," smiles Priyanka who recalls how Alia was reluctant to take off the cap she was wearing because it would reveal the new hairstyle she sports in an upcoming film. "So we changed the lighting to ensure that the cap did not cast a shadow on her face."
The Chopras are experts at giving interviews and rock-solid opinions, so filming them was easy. But Priyanka had to chat up Raju Hirani, whom she describes as a 'sweet, humble introvert', before the shoot so he wouldn't look like he was 'acting' on screen.
"Karan was a huge surprise. I'd gone to him with a prepared script and ideas I wanted to plant in his head, but he had his own ideas about what he wanted to say and gave me a crash-course in filmmaking," she laughs.
Says the actor-filmmaker, "It's important for the city, which mothers a large part of Indian cinema, to have a festival of its own. MAMI is the largest platform endeavouring to spread the power of cinema through this city of dreams."
Ranbir and Ali too, being actors, knew exactly what Priyanka was looking for. She has five versions of the five takes she took and has used all of them in the film. "It was bizarre to see RK, a huge star and a brilliant actor, industriously rehearsing and practising his reactions before I called for 'Action'," she reminisces.
Chaitanya Tamhane whose film, Court, was adjudged Best Film in the International Competition section of MAMI in 2014, going on to win the National Award for Best Film, urges young filmmakers to showcase their works at the festival, insisting that for him MAMI is a window to the best of world cinema amidst a celebratory atmosphere and an infectious spirit.
"It's that one week in a year where film lovers from not just Mumbai, but all over India, flock to the festival venues like kids in a candy store. One is almost spoilt for choices with such a diverse and exquisite selection of films, and that too for the minimal cost of an all access pass," he points. "I think of myself as a perennial film student, and MAMI is one of the best film schools out there."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)