Excerpts from the conversation:

Reed Hastings: Many of the shows that Monika is doing here are extraordinary. We have launched 70 Indian Netflix originals already. Some have won international Emmy. The White Tiger got a lot of positive accolades. Monika is expanding regional content from the South. Now we have got 90 shows in the pipeline already that are developed. 70 done, 90 commissioned and in the pipeline.

Monika Shergill: The way the Netflix model works beautifully as we have experienced across countries is that consumers come to Netflix for both quality and diversity. For us what actually works is diversity, because your Netflix is different from my Netflix. Which is why when we say we have done 70 titles in India — this is across doc series, this is across content like Indian matchmaking, content like the Emmy award-winning Delhi Crime, Jamtara which is on phishing, the crime dramas.

The new slate actually what we are coming out with will be a significant sort of step change in the market, also the way we have planned it, hoping very humbly that it lands like that, is the velocity of content, the kind of stories that we will bring at scale and at velocity which Netflix is globally known for. So that is what we are aiming to do from the end of this year.

Hastings: Titles yes, but production companies like that we are not competing with them. So if we start buying one or two — all the others are worried. So we think all the commissions that we are doing is with local production companies, which builds their capacity. And then they contract with us, they do something with us, they do something with Prime. So they get to build strong businesses, without being dependant on us and that’s how we build the industry, with independent production. So I think we are better commissioning content or acquiring titles, not companies.

Shergill: You can see that on the one hand, there is a Sacred Games which has done so well. And on the other extreme end, there’s a Haseen Dillruba which has actually exploded across 22 countries, and has been on the top 10 list and has worked in tier one, tier two cities and across. And then documentaries have gone up by 100%. Kids content on Netflix has gone up by 100% viewing. We have had K dramas, which have actually gone up nearly, I don’t know, 400%. Romance as a genre is very less serviced in India, it is in cinema. But the kind of romance people want to see which K dramas have been showing in a very small set of audience. But that audience base can expand is a taste. We are very, very big on crime.

Hastings: In every county we provide extensive parental controls. We really want each family to be able to set and enforce their standards. We give our families tremendous control. The Internet has changed the perceptions of control, broadcast television and movie theatres. In many countries, they are more controlled and the Internet is more open. So that’s a change societies are adjusting to. But the way we are reacting to it is to provide each family with the controls they want. If you and your wife are watching you don’t need any controls, if you got 14-year olds then you want a lot of controls. So we are very flexible that way.

Hastings: It’s a little of both. Because look, we self-regulate too like the industry, and try to be thoughtful about that. So we don’t have any pornography. I mean, we don’t, there’s lots of things we don’t have. Okay, so we essentially self-regulate in terms of the kind of content we have. But some of our content, you know, as Sex Education. It’s very funny but you know, it’s not good for a 14 year old. So we have both.

Hastings: I think as you said, the broadband, the mobile prices being so low in India, you know, Rs 200 or 300 a month, it is extraordinary and not like any other country.

Hastings: It’s about half and half on mobile and television in India.

Adarsh Gourav remembers being blown away by Anthony Hopkins’s menacing act when he first watched The Silence Of The Lambs (1991). Now, in a charming twist of fate, he finds himself nominated alongside the legend in the Best Leading Actor category at the 2021 British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs). “I have followed the works of Mads Mikkelsen and Anthony Hopkins. They are my all-time favourites,” begins an exuberant Gourav, who burst on the scene with his captivating performance as Balram in The White Tiger.

As soon as the Ramin Bahrani-directed film — an adaptation of Aravind Adiga’s Man Booker Prize-winning novel of the same name — dropped on Netflix, curious viewers started Googling ‘Adarsh Gourav’. Everyone wanted to know more about the 26-year-old with the piercing gaze who held his own in front of Rajkummar Rao and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. While Gourav has come to terms with his newfound fame, he didn’t foresee the international recognition coming his way.  

“When I was at the gym [on Tuesday] night, I saw that Priyanka had posted a message on our group. I didn’t read it fully and sent a heart emoji. After a few minutes, I got a call, informing me that I have been nominated. That’s when I went back to the message and noticed that she had written about my nomination,” he chuckles.

Gourav is in august company with Hopkins, Mikkelsen, Riz Ahmed, the late Chadwick Boseman, and Tahar Rahim for co-nominees. “It feels surreal. Every year, we talk about so-and-so being nominated, and suddenly, my name is on that list. It feels weird to even pronounce my name next to these legends. To me, it’s an accident. During the shoot, when Ramin used to tell me that I was doing okay, I thought he was being kind. After people started talking about my act, I apologised to him for doubting [his instincts].”

Ask him how life has changed post the film, and he says, “Earlier, the frequency of auditions was low. Now I am auditioning for solid parts and reading more scripts.” He is simultaneously prepping for his next that will roll in November.

Prashant Singh (HINDUSTAN TIMES; September 13, 2020)

Like others, showbiz has been among the most adversely hit sectors amid the pandemic and everything in the film industry stopped in its tracks when the Coronavirus lockdown came into force in March. For Rajkummar Rao though, the pause mode was already on, when the nationwide shutdown was declared.

“I last shot for The White Tiger, two-three months before the lockdown started. So, in essence, I haven’t shot for anything since December 2019. Also, because I had worked non-stop for two-three years, I thought lockdown would be a good break. But I never thought it to be so long,” the actor says with a laugh.

But now, the Stree (2018) actor is yearning to face the camera again. “Acting is like oxygen to me, so I just can’t wait to resume work. I really hope everyone gets back to work soon,” says Rao.

Excited to have completed a decade in Bollywood since his debut film, Love Sex Aur Dhokha in 2010, Rao, 36, feels that if one knows their job well, audiences and filmmakers will take notice. “The way Hindi cinema, and the overall industry functions, has changed a lot now. If you’re really good at what you do, you will flourish,” he adds.

Among Rao’s upcoming slate of films will be a remake of 1975 cult classic Chupke Chupke that starred Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra. “I am so excited about starting work on it. Like everyone else, I’m a huge fan of the original film and I know it’ll always be the original. That’s why there is no question of us even trying to compete with it,” says the actor, who will reprise Dharmendra’s part in the reloaded version.

“We want to pay the best-possible tribute to the film and Hrishi-da (director Hrishikesh Mukherjee), in the most entertaining manner,” he says.

The Omerta (2018) actor, however, believes that box office verdict can decide a lot of things in an actor’s career, “but I can’t only think about that while working”.

For Rao, there’s no difference in the way he approaches his parts. “Like serious films, fun films, too, require a certain amount of mental as well as emotional prep. But once that bit is sorted, on sets, you can have a lot of fun with your scenes. As an actor, you should just be sincere with your material,” he concludes.

Actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas says it’s her dream to see Indian cinema take over the West
Rishabh Suri (HINDUSTAN TIMES; November 27, 2019)

To say that Priyanka Chopra Jonas is a household name across India, would be an understatement. She is perhaps our biggest name working abroad too, singing, acting and doing what not! After carving out a music career in the West with songs such as Exotic and In My City, she went on to star in films such as Baywatch (2017) and Isn’t It Romantic? The show Quantico, in which she played the lead role, remains her biggest achievement there.

However, it wasn’t easy for PeeCee. She tells us that it was all too new for her when she first went to try her luck in Hollywood. “When I went to America,” she begins, “there wasn’t a precedence. I didn’t have a road map to follow because there was no one who had done it before. I had to figure it out, walk into rooms, introduce myself, say ‘I am an Indian actor, my name is Priyanka Chopra, these are the kind of films I want to do’. I demanded playing leading roles, instead of settling for parts which were the stereotype of what a Bollywood actor would usually get. Those also came to me, but I was very clear about what I wanted to do.”

The 37-year-old adds that such was the perception then, that Bollywood was reduced to a ‘genre’ on streaming platforms. Says Priyanka, “I dug my feet in, persevered and did what I needed to do. It’s my dream that Indian cinema becomes global. We are one of the biggest movie industries in the world, and we have been reduced to a genre. If you look at streaming services, you will see genres such as ‘horror’, ‘comedy’, ‘drama’ and ‘Bollywood’. Bollywood is not a genre, it’s an entire industry! It’s my life’s dream to see Indian cinema and artistes take over the West.”

Many Indian actors such as Ali Fazal and Radhika Apte have been getting work abroad lately. Does Priyanka see a positive shift?

She agrees. “Somewhere, people don’t see Bollywood with the lens that they saw it with when I started working in America. I got a lot of ‘So you must be a good dancer?’ and I used to be like ‘Ya, I can sing, dance and act, I am a triple threat!’ So, you have to stop people in tracks and say ‘I am not just one thing’... It took a lot of work, I am so glad. I hope beyond what we are seeing, I want to see Indian actors and movies become mainstream global entertainers. That’s what I have done with Quantico, Baywatch and the movies I am doing like The White Tiger and We Can Be Heroes. We need to see more Indian talent,” says Priyanka, who was recently seen in the Hindi film The Sky is Pink after a break of three years from Bollywood.

And that is what exactly happened when Priyanka and actor Mindy Kaling got themselves the chance of a lifetime. Priyanka tells us, “To me, it was a massive achievement when Mindy and I walked into Universal Studios, came out with a deal for an all-Indian starcast in a Hollywood movie, in a romantic comedy! That’s never happened in a mainstream rom-com! I remember, we came out, held our hands, and we couldn’t believe it. It took us fighting the fight. I am hoping to be able to create so many more opportunities for Indian actors in my small way. I am obviously not saying I can change everything. But in my small way… that’s my quest.”

Priyanka Chopra on her comeback Hindi film, The Sky Is Pink, her production plans and making her long-distance marriage with Nick Jonas work
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; October 6, 2019)

From becoming the face for desi talent in the US by headlining the ABC show, Quantico, to her marriage to pop star Nick Jonas, Priyanka Chopra Jonas is evidently in a content space. And yet, for anyone who knows her well enough, she is always hungry for more.

We catch up with her at Mehboob Studios, Bandra, and chat about why film sets need to go plastic-free given the alarming state of the environment, but soon enough, we nosedive into a conversation about what made her choose a fairly non-commercial filmmaker Shonali Bose's The Sky Is Pink even when industry bigwigs were lining up at her doorstep.

"I have never picked up conventional or mainstream films. To me, a good story matters the most. I am a movie buff and this was a story that sucked me in. Be it a Bajirao Mastani or a Mary Kom or Barfi! they aren't conventional. Of course, I do tentpole films but that's not the only thing I depend on. Now, the audience is different. A few years ago, when we were marketing our films we would say, 'leave your brains at home and watch the movie'. People don't want to leave their brains behind at home anymore. I understand that people want to shaken, stirred and moved while watching a film," starts off Chopra.

She admits that she has not watched Bose's films. "She keeps telling me, 'How did you say yes to me without seeing my work?'" Chopra says that the story moved her to bits. The Sky Is Pink, in Shonali's words, is the love story of Niren and Aditi Chaudhury, the parents of Aisha, an author and motivational speaker who died of pulmonary fibrosis.

"This story is profound and funny. It hits your heart. I have been acting for 16 years. I have worked with many new filmmakers. When I talk to a filmmaker, I can sense how much they know a subject. The script spoke to me. When I met her in New York, I knew instinctively that I wanted to be directed by her. There are filmmakers I have worked with and have not been able to trust. I wanted an immersive experience and Shonali had clarity. She told me how she lost her child. There is a certain lightness about death. She told me that people go when their work on Earth is done. You shouldn't mourn their death but celebrate their life. I hadn't dealt with my father's death as well. But she made me realise that I didn't need to mourn him. People who love us don't want us to grieve. This film discusses a heavy subject but is told by Aisha who is light-hearted. Her parents decided to give her every kind of adventure and love that they could think of. I was amazed that these real-life people who created an extraordinary life for their daughter. It was incredibly inspiring for me as an actor. I went through a roller-coaster of emotions, laughing my guts out and crying a little through it. The film made me call up those I love and tell them how much I cherish them."

Chopra was attracted to the story of enduring love of Niren and Aditi who met as high school sweethearts. Now, at 55 they still hold hands, give each other a peck and survived the loss of two children. "Their chemistry is overpowering, 70 per cent of couples separate after the death of their children. To be happy and have compassion is hard in such scenarios. Life is not a pursuit of rage but happiness. When my dad was suffering, I remember the toll it took on mom [Madhu]."

She derived the character from her mother as much as she did from Aditi and Shonali. "My mother is similar to Aditi, fiercely protective and her own person. We are taught as girls to have that kind of independence, have opinions and have a voice. I want the world to see that a free-spirited family can be well-knit and doesn't take away from sanskars."

Though Chopra is back with a Bollywood film after a gap, she says, "I always had films coming my way. But during Quantico, I had to give 11 months of my year to them. This is why I did Baywatch, A Kid Like Jake and Isn't It Romantic because one month is not enough to finish a feature. Post-Quantico, I knew what kind of film I was looking for. I knew Alex Parish so well that I needed a role to scare me. I wanted to be on my toes, get sleepless nights. I knew I wanted to be fed as an artiste. It's a responsibility to play a real-life person. I had to play a mother which I am not yet. I remember a scene required me to go so deep into me that once cameras stopped, I held Shonali and cried. I was getting married when I was shooting, so there was no time to plan the wedding in between the film."

With The Sky Is Pink, Chopra also turns a Hindi film producer too. "I want to do web series and features across languages. I am an EP on the Netflix film, The White Tiger. I am producing the Mindy Kaling film as well as web shows. I like taking chance on new talent because I never had that."

'We Inform Each Other Of Every Tiny Detail'
Priyanka Chopra Jonas and husband Nick Jonas lead hectic lives thanks to their professional commitments. PeeCee says, "We have rules. We don't go two weeks without meeting each other, no matter where we are in the world. We have to stay in touch. We have to inform each other of every tiny detail. Our schedules are opposite when we are in different time zones, but we FaceTime our way through this. It's a modern-day long distance relationship, which is hinged on how much we want to make it work. We love each other's company and we are each other's best friends. Sometimes, I wake him in the middle of the night and shriek out something that happened with me and he's there. We get how important our work is to us. We are ambitious and driven and in love in equal parts."