Nandita Das talks of stories that touch hearts and minds

I came into acting by default and my human rights background must have influenced my choices in the acting work that I took. For me, in many ways the transition from actor to director was a natural progression. It was always exciting to watch the rest of the crew work towards shaping a scene. Often, I would get involved with suggestions or just ask questions. Slowly the desire to tell stories the way I wanted to started growing stronger. I grew up in a creative family (my mother is a writer and father an artist) must have acted as an impetus. My home environment helped shape my ethos, ethics, sensibility and outlook towards life in general. My father has had a deep influence on me and my choices. Right from the beginning he encouraged me to question everything and gave me the freedom to explore, to follow my heart. He laid a lot of emphasis on core values like honesty, equality and sensitivity. I was reminded so often to question my motivations and my actions that it has almost become a habit to do a reality check in every situation. Today, if I have been able to keep my feet firmly on the ground, my head on my shoulders and my heart in its right place, then it has a lot to do with my upbringing. I got into films as an actor by default too. I did my Master’s in social work and then went on to work with NGOs. The experience of being exposed to the many realities of life was bound to impact my choices in films both consciously and instinctively. There is no career graph as there is no real strategy or plan to the way my life has unfolded. Social work is what I did much before I got into acting, so for me it was the other way around. Throughout my career I have been instinctively anchored towards projects that I can relate to, that have resonated with my interests, concerns and dilemma. Having said that, there have been films that did not turn out the way I had imagined them to. Despite that, I am happy that at least I made a choice for honest reasons. Whenever I select a project I look for a strong script, a director who can translate that into an interesting cinematic experience, and a role that is layered and believable. Often, all these things don’t come together as there are many factors involved in film-making. But when they do, it is a fulfilling experience. Recently, I have finished shooting for a Tamil and a Hindi film. I consciously took projects that did not require more than a week’s commitment, but they were both powerful stories. Chhoti Productions was conceived by my husband, Subodh (Maskara) and I, to provide an outlet for our creative ideas. Chhoti is the vehicle through which we hope to express ourselves in the Performing Arts. Our endeavour is to bring quality Performing Arts to audiences in the country and beyond. From the time I have known my husband Subodh, I have seen how comfortable and creative he is when he is narrating stories or mimicking people. He has a natural flair for performance. But most importantly, his passion and commitment to theatre and his new life of creativity is what gave me the confidence that he would be a great partner on stage. As a producer, I had no doubts at all as he has been an entrepreneur for a long time now. I saw him growing through the workshop experiences with Waman Kendre and Mahesh Dattani. He had been an inherent part of our writing journey as well, and therefore feels close to the script. Every day during our rehearsals and shows of the play, I have seen him getting closer to the character he is playing! Firaaq is an Urdu word that means both separation and quest. Set in the context of the aftermath of a communal riot in Gujarat, Firaaq is a work of fiction, based on a thousand happenings. It traces the emotional journeys of ‘ordinary people’ — some who were victims, some perpetrators and some who chose to watch silently. It is through their journeys that we experience the explicit and implicit impact of violence, and the desperate desire for peace. It also had to do with waking up to newspapers with stories full of violence; having conversations about religion and identity and soon finding oneself in a very polarised debate; meeting victims of violence and seeing their vacant helpless eyes; feeling deeply disturbed by the constant ‘them and us’ from all quarters...Firaaq is a reaction to all that and more. On a more optimistic note, during my many travels and interactions, I have sensed a collective desire to understand this complex and violent world we inhabit and a palpable need for peace. I think Firaaq reflects these complex thoughts and touches the hearts and minds of those who watch it. During the process of writing the script, many stories, comments and events inspired us and at times found their way into the screenplay. The long gestation period was good for the script because it allowed stories to breathe and our characters to grow in a more organic manner, making the script more layered, relevant and interesting. This is a work of fiction, based on a thousand true stories. There were actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Paresh Rawal, Raghubir Yadav and Deepti Naval who I had thought would be perfect at the scripting stage. There were some who I had wanted to cast, but for different reasons we couldn’t work together. The journey of finding the rest of the cast has also been very exciting. I am also happy to have found extremely talented actors like Sanjay Suri, Shahana Goswami, Nowaz, Tisca Chopra and many others who have given their best to the film. The journey of making Firaaq has been an all-consuming, but also cathartic experience. At any given point, hundreds of factors need to be dealt with and many simultaneous decisions have to be made. I am really glad that the film got made against all odds. But I have enjoyed every phase of film making, with all its challenges, big and small. And I am grateful to all those who had faith in me and in the story I so wanted to tell. My last three years have been hectic, as a new mother and the chairperson of the Children’s Film Society. Direction requires a lot more time and focus, and is therefore something that I can look into only once our play, Between The Lines, is over. Perhaps early next year I will start exploring some of my other ideas. As the Chairperson of the Children’s Film Society of India, I found my work both daunting and rewarding. It was an opportunity to make a difference, to try out something new and explore yet another area of interest. I tried to make systemic changes that will last beyond my tenure. Today, children are growing up on a completely different diet and we cannot stop that. But we can certainly provide an alternative. There aren’t too many takers in terms of distribution, as they prefer family entertainers as opposed to films made specifically for children, despite the fact that kids form a huge part of the audience. There is a real dearth of quality content that provides wholesome entertainment to children. Children form a huge film audience the world over. I wonder why we have not explored this segment enough. In India, economics gets in the way of everything, more so filmmaking. Because of that, people often do not want to take a chance. However, it is possible to make low or medium-budget films that are strong in content and form, do not compromise the ideals and are a lot of fun. Unfortunately, our films for children are either preachy and boring, or fluffy and sometimes even violent. The reality shows are putting a lot of pressure on children, which can be very harmful for their emotional growth. As for motherhood, women are forced to be great multi-taskers, thanks to all the different things they end up doing. We are forced to be good at it! Honestly, juggling roles has been challenging. I will continue to travel the journey of life with multiple interests and concerns, and thankfully without the pressure of proving myself or fearing the consequences. I care deeply about issues concerning women and much of my work, be it acting, writing, directing or speaking, is about advocating these concerns. It is all half a drop in the ocean, but we all need to do our little bit. I have seen that there is always time for what one really wants to do. Whatever is a priority comes to the forefront and the rest takes a back seat. Sometimes other things go on the back burner and resurface later. During Firaaq that was my focus, now it’s Chhoti Productions and, of course, Vihaan, who has made me introspective, other than filling me with a lot of joy.