Mumbai: New beginnings, search for hope, and reflection on life amid the coronavirus pandemic is what drove the cast and crew of the “Unpaused” to make the Amazon Prime Video’s original anthology a reality. The streamer brought together filmmakers such as director duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, Nikkhil Advani, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Avinash Arun, and Nitya Mehra to make five short films for “Unpaused”, which were shot in compliance with government rules and regulations issued in Maharashtra for filming during the Unlock phase. The country went into a complete lockdown in March due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Nidimoru said life came to a standstill for everyone during the health crisis, including him who initially found comfort in penning stories. His wish to be on a film set was soon answered when they were offered to direct “Glitch”, featuring Gulshan Devaiah and Saiyami Kher, came their way. “‘Glitch’ is a happy event for us. For us, it is about making something to remember this sh**** phase we went through with a happy note. It is an expression to remember this period, 10 years later looking at it (wondering) ‘it was not too bad, we did it’,” the director, best known for the Amazon web series “The Family Man”, said at the virtual press conference of “Unpaused” on Tuesday.
Krishna said working with restrictions amid lockdown took him back to the root of independent work the duo did early on in their career. For veteran actor Ratna Pathak Shah, who features in Mehra’s short “Chaand Mubarak”, working amid the current scenario turned out to be learning experience. “There were new ways of working and doing things. I loved this idea, everyone has set roles to play. There was so much learning, self awareness,” Shah, who co-stars with “Eeb Allay Ooo” actor Shardul Bhardwaj in the short, said. Director Advani said the anthology came as a beacon of hope as he believes filmmakers and storytellers come alive when they make movies.
“There was no light at the end of the tunnel in May or June. For this film, we chose a subject that relies heavily on hope, fairy godmothers and how somebody is always there to look out for you,” he said. Advani’s short “Apartment” features Richa Chadha, Sumeet Vyas and Ishwak Singh of the Amazon web series “Paatal Lok”.
Actor-turned-director Chatterjee said her aim was to find happiness under these circumstances through “Rat A Tat”, which features “Sairat” star Rinku Rajguru and veteran stage-film actor Lillete Dubey. Chatterjee said she could relate to the story, which highlights the loneliness of senior citizens.
“It is being said during the pandemic that senior citizens need to take a lot of care. I believe this was being insensitive. I have my parents. They are cool people, they are funny and they take life lightly. We wanted to show it that way and not dramatic. “When this story came about this young woman and elderly woman, I felt it will strike a chord with people. I didn’t want the story to be depressing,” she said.
Arun, who shot and co-directed “Paatal Lok”, said his short “Vishaanu” features the plight of migrant workers amid the pandemic, thus telling a very relevant story of our times. “It would be unfair to say we were unaffected due to pandemic, I wonder why during such times only the poor and vulnerable have to suffer the most,” he said.
“Vishaanu” reunites the director with “Paatal Lok” star Abhishek Banerjee who plays a migrant worker. The short also stars Geetika Vidya of “Soni” fame. Banerjee, an actor-casting director, said it was essential for him to understand the mindset of a migrant worker under these difficult circumstances.
To prep for his role, the actor said, he called up the carpenter who works at his house. “We realised there are so many people who work for us. It was important to understand their problems. So I called the carpenter, who works at my house, expecting to hear a sad story from him, but he was fine. He said he was getting time to spend with his family,” he added.
“Unpaused” is slated to premiere on December 18.
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