Tahira Kashyap is gearing up for her directorial debut Sharmajee Ki Beti. The writer-filmmaker, who has authored many books and directed shorts is coming up with a slice-of-life story starring Sakshi Tanwar, Saiyami Kher and Divya Dutta in lead roles. Tahira speaks about portrayal of women, digitalisation, realism and escapism in cinema in an exclusive interaction with Hindustan Times. Excerpts from the interview. 

Inspiration behind Sharmajee Ki Beti

Sharmajee Ki Beti shows the journey of five women across different age groups. When asked about the inspiration behind the film and the challenges while navigating three different stories, Tahira says, “Sometimes, your first feature films are very close to your heart and life. Since they have a part of you, they are the most uncorrupted, innocent, truest way of telling your stories. I was sure this was the kind of film that would be my debut, and there were these lovely five women from different age groups. They are all crazy and have their own insecurities and things to say in a funny, light-hearted, and slice-of-life way. Each of them has a bit of me, somewhere or the other. You write based on your experiences and observations as a writer and director. Your first few pieces of work or art usually come from a very strong place of observation or experience.”

Tahira Kashyap emphasises on age-defined characters

On being quizzed about her personal experiences which influenced her story while depicting diverse characters in Sharmajee Ki Beti, Tahira opines, “I chose to have many protagonists in this film because I didn't want to let go off the opportunity. I really wanted to break the pattern. So as someone who has just started off, I thought it is not authentic to give all the problems, accolades, and victories to just one person. Also, many problems, nuances and struggles are very age and phase-specific. The movies that we have been watching have shown the leading lady in a particular age group, around 25-28 years old. It is neither below nor beyond that age. Those characters which do exist are presented in cliched characters. There is a big span of womanhood which has not yet been explored in Indian cinema.”

She further says, “When it comes to other people observing, it's got some wonderful response because it was screened at the MAMI film festival. With God's grace it was houseful and it received applause and accolades. What hit home was when there were people coming to me, both men and women, saying that, 'I resonated most with this character.' So, I had lot of people coming and telling me, 'Mujhe lag rha hai aapne mere baare me likha hai. (I feel as if you wrote this scirpt keeping me in mind)'. But that was also because issues are small, but they are very real. That was the biggest complement for me.”

Tahira Kashyap stresses on realism in storytelling

When asked about her considerations as a writer while writing stories that resonate with audiences, Tahira points out, “That's my goal as a storyteller across various mediums, including the books I've written, short films, social media stories, and my podcast. As a storyteller, it's essential to connect with audiences. Otherwise kiske liye likh rhe ho aap (whom are you writing for)? That has always been my deep desire and approach to writing and filming. I believe that the audience should feel a strong connection to the content, to the point where they don't feel like they are just watching a film. It should be like as if unpe hi darshai gai hai ya unhone hi itna closely dekha hai (it is depicted on the audiences and is closer to them). Otherwise you don't feel the highs and lows that much.”

Tahira Kashyap praises Divya Dutta's dedication

While speaking about her decision to cast Sakshi Tanwar, Saiyami Kher and Divya Dutta, Tahira states that, “They are brilliant artists. They have been there for an amazing amount of time and have always received appreciation. They are very good at what they do. Honestly, when I met all of them, they had their own beautiful, unique collaboration on the character that was given to them. Divya Dutta is a child on set. I was the one who was supposed to be nervous since it's my first film. She was the one who was most passionate about it. Every day on set she would come as if this was the first time she was filming. I said, 'What energy.' I need to learn this from her. I need to preserve that innocent, passionate part of me for the rest of my life in terms of filmmaking. They (Sakshi, Saiyami and Divya) are doing what they are doing for so long and people have been loving them in different roles because they bring authenticity and credibility to their characters. There is a lot of thought and work that goes into it.”

Tahira Kashyap on social responsibility of cinema

When asked about her views on censorship of OTT content, Tahira says, “I believe that filmmaking and writing are highly creative fields, and writers, directors, and actors should have the freedom to express themselves however they choose. However, it's important to remember that we are all part of a society, a country, and a world that is experiencing a lot of violence, and there are many real-life triggers that already exist. Therefore, I think it's crucial to be empathetic because as artists, empathy and compassion are at the core of what we do. While some people may argue that it's not our responsibility and that we're just here to make a piece of cinema, I believe we should strive to create cinema that doesn't further contribute to the existing disharmony in people's vulnerable mindsets.”

Tahira Kashyap weighs in on social media indulgence

On being asked whether social media plays a major role in influencing people's aspirations and human connections in today's times, Tahira opines, “I feel digitalisation has been a great thing for all of us in terms of globalisation and connectivity. However, the concept of social media and the attention span reduced to one minute and thirty seconds is really taking away humanity from us. Humans were supposed to engage in conversations, chai pe charcha hoti thi (there used to be discussions over a cup of tea), and community living was important. It was so crucial for existence and has been diminished by isolated indulgence in social media. Of course, a certain kind of influence is happening on social media, the aspirational life, but that is also always a getaway in cinemas." She further adds, “You go for a Karan Johar film because it is aspirational; you are like, wow, aise bhi colleges aur schools hote hain (there are schools and colleges like these as well). I feel that escapism is a beautiful thing; there is nothing wrong with that. You have your mundane day-to-day lives, and then you go to the theatres to watch a world you are not exposed to, but there is a possibility that it exists and it's beautiful. In social media, if we are being influenced in a way that is detrimental to our growth, we need to stop it. I feel everything has its positives and negatives; we need to figure out what suits us best.”

Sharmajee Ki Beti is scheduled for a June 28 release on Amazon Prime.

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