Not Just Bollywood | Makarand Deshpande on Kaali controversy: ‘Freedom of expression should never be misused’

Not Just Bollywood: In this we will be having a lighthearted conversation over a cup of tea with the actors, filmmakers and those associated with the entertainment industry. The interviewer’s questions will not only be about the new releases but about the craftsman’s journey in the entertainment industry and more. The story of _Shoorveer_ talks about the Army, Navy and Air Force coming together. In this series, the brightest and sharpest minds from the Army, Navy and Air Force come together to create an elite task force. The force, collectively called the Hawks, features in the fast-paced action drama that revolves around stealthy operations, air combat, intelligence subterfuge and above all, human relationships between our soldiers. Once Makarand had said, “I never strived to be a star. I just wanted to do good acting.” Such is the simplicity of the man who loves his craft and knows where to draw the line. In an EXCLUSIVE interview with Firstpost, Makarand Deshpande says that playing the role of the national security in charge, he had to actually get into the skin of the character because it was more of a psychological training than just the exterior look of it. As an artist, he feels that one should always ask himself whether you are here to help the society with your art or shock the society with your art. Excerpts from the interview: Preparation for the role in Shoorveer… The role required a lot of gravitas. That is what the story wants you to have a lot of gravitas because the things that are being discussed and the stories that are unfolding are to do with nation threat. I am playing the role of a raw officer. For any character I play the most important thing is the awareness of the character and when I am playing the role of a person who takes care of the national security the entire mindset changes. There is a sense of responsibility that is put on your shoulder. Other than just following the mannerism of the armed force officers it is important to understand what is it that makes their job so critical and trying to understand that your mind automatically changes. Here I am playing the role of a person who is trying to figure out a strategy for national defense. When I used to get ready for the preparation of the role, I knew that I am not just a character, but a person who is in charge of the country’s security. Here in Shoorveer you will see the three forces coming together and that itself makes Shoorveer different from other war web series and films. When I performed in Swadesh I was a fakir, so one had to belong to the character, feel that character. So, it was more of a psychological work and of course the look had to be taken care of.

Uniqueness of the show. In this show we are trying to get the three forces together and create a force. That is the newness of the web show. It’s a work of fiction, which doesn’t happen in reality. It is like try to say when all forces –Army, Navy and Air Force come together what miracle can happen. How much was the show able to bring it out that the three forces play an equally important role in the security of the country? The point is to create one force which is always ready to fight for the security of the country. So, we don’t need to think about where the attack happened. When 26/11 happened, who would have realised that the terrorists will use the sea to enter our country. How things are looking up post pandemic for the artists? We are back to normal. If _RRR_ can do business of 1000 crores post pandemic, anything can happen. I have plays coming up at the Prithvi theatre. When it comes to theatre audiences, they remain the theatre audience and OTT audience remains OTT audience. And audiences are very loyal to their platforms whether it is stage, cinema halls or OTT. What do you have to say about this new liberating place called OTT? OTT is the most democratic platform and subjects can be made closer to reality. As actors I feel there is more scope for characters and it is not plot oriented. The roles are layered, so there is a lot of scope for actors to showcase their craft. Now there are stories being told from all parts of the country. You are not expecting stories just from urban centers. There are stories coming from all regions of the country and getting dubbed in different languages. The doors of storytelling have really opened up. OTT is closer to life, but films on the other hand is a larger than life scenario. How much freedom of expression should be given when it comes to art? When you are doing a show for OTT, there is no censorship. But then I feel then comes your own self-censorship. You need to ask yourself are you there to help the society with your art or are you there to shock the society with your art. So, it all depends on what you want to do. One should be truthful to the subject.

We see a certain filmmaker, Leena Manimekalai who has misconstrued the freedom of expression to grab eyeballs by showing Ma Kaali smoking. When it comes to freedom of expression, where is it that we need to draw the line? You need to be careful as an artist if your work of art is bringing about destruction to the society or construction. If you are an artist, one needs to be more responsible because the whole society is getting influenced by you. Tune into Disney+ Hotstar today to catch the Hawks in action in Shoorveer.

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