Shriya Pilgaonkar : 'OTT allows women characters to be flawed, real and layered'

Guilty Mind, the legal drama follows the journey of two young and ambitious lawyers. While one is the epitome of virtue, the other is associated with a leading law firm, dealing with all shades of grey. Shriya Pilgaonkar plays the role of Kashaf Quaze, who is idealistic and has very strong morals and sees the world in black and white and not grey. The most striking part of the web-show is that it has ten episodes and each episode has different cases. Shriya believes that the ‘ Guilty Mind’ is going to lead to a lot of conversation among the viewers. For Shriya, OTT has been a game-changer. Excerpts: What was your preparation for the role of Kashaf Quaze, the lawyer in Guilty Mind? For me, it was not just understanding the fact that I am playing a lawyer. But I needed to cover who the person behind this lawyer is. My point of reference more than anything else was my director because she comes from a prestigious family of lawyers. She has seen the world intimately. She had a lot of things to share on what the conversations should be like. And I never had a chance to go to the court before. But I did visit the high court. When I visited the high court, I was expecting some drama, but the arguments were peaceful. I was completely taken aback because there was no drama that we have been watching in films. But one thing I realised was lawyers are also performers and it is that persona that they bring in court and that’s what makes them who they are. The preparation for me was to speak to friends who are lawyers and understand what drives them. And at the same time creating Kashaf Quaze who is very idealistic and who has very strong morals and sees the world in black and white and not grey. For someone like her, it can be tough as we know that the world is not that righteous. Her own emotional personal journey in the show is very beautifully written. What is the most striking part of the show ‘Guilty Mind’? Another aspect was that the show has ten episodes and each episode has a different case and the cases range from being futuristic about driverless cars to one about the music industry and copyright issues to another one about social issues like water. So, for me it was a great learning experience and it was so interesting because these stories raise certain philosophical questions that viewers are also going to enjoy discussing and debating. I am sure it is going to give rise to a lot of conversations among the audience.

Your journey in the entertainment industry… I have always been very grateful for all my experiences in the industry. OTT has been a game changer for me. Coming from a family of actors and filmmakers I was always aware that it is a combination of talent, luck and opportunity and a lot of times because of the uncertainties of things you really have to learn to enjoy the journey and accept whatever comes your way. And this has been my attitude in all the work that I have done so far. Especially for Guilty Minds for my character Kashaf Quaze, I am so attached to the show and my character that I had to tell myself to slowly detach from it because you don’t know how projects are received and destiny of every project is different. I have got a lot of love and respect from people which I value more than anything else and I think it has been a great learning experience. OTT has been a game-changer for many in the film industry, to grow as an actor and not a star. How do you think the digital platform has helped you in your journey? The employment opportunity to begin with OTT has helped a lot of people, not just actors and filmmakers.  The scope for people from technicians to directors to actors, the digital platform has given a lot of opportunities to all. There is great content and it is a motivation for storytellers and creators to push themselves. This is the best time for actors too because OTT gives you projects from which you get the kind of creative fulfillment that they always want. The roles challenge you as an actor, which is exactly what I am drawn to. How have women’s roles changed with the coming of OTT? There was a phase in the Hindi film industry when women were either written as the good, simple girl next door who was the hero’s love interest or the other one was the ambitious vamp. But now you see women who are allowed to be flawed, real, and who have desires and who are ambitious and who want to explore their lives in a certain way. You see a huge range of women characters in OTT. There is no single dimension. It is layered. Now there are characters written for women across age groups now. For example, Jalsa is headlined by two incredible actors. So, it is a great step in that direction where we see such good work opportunities and characters written which is very motivating. I would say it is a brilliant time to be an actor. What are the advantages of the series format? Other than the series being long as compared to feature films which help the character to grow, in series, everybody is looked up to as a character and there are no boxes. One is not above the other in that sense and everybody has an important role to play. The luxury of time that OTT allows you in exploring different graphs is what actually is interesting in terms of performance. Read all the  **_Latest News_** _,_  **_Trending News_** _,_  **_Cricket News_** _,_  **_Bollywood News_** _,_  **_India News_**  and  **_Entertainment News_**  here. Follow us on  Facebook_,_  Twitter and  Instagram_._