Konkona Sen Sharma says her mother Aparna Sen didn’t let her watch Ramayan, Mahabharat in her formative years: “She said that the first exposure to these epics should not be someone else’s imagination”

Actor-director Konkona Sen Sharma, who recently directed the short film The Mirror in the anthology Lust Stories 2, was really appreciated for her work. While OTT has given a platform to many, the filmmaker-actress says that the content creators on the digital platforms are chasing stars.

In a chat with Film Companion, Konkona said, “More than talent, people who are putting in money, want stars. I can understand they are putting in money and they want to cover the bases, many stars are talented and perhaps some aren’t that much. Even for OTT, there is a move towards stars.”

Konkana agreed that now even the star system is taking place in the OTT space and added, “There is a lot of pressure to take stars. From my own part I can say, as an actor and also as a director, there is a lot of pressure to cast big stars.” The actress said that being a star won’t help on the platform if you don’t have the talent.

In the same conversation, she said that in her formative years, her mother Aparna Sen kept her away from watching anything mainstream from Hindi and Bengali cinemas. She wasn’t allowed to watch shows like The Bold and the Beautiful or Santa Barbara or Indian epics like Ramayan and Mahabharat. “Of course, a few slipped by, and I watched a few here and there, like Mr India and Masoom. Moreover, I wasn’t allowed to watch American soap operas like The Bold and the Beautiful or Santa Barbara, either.”

But, there was a reason to it. “I wasn’t allowed to watch Ramayan and Mahabharat either. She insisted that I read the epics first (before delving into the serialised versions). She said that the first exposure to these epics should not be someone else’s imagination; it should be a product of your own imagination. As a substitute, we explored a lot of global and regional cinema. Even when it came to books, during a phase of my childhood when I was exclusively reading Indian literature, she eventually stopped me and asked me to move on. And I was an obedient child,” Konkona added.

Meanwhile, Konkona Sen Sharma directed Lust Stories 2’s short film The Mirror which arrived on Netflix. On the other hand, her mother Aparna Sen’s recent directorial venture, The Rapist, which was headlined by her, premiered at the 26th Busan International Film Festival.

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