Is Bollywood daring to be different – exploring themes outside the cliched Bollywood formula? Are the new breed of films moving from the world of fantasy, to stories about real people and issues that matter? All this was discussed with three women who have been a part of an emerging trend.
Editor/Director Deepa Bhatia, Screenplay writer Urmi Juvekar and Production designer Meenal Agarwal were in conversation with Film journalist Nandini Ramnath.
Deepa Bhatia has edited some of the most watched Bollywood films, including Stanley Ka Dabba, Taare Zameen Par, Rock On, My Name is Khan, Student of the Year and most recently Raees. She has directed her first independent documentary Nero’s Guests on the agrarian crisis.
Meenal Agarwal has made her mark as an Indian production designer/ Art director in films like Pappu Can’t Dance Saala, I Am 24, and Mixed Doubles.
Nandini Ramnath has written extensively on films, worked for the Mint and currently works for Scroll.in.
Urmi Juvekar is an Indian screenwriter and documentary filmmaker best known for the screenplays for Oye Lucky Lucky Oye, I Am, Shanghai and Rules – Pyar Ka Superhit Formula. She is also a documentary filmmaker, and her film ‘The Shillong Chamber Choir’ is one of her best documentaries.