30 December,2020 05:21 AM IST | Mumbai | Mohar Basu
A still from Chand Mubarak
The film that stands out in Amazon Prime's Unpaused is Nitya Mehra's Chand Mubarak. Headlined by Ratna Pathak Shah and Shardul Bharadwaj, the short tells the story of an unlikely friendship two people forge during the lockdown. Mehra has been lauded for bringing to the fore a woman's choice to be single without remorse. That aside, she says her film primarily celebrates compassion. "I wanted to open up people's perspectives. Our society could often be insular that triggers us to judge the other. The film deals with societal structure, religious divide, class, age, gender-based disparities. In most ways, Rafiq and Uma (the protagonists) have nothing in common but there's a connection nonetheless. I was in lockdown in Alibag and I was pretty clear that I didn't want to shoot in a house where people are locked in. That's where the idea of shooting in a rickshaw came from. With COVID, the societal structures that are already existent would only deepen. People will take a long time to trust one another. The word trust played an important role in condensing the story. I spoke to a lot of people and I realised how cut off people felt from their life as they knew it. I am glad Amazon took this opportunity, to make a film about hope. And I personally wanted to champion humanity."
Though Mehra is yet to put in words how her craft has changed through the year. But the filmmaker dons the director's hat for Made in Heaven season 2, which she was showrunning last season. The series was to be shot in Europe in April and is expected to resume early 2021. "This year I am directing the series. With fresh lockdowns, the shoot will be different. We are simply trusting the producers and taking the necessary protocols. It is important to create a safe environment to shoot in. This does affect how we are used to working. Filmmakers are adaptable, I believe and we will strive to make an incredible show. Personally, I am yet to gauge how the cumulative effect of how the pandemic has altered my craft. We hope to start Made in Heaven by February, March this year. We are yet to figure out about the international locations. The industry is still in a wait and watch game with the disease constantly mutating and the vaccines getting sanctioned. Inshallah, the audience can hope to see the show in 2022."
