It isn’t surprising that Adah Sharma has reunited with makers Vipul Amrutlal Shah and Sudipto Sen barely a year after The Kerala Story (2023), which became a box-office hit despite being slammed by critics and sections of the audience. However, initially, a reunion was the last thing on their minds. When producer-creative director Shah and director Sudipto Sen set out to make Bastar: The Naxal Story, which focuses on the Maoist movement, they envisioned the film being led by a male protagonist. 

“Bastar was written for a male actor. But Vipul ji and Sudipto da were kind enough to change the gender and offer it to me. That was the coolest part. In The Kerala Story, I played a naive victim. Here, I play a powerful character,” begins Sharma. So, what exactly made them change the protagonist to a female character? That’s a question the actor didn’t ask the makers. “I never question a good thing. I thank my stars and am grateful for it,” she smiles.