Shefali Shah: For the longest time, I've wanted to direct but I wasn't sure

Actor Shefali Shah who has made her directorial debut with the pandemicthemed short film Someday says she wanted to become a filmmaker for the longest time but was not sure whether she could shoulder the responsibilityThe Delhi Crime star said the coronavirusled lockdown gave her the scope to write and also be confident of her craft Wanting to become a director was brewing in my head For the longest time Ive wanted to direct but I wasnt sure if I had it in me to take the responsibility of a film on my shoulders Theres a lot of hard work blood sweat time and money of so many people So I wasnt sure if I could take that responsibility Shah 48 told PTISomeday chronicles the story of two women a frontline worker who returns home to quarantine for seven days and her mother who is suffering from Alzheimers I wrote this film and thought I just wanted to do it As soon as the lockdown was lifted I shot the film with a crew of five people at my house We shot the film in two days and on both days I packed up earlyShefali Shah said the film puts the spotlight on how the virus forced people to isolate themselves resulting not only in physical distance but also emotional longing During the lockdown one of the things that really bothered me was that if not the disease the distance will kill you Someday is about that Just the distance from people you love not being able to see them meet them hug them or hold them Going through a phase of life when youre suddenly isolatedAlso Read Shefali Shah shares unseen picture from her wedding with producer Vipul ShahThe pandemic was a springboard for Shah to deep dive into her childhood and revisit memories which formed the emotional core of Someday She mined her memory of watching her mother turn caregiver to her grandmother who had slipped into Alzheimers Shah poured the struggle to hold on to fading memories and the crushing helplessness of it on paper for SomedayThe story comes from real life from the memories that I have with my mom while I was growing up I thought If we reached a point where we did not have those memories to share then what would it be like Its scary Becoming a mother to your mom theres a role reversal My grandmother went into Alzheimers and dementia I remember how my mom took care of her So the story comes from real life it isnt fictionThe actorfilmmaker said her attempt with the short film was to document how painful the mental distance between two loved ones can be in the middle of a pandemic I thought our life is based on memories we have created and we revisit them creating more moments But what happens when you may have a past you may have a future but you have no present to tie it up In this film it just isnt about the physical distance but also the mental distance because every day its like youre talking to a strangerSomeday will be screened at the upcoming 18th edition of the Indian Film Festival StuttgartFor Shah getting her short approved for the festival screening still feels unreal The actor said it is yet to sink in that something she directed after battling countless doubts will be out for the world to see The reason I wanted to send it to festivals was not that I had these illusions that I would win but I wanted to see where I stood as a director if I have even some kind of standing or credibility to what I was doingIt was for testing myself When it gets accepted to be screened it feels I mustve done something right she addedAlso Read Shefali Shah recalls rejecting Kapoor and Sons and NeerjaThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever