Exclusive! Actor Neena Kulkarni says playing the role of a mother during pandemic in Gond Ke Laddu came naturally to her as she has been living it

Amidst the days of hopelessness and desperation during the pandemic, the upcoming anthology of Amazon Prime Video, Unpaused 2 hopes to bring stories of love, positivity and inspiration. The new season of the anthology tells five heart-warming stories from different aspects of the pandemic to urge the audience to embrace new beginnings with the start of this New Year.

OTTplay caught up with the team of one of the films, Gond K Laddu to talk about how the pandemic inspired them to tell their story. Gond Ke Laddu is about a mother who wants to send sweets to her daughter but the delivery person accidentally drops them. The film talks about a mother's love and the lengths a delivery person goes for a five-star rating. Director of the film, Shikha Makan and actor Neena Kulkarni opened up about their lives during the pandemic and that helped them with their story of Gond Ke Laddu. Excerpts:

Could you tell us how did the collaboration for Unpaused happen?

Shikha: Unpasued is an anthology of five different filmmakers. I have my story Gond k laddu as part of the anthology. the central theme is the pandemic and living with the pandemic. When I was approached by the Amazon team to give ideas, which centres around stories of hope and humanity. I thought of a bunch of things and Gond Ke Laddu was resonating a lot with lot of times. I felt the story will resonate with many people. That's how it came to being.

As the trailer shows, Gond Ke Laddu tells the story of a mother who sends laddus to her daughter, living away from her. But it gets all chaotic after the delivery person drops the package accidentally. Could you tell us more about the film? And what inspired you to tell the story about delivery boys?

Shikha: I can't reveal much. The pandemic, apart from a lot of other things, was also about food and recipes. It was a topic of conversation for many of us and also, caring about your loved ones living far away. Children were worrying about their parents and parents were worried about their kids. The fact about the distance and not being able to be close to one another triggered a thought in me. Pandemic had imposed a lot of restrictions on physical connection and the only way to reach out to someone was through sending gifts or something special. There were a lot of stories of delivery persons and issues they were facing. They are like the frontline workers ever since the pandemic started. In fact, they were the only ones you would see at your doorstep, probably half of their faces since they'd be wearing masks. During the lockdown phase, you were not able to meet anybody. Even now, a lot of our daily communication is dependent on them through exchanges and online orders. I wanted to tell a story that carried the warmth of a mother's love and an analogy of something that can happen to you in the middle of so much chaos and unhappiness. It's also like a sweet surprise.

Ms Neena, could you tell us about your character and why did you choose to do this film?

Neena: My character's name is Susheela ji. She is a mother and lives in a smaller city in UP and her daughter is away. She wants to send something to her. Normally, she would have just gone to her and given it. Since the story is based during the pandemic time, the whole thing becomes tedious for a senior citizen to do it and actually, go through the whole process. She makes the laddus and now, she has to send them to her. What interested me in this project is the interaction between today and older generations. I found that very interesting where a woman is trying to get hold of new technology and understand the way people think today. All she wants to do is send love to her daughter. It's a very sweet story. It has very practical humour in it. She lives alone and is self-sufficient. I saw a bit of humour in that too. That is why I chose to do this.

Pandemic has been a difficult period for all of us. We were all feeling hopeless and depressed. Did your experience during the pandemic help you in any way to tell the story or perform better?

Neena: Pandemic is on and hopefully, it will end at some point. What we are actually showing is very much today's story. Actually, we have been living this horror for almost 2.5 years. It is not a period or futuristic story. It is actually the story of the present. So, it comes naturally when we are living it every day. I am fortunate that my entire family is with me in Bombay. I didn't have those kinds of situations where people are away from me. I could see other people though. I was working through the pandemic. I used to see the younger generation of actors working with me worry about their parents because they are old and we did not much about the pandemic, as much as we know today. I picked up from there. That's an actor's job, to notice things and imbibe them into your character. Otherwise, Susheelaji is like me. I am a mother and she is of the same age as I. So, that came naturally.

Ms Shikha, you have worked mainly on advertisements. So, how did that experience come in handy to tell a story of longer format than the 60-second medium?

Shikha: I predominantly do TV commercials. I also have shot short films in the past. I have worked on non-fiction documentaries too. I have a bit of experience working on different mediums. Since this is an anthology and not a long format or a web series where you are building episodes, one after another, it was exciting and interesting for me to be in that space of 20-25 films where I can try out something different with an idea. I think it's just a process from the point you start writing. It involves editing at every stage, especially while writing, then shooting and post-production. In my film, you have three different characters who are taking the story forward. They all have interesting tracks, which intervene in the story.

So, was it challenging to do it, compared to say a TV commercial?

Shikha: I wouldn't use the word challenge. A TV commercial has its own demand and technicality and format where you communicate a story in 30 or 60 seconds. A TV commercial is a product-dedicated communication. You are telling a story about the product. Here, it is about the idea that got conceived in my mind. I could express more with the long format. The beauty of long-form is to be able to be a little more indulgent in creating the emotions and universe of the characters. For me, it was just a lovely experience which I enjoyed.

Where and how long did you shoot?

Shikha: The shoot was for five days between Noida and Agra, in areas of Uttar Pradesh.

Many artists say that OTT has increased the shelf life of an actor. What do you have to say about it, Ms Neena?

Neena: I completely agree with it. When the virus first struck us, everything was stopped. We could not shoot. Everybody, including me, started wondering what would happen. It was like a dead-end for us. Plays couldn't happen. Films were not happening much since theatres were closed. OTT is a huge thing, not just for actors but also for audiences. They had something to look forward to in the evenings or during the day. Otherwise, there was depression setting in. They had so much choice. Even otherwise, as a medium, it has got huge scope for everybody. I have seen all mediums grow. In the 70s, when I started, it was only theatres and films. Then, TV came in and with that, several channels were created. There were then short films and documentaries and now, OTT. Growth is always welcome. Any medium coming to existence offers work for everybody, not only for actors but also writers, directors and technicians. That's how we survived during this pandemic. And Thank God for that.

As you mentioned, you have worked on several mediums like plays, TV, films and now, OTT shows too. Do you find any difference while performing for different mediums?

Neena: Not really. I welcome every medium that comes in. I study that medium and understand it. I have a very strong theatre background and had very great teachers who gave us that sense of space. Preparation is part of an actor's job and we should know what space we are entering into. You cannot go blindly to it and say, 'Oh! I thought it was a 3-hour film'. I have done short films, ads which are 60 to 90 seconds. The format does not matter. It is a script writer's job. So when it comes to us, it has already been written to fit into that format. So, the format is not a problem for me at all.