I grew up in musical theatre and love to perform on stage.
I grew up in the theatre. It's where I got my start. Writing a television drama with theatrical dialogue about the theatre is beyond perfection.
I didn't grow up a theatre kid, going to theatre camps. I played sports, and that was my main direction. But luckily, I never had to choose between sports and theatre.
I had zero connection to Bollywood or movies when I started out. I worked in theatre for eight years where luckily Makarand Deshpande mentored me, helped me to improve my body language and voice modulation.
I realised that if I wanted to act, I needed to join theatre where I could improve my acting skills first and also show my talent.
I was introduced to the world of films by Manoj Bajpayee and trained under theatre actor Makrand Deshpande.
I decided to do theatre intensely. I joined Makarand Deshpande's group Ansh. He became my guru. That's where I met Anurag Kashyap and Kay Kay Menon. These were the people who supported and inspired me.
I really believe at the end of the day, regardless of how noble you are or how patriotic the film might be, it has to serve as entertainment in order for your audiences to come into the theatre and watch it. Otherwise, audiences will wait and see it a few months later when it is premiered on television.
Of all the mediums, theatre is the one where you really need to have something to say - because it's just you, the words, and the space.
Cornelia Parker has inspired a lot of my theatre work. Her art is about points of impact: it's poetic but with a strong literal story.
