Channels didn’t want me as they said realistic content doesn’t work on TV: Neena Gupta

But what she is certain about is that she will soon direct a web series. “Now, we have a lot to watch on web. I would love to do more on this platform. I might be directing. Things are in the pipeline but I don’t know when will it start. It will be a web series,” the National Award winning actor said. Neena has already worked on the web, though as an actor. Her latest outing is Khujli, a 15-minute short about a middle-aged couple trying to revive the lost romance and intimacy between them. The film, which is funny and delightful in parts, features Neena opposite Jackie Shroff.

While audience would believe that Neena might have taken time to say yes to the project, considering its subject which has BDSM at its core, the actor said she fell in love with the script and never had any hesitation while working on it.

“The script was simple, interesting and naughty. I liked the whole feel behind the story. I actually told my daughter and my niece about it. They said wow. They loved the story. If you think about it, there was nothing embarrassing. There was no physicality. It’s only dialogues, looks and eyes… The embarrassing things are there inside the script but it’s not out there,” Neena shared.

The 57-year-old actor further said that films like Khujli are actually made for people like her, who she calls minority, for whom discussing sex is not a taboo. “It’s fine we made this film on the web but we are still far away from the scenario where mothers-daughters can talk about sex. In our society, sex is still a taboo. In fact, things like this (Khujli) are for us, the minority, who don’t think like that, who don’t believe that girls shouldn’t work or that men shouldn’t do household work,” she said.

Watch: KHUJLI – a TTT short film ft. Jackie Shroff & Neena Gupta

Besides the story of Khujli, the pairing of Neena and Jackie has also earned rave reviews. The actors, who come from two different worlds of cinema, look at ease while romancing each other. Their respect for each other was evident when, after the film’s screening, Jackie dropped in to greet her in the middle of the interview, and as she asked him how he found the film, he replied, “I liked you in the movie. You were amazing.”

Also read: Jackie Shroff, Neena Gupta to star in Khujli, see pic

Talking about her hero, Neena said that the fact that they enjoyed working together, translated into a natural chemistry on screen. She also laughed off at Jackie’s comment in a recent interview that he was scared to act opposite her for she is a brilliant performer. “He was absolutely fine. There was no problem at all. If he was feeling like that, he wouldn’t have this kind of performance. Towards the end where we are laughing, we were laughing in real. We weren’t acting. So, it was nice (working with him).”