Taking stock

Another name added to the thinly populated list of women directors in India, Shona Urvashi with her soon-to-release flick, Saas Bahu aur Sensex...

Shona Urvashi8217;s Saas Bahu aur Sensex, with the distinction of being the first official film to be distributed by Warner Brothers in India, is all set to explore the stock market the woman8217;s way

Another name added to the thinly populated list of women directors in India, Shona Urvashi with her soon-to-release flick, Saas Bahu aur Sensex, ventures into that genre of filmmaking, which relatively remains unexplored by the Bollywood directors at large. And what else could be more supportive to sail into uncharted waters than an international name such as Warner Brothers! So there she is with her experimental venture, an urban comedy drama consisting of an eclectic mix of fresh faces and a not-so-typically-Bollywood-like theme 8212; stock market and women.

In the city for the premiere of the film, Urvashi, who also is an alumni of city8217;s Wadia college, shares what prompted her to bring two such things together which, in real life are supposedly poles apart 8212; women and sensex.

Providing a kaleidoscope view of modern India, the film step by step documents the process of women being inclined towards stock market. 8220;The common notion is that women and numbers don8217;t go together. I break this perception with my film. Here is what we have, something beyond the Saas bahu image which is so synonymous to the image of women in our country today,8221; elaborates Urvashi.

Her main objective being the portrayal of the transition of the contemporary Indian society, Urvashi, in due course of doing so, also lays bare the factors why women, especially homemakers completely lack interest in the stock markets.

8220;When Richard Fox on behalf of Warner Brothers approached me to direct a film which will be a romantic comedy, I did not give it a second thought. This is what I always wanted to do. To create something that inspires but in a light way. The inspiration should come as effortlessly and as practically as it can, sans heavy words, philosophies and ideologies. This is how I make a film and that is how you will find Saas bahu8230; too,8221; says Urvashi whose directorial debut, Chupke Se, also a comedy, made the audience sit up to notice her talent. The film too inspires women to take the charge and invites them to be a part of the very progressive economy of the country.

Intricately woven together with the central characters are other characters that form an inextricable part of the storyline. Nevertheless the presence of so many characters does not appear to clutter the show. 8220;The storyline demands a long starcast and even if one character is missing, it creates a deep void. This is because I have tried my best to make the film look real and in real life you are surrounded by people. I picked up faces that were intresting but yet had that small town look to them. I did not want my characters to have the caricature feel,8221; says Urvashi.

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With no touchstone to test if in the entertainment-driven market such a film would gather an audience, this one sure seems to be trailblazer and perhaps there would be more to follow suit.