Anupama Kumar doesn’t give recommendations lightly, but when it came to Bandwaale, she was all in. She even went onto Instagram to say the show deserved its own spotlight. For the uninitiated, this musical comedy-drama is set in Ratlam, and stars Ashish Vidyarthi, Swanand Kirkire, Zahan Kapoor, Shalini Pandey, Sanjana Dipu, and Anupama herself. Directed by Akshat Verma and Ankur Tewari, the series sees Anupama as a quietly fierce mother, a rock for her daughters in a town where every girl’s future seems destined for marriage.
So why did Anupama say yes to the character of Valsala? “There’s a quiet strength about her that I really liked. She seems submissive at first, but there’s so much happening beneath the surface. Social norms keep her in check, but by the end, you realise she’s far from a puppet. She can’t openly defy anyone, but she quietly ensures things work out for her daughters. That’s the kind of strength most of our mothers have.”
She adds, “There’s a scene where she talks about her childhood as a national-level hockey player. At one point, she had to choose between the national sports camp and marrying her father. She went ahead with the wedding and is at peace with her life, but then she tells her daughter, ‘Don’t be afraid to dream.’”
Talking about working with such an ensemble cast, Anupama says, “Apart from the cast—which was fantastic, like Ashish Vidyarthi, Shalini, and the powerhouse of talent that is Sanjana Dipu, along with Swanand Kirkire—there was a genuine sense of collaboration. During our readings, I kept marvelling at how natural and interesting everyone looked. The fact that we resembled a real family made it even more engaging.”
She says that Bandwaale was very unlike a typical film set. “Not all the people involved were from films, Ankur Tiwari and Swanand Kirkire, both musicians, brought their own unique perspectives, which enriched the entire process. As for the director Akshat Verma, believe it or not, he’s the same person who wrote Delhi Belly, and this show couldn’t be more different from that. For someone who’s written that and also Kaalakaandi, to direct this project and do justice to it, along with the cinematographer’s work, was a beautiful experience. We’d start by sitting together for half an hour, discussing scenes before makeup. That’s very unlike the usual rigid schedules you find on most sets. Here, it was collaborative; you discuss, plan, and the shoot happens naturally. We worked as a unit, like a family, and it made it easy to behave as one.”
She adds that conversing in Malayalam, though unfamiliar to her, was an enriching experience. “It was lovely to hear so much Malayalam, thanks to Sanjana, who is Malayali. She gave us many inputs; like when I’d ask, ‘What would your mother say?’ she would respond in the most authentic way ‘Ente vaava alle’, and I thought, ‘I must do it exactly like that.’ The character’s official name is Valsala, but my mother had a Malayali friend called Vatsala, sometimes Valsala or Valsa at home. That input helped, so I requested, ‘Please call her Valsa,’ because that’s how a Malayali would say it. We also discussed how a woman would address her husband in first or third person and other small cultural details. Digging into that research and being involved at that level was invaluable for us as actors.”
When asked if OTT platforms are helping reduce the stereotyping of South Indians and bringing more authenticity to characters, Anupama says, “Absolutely! In this show, for example, they didn’t ask me to tone down my Hindi. Nobody asked me to change my accent as I speak like a native because I’m from Delhi. If I had to, I would’ve made an effort, but there was no need. Authentic portrayals of South Indian characters are getting it right more often now.”
Is anything coming up in Tamil after Aan Paavam Pollathathu? “Yes. I took a two-year break due to family commitments, but I’m coming back with some interesting projects: Inspector Rishi Season 2, a film with Madhumita Vijay starring Arjun Das and Sanchana Natarajan, a film with independent filmmaker Vijay Jayapal called An Idiot, and an Amazon Prime original in Tamil with Fanboy Productions, who also produced Local Times and were executive producers of Inspector Rishi.”
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