India is about to get its very first survival series through Kaala Paani, which is set to premiere on October 18 on Netflix. Actor Sukant Goel who was seen in Monica, O My Darling will be playing a major role in the series. Through his character Chiru (Chiranjeevi), he is all set to take the viewers on an unforgettable ride through the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Chiru, his character, is a local tour guide and to portray the realism of his character, Sukant visited the Islands and soaked in the local culture. Speaking about his role he mentions, “I had a particularly interesting prep for my character, Chiranjeevi. I was reading my lines one afternoon and I thought they sounded very ordinary. I thought anyone can do this. How should I make him look like he belongs to the islands of Andaman and is different from most other characters in the show who are from the mainland. I asked my wife on instinct, what should I do, shall I go to Andaman and she said sure. So I got my tickets and the next day I was in Port Blair. Thanks to some close friends I found a contact in Andaman who was just the guy I needed.”
Sukant toured the Islands in a taxi to get the local flavour of the place. Although he did not have a particular agenda, this week-long tour added immense depth to the understanding of his character which has been reflected on-screen. He adds, “While I didn’t go with any particular agenda to the Andaman, just being there for a week probably helped me understand the region and its people better. It has a fascinating history and a peculiar demography comprising mainly of Bengali and Tamil people with a commonly spoken twang of Hindi called Andamani Hindi.”
While travel and tourism is much fun, it also comes with its fair share of challenges. He recalls one such challenging moment, about the cyclones, “! Last 2 days. Cyclone hits. Networks down. Sea roaring. Incessant rains. Flights are being canceled. I’m stuck on Havelock Island. The feeling of being stuck there is real and it can hit in a matter of minutes. Thankfully, some hustling and I was on a boat to Port Blair. Mind you! Not without a choppy sea. Somehow I got my flight back, praying for it to not be canceled until we took off. I FELT MORE AT HOME when I returned for the shoot a week later.”
Kaala Paani is all about the survival of the fittest and to what extent one can go to survive. It promises to be a watch that will keep you on the edge of the seat.
Kaala Paani will start streaming on Netflix from October 18, 2023 onwards