Director Palash Vaswani discusses the response he is receiving to his latest OTT directorial, Bada Naam Karenge, and how stars have changed the dynamics of OTT.
Director Palash Vaswani is on cloud 9 as his directorial Bada Naam Karenge is receiving love from the masses. Under the guidance of the showrunner, Sooraj Barjatya, Palash has churned out another slice-of-life, romantic drama which has elements of Gen-Z cemented with Rajshri’s family values.
Palash joins DNA India for an exclusive chat and shares his views about the reception of the show. “The response is phenomenal, with positive reviews from critics and audiences alike. I’ve 100s unread DMs (direct messages). One lady wrote to me that the show has worked like a therapy for her, and she could be deeply connected with the mother-daughter track. People became emotional and they told me that after the show I hugged my father, or hugged my son. It’s been an overwhelming feeling for me. People are relating to the show differently, but they all are loving it.”
Palash reveals how he landed directing Bada Naam Karenge. “Sooraj sir watched Gullak, and then he called me. This was Rajshri’s first project, and they wanted to be special. After Gullak even I wanted something that would take my filmography to another level. So when I met Sooraj ji he discussed Gullak in detail, and he narrated BNK. I was very impressed with the intent of the show and I instantly decided to take up the project. Firstly, I felt the story relatable, and secondly, I had the greed to learn and work from the master filmmaker itself.”
Palash also opens up about the ‘guts’ of makers and OTT platforms for trusting newcomers Ritik Ghanshani and Ayesha Kaduskar to lead the show. “OTT was always used as to story-dominant medium. Kahani humesha se star thi. Yehi essence tha OTT ka. OTT stars ke peeche nahi bhag raha tha. Ab yeh ho gaya hai ki ‘Bada actor lao’. And from the very first day, this show has been my tribute to Sooraj sir, and his films Maine Pyar Kiya and Vivah.”
At last, Palash confirms that BNK will come up with a second season. “When we were writing, we knew that we worked with all honestly, and there’s an ample scope for Part 2. So yes, we have an idea of where BNK 2 will lead, and we will work around that.” Bada Naam Karenge is streaming on Sony Liv.
