I am recording my contemporary times: Anusha Rizvi on 'The Great Indian Shamsuddin Family'

New Delhi, Dec 24 (PTI) Her films are about recording contemporary times, says writer-director Anusha Rizvi who returns to filmmaking 15 years after "Peepli Live" with "The Great Indian Shamsuddin Family" that is being acclaimed for its slice of life depiction of a Muslim family in Delhi.

The film, which is screening on Jio Hotstar, tells its story about a group of women, educated and articulate, from the Shamsuddin family with humour and empathy. It revolves around Bani who has to submit a work project within 12 hours. But family members and their little emergencies come unannounced, derailing the day for her.

According to Rizvi, be it "Peepli Live", her sharply-observed satire on farmers suicides, or her latest film, the ideas were "humorous and warm".

"But they (the movies) do tell stories of where we are, who we are and our present day, our contemporary times. I'm recording my contemporary times," Rizvi told PTI in an interview.

Word of mouth for the movie, which has charmed the likes of "Homebound" filmmaker Neeraj Ghaywan, has been strong on social media with many praising Rizvi's eye for detail in the way she tells the story of the motley crew of opinionated women while also bringing in the daily fears that a Muslim family has to live with in India.

In her view, the portrayal of Muslim women in Asian cinema or any kind of screen in India is not authentic.

"The kind of clothes that we see them wearing or the kind of way they are talking or behaving, it (the portrayal) doesn't seem quite real. This (Shamsuddin Family) is how regular people are and this is what they look like.

"I mean, they don't really dress up with a whole lot of jewellery in everyday life. So I wanted to tell a story of Delhi and a particular part of Delhi and I was just trying to stay true to how it is," she said.

Asked if there were characters inspired by her own family or anyone close to her, Rizvi said her stories tend to veer away from the original idea they began with.

"You take inspiration for characters from various places. You might like one core thing about a character but then as the story progresses, they become different from what your original inspiration might have been. I won't be able to say that they are exactly like anyone in my life," she said.

The film features Kritika Kamra, Farida Jalal, Sheeba Chaddha, Dolly Ahluwalia, Juhi Babbar Soni, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Purab Kohli and Natasha Rastogi in key roles.

Rizvi, 47, credits her casting director Dilip Shankar for bringing a unique set of actors for the movie.

"The actors were just so fantastic that I was spoiled for choice, but I think that I got what I really wanted. I got the actors that I really, really wanted. And that's why they fit so well into the roles because they were so well cast," she said.

In the 15 years since "Peepli Live", has it become easier for independent filmmakers now that streaming has taken over a big chunk of the market? It will always be a struggle, answered the former journalist and Delhi University graduate who penned "The Great Shamsuddin Family" and directed it as well.

It took her eight years to find the right producers to make her latest one. She finally found support in Uday Shankar, the vice chairperson of JioStar, and producers Alok Jain, Ajit Andhare and Mahmood Farooqui.

"It is a struggle to find the correct form of funding for something that you need to make. It is an expensive medium. So that is a factor that will always be there. That has not improved.

"We will all continue to struggle it out and make films. I wrote this story about eight years ago. But I couldn't find the correct sources for it. If I had a choice, I would have made it eight years ago." Rizvi said she has a couple of ideas that she wants to make into movies but is also open to directing stories written by others. PTI BK BK MIN MIN