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Starring Vidya Balan and Shefali Shah, two of
Bollywood's most-admired actors, "Jalsa" (Celebration) revolves
around a road accident where a driver hits a girl and flees the
scene. Surya Kasibhatla, a 10-year-old from Texas of Indian
origin who has cerebral palsy, plays Balan's son.
"As a country, we need to be much, much better when it comes to
sensitivity," director Suresh Triveni told Reuters. "I genuinely
hope and believe that more and more people with conditions are
accepted the way they are and they are not looked at through a
separate lens."
Balan said one challenge was to find a child of the right age to
play the role.
"We found a 10-year-old boy, and a 10-year-old boy who is a
brilliant actor," she said. "I think it's fantastic. There is
more inclusivity today."
Balan plays a journalist while Shah takes the role of her cook
and the mother of the girl involved in the accident.
"It is raw and real and extremely clever filmmaking and it's
intriguing," said Shah. "Every character has a conflict with
themselves and it's like a pack of cards, you pull one out and
it all topples."
Balan said she was initially not sure about playing such a role,
but COVID-19 changed her outlook on life.
"The pandemic made me realise that there is no black and white,
that there is no right and wrong. It's all very relative, it's
very subjective," she said.
"While I had always known that, while I would even spout that, I
didn't have the guts to do on-screen a story where I was really
delving into the grey. I think the pandemic sort of freed me
from any reservations I had before about being judged, even as a
character," Balan said.
"Jalsa" premieres on Amazon Prime on March 18 in India and
across 240 countries and territories worldwide.
(Reporting by Sunil Kataria; Editing by Karishma Singh)
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