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INTERVIEW: Ekta Kapoor on reports of auditioning 55 actresses for Naagin 6, pandemic plot & Tejasswi Prakash
Ekta Kapoor clarifies that she had no involvement behind Tejasswi Prakash’s Bigg Boss 15 win.
Ekta Kapoor’s Naagin 6 is being headlined by Tejasswi Prakash, Simba Nagpal and Mahekk Chahal, and in a recent conversation with the producer - she opened up about the show, her leading lady, and much more. Reportedly, Kapoor and her team had auditioned around 55 actresses for the part. Reacting on the same, Ekta states, “So more than auditioning we were in a bit of a jam. There is so much work in the industry, there are so many actors and the ones you want are busy doing web shows or movies.”
She further adds, “Then you want to get new faces also, but there is always that thing that they might not have, maybe sometimes the personality, or maybe they are too young - early in the day to play something as vivacious as a Naagin. So yes, there was this process where we went through a lot of faces, but it would be a little immodest for me to say that I auditioned 55 faces and I rejected 55 faces. But there was this spark that we wanted and couldn’t find it till we found Tejasswi.” 
Naagin 6’s plot revolves around the pandemic. Considering the sensitivity of the topic, was she ever worried of the backlash or the trolling that might come her way if the subject isn’t handled carefully? “Honestly, I was very sure I would get trolled. Like there was not even a moment that I thought that I wouldn't get trolled. Actually a friend of mine had given me this idea, and she had told me that we don’t in India make fiction stories on real life incidents well, for example a Titanic came out of a real incident. So while the pandemic is probably something that everyone will do it - the Netflix’s of the world and Amazon will do these large billion dollar shows - we are witnessing history,” reasons Ekta.
She states that while we have all changed in the last two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Naagin had to change too. “I mean I made one during the pandemic and I felt that I had lost the zest. I personally felt maybe this time also it will be the same but I definitely knew that there was something new in the first Naagin, which was missing when I was writing a lot of stuff later. I thought maybe it's not just me, the world has changed so much you know, and to deal with the pandemic in a space where Naagin takes a revenge on…I still remember everyone’s face when I read it. They said this is terribly ridiculous, but it can really work or can go really bad,” says the filmmaker.
She informs that this time she wanted to do something with the show that shakes the basics of the franchise. “Otherwise it's always a personal revenge. How many times can she do that? And with the pandemic affecting everyone’s life, there is a serious amount of relatability. I am trying to deal with it with a lot of empathy also. We have all faced a lot of trauma. If we can in some way reflect some of that trauma in the show - it's been problematic, the rich became richer, the poor became poorer, and it’s nobody’s fault. Pharmaceuticals took off, restaurants had to suffer, it just took the whole world order and changed it. So we thought it's time to deal with it in our own way, but of course it will be entertaining. I am trying to yet look at it with a little bit of empathy, and I don’t want to lose that,” shares Ekta.
She is also happy with Tejasswi’s casting to play the titular role. “I wanted someone this time who is very vivacious but innocent. There is Mahekk also in the show, and while the Shesh Naagin is going to be a big twist, the character that we wanted Tejasswi to play was somebody who is like a reluctant hero,” informs Ekta.
She also reacts to reports stating that Tejasswi Prakash won Bigg Boss 15 because of Naagin 6. “So I saw Tejasswi in the show, we spoke to her manager, and we signed her with the manager who assured us that she will be on. Before this also we had seen her, but on the show I just liked her so much. I don’t see too much of Bigg Boss honestly, but the clippings are all over Instagram and you watch it. I think she is a very attractive young girl, there is something in her eyes. Honestly I have never met her except for in the show (Bigg Boss 15) and when I gave her a narration now (for Naagin 6),” says Ekta.
She further adds, “I don’t think I even have the power to sit and tell a channel that I want this one to win because of Naagin, like really? Why would I? The girl is pretty, she clearly had a lot of love from the audience, like I connected to her when I saw her and that’s all that I think made her win. Poor girl for her to constantly have to defend herself.”
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