'I Had the Concept 18 Years Ago': Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali on 'Heeramandi'
'Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar' premiered on Netflix on 1 May.
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Ahead of the premiere of the highly-anticipated web series Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, Netflix hosted a special Q&A with the creator, director, producer of the series, Sanjay Leela Bhansali.
The session was moderated by YouTuber Lilly Singh. During their conversation, Bhansali spoke about the concept behind the show and his OTT debut with Netflix.
Reflecting upon Heeramandi's journey, Bhansali said, "The script for Heeramandi was charming, vast, and epic. The story was too long for a film, and I had the concept 18 years ago, but there were no OTT platforms then. I finally saw an opportunity to do it properly on an OTT platform, where you can develop it and enjoy each character. This story has taken the longest—18 years of nurturing, cherishing, and living it.”
Talking about the project being his first OTT series, he added, “Working with Netflix on my first series was a completely different experience. In 30 years of my career, I have never met producers as beautiful as them. They are tough, and relentless, and ask for honest directors to create content with the same passion. It's good karma as a filmmaker to meet such producers, and I'm grateful to them."
Heeramandi is set in pre-Independence India and is based on the lives of courtesans in the oldest red light district of Lahore's Heera Mandi.
The show stars Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Richa Chadha, Sharmin Segal, Fardeen Khan, Shekhar Suman, Adhyayan Suman, and Sanjeeda Sheikh in key roles.
The show is currently streaming on Netflix.
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