With Raveena Tandon-led streaming show Aranyak receiving positive response from the critics and the viewers, producer Sidharth Roy Kapur says the plans are already in motion to develop a potential second season.
The crime thriller series, which has filmmaker Rohan Sippy attached as the showrunner, has been garnering positive response from the critics and audience for its taut narrative as well as performances from the cast led by Tandon.
Directed by Vinay Vyakul, the show features Raveena Tandon as a cop named Kasturi Dogra, who joins hands with her city-bred replacement Angad (Parambrata Chatterjee) when a foreign teenage tourist disappears in a Himalayan town.
Roy Kapur said the team has already begun work on building the sophomore season. "You can expect a season two and that's something the team is working on very hard. With the love the show has received from the audience, we have a lot to live up to and we hope season two matches up to the first one,” he said.
"The characters of Kasturi Dogra and Angad will take forward things from here. There will be Mahadev (Ashutosh Rana) as well. These three characters are the fulcrum of the show. The end of season one gave a hint to it. However, we can't talk much about part two," the producer told PTI.
Roy Kapur, known for backing critically-acclaimed and commercially-successful films like Dangal (2016), Haider (2014), Barfi (2012), and Kai Po Che (2011) through his banner Roy Kapur Films, said the idea for Aranyak originated from a personal encounter that the writer Charudutt Acharya had during one of his trips to a small town.
"It is based on a female police officer that Charu had come across on a holiday to a hill station with his family. That character of a woman, who is a good wife, mother, daughter-in-law and traditionally does all the things in small-town India and in the day-time she is a hard cop, stuck with Charu.”
The producer believes there is an appetite for suspense thriller shows coupled with well-crafted stories. "So far, we have enjoyed these stories from the West because they have a tradition to make slow burn shows. Here the show is Indian, the characters are unique, there is a murder and the mystery around it, which is just fun to watch. Also, the hint of the supernatural is interesting,” he said.
Ask him about the rising popularity of strong female narratives on streaming platforms, Roy Kapur said it is an interesting trend. "OTT platforms have given the opportunity to use the wealth of acting talent that we have. There are so many actresses who were not active earlier but now have the chance to show (their talent)” he added.
When asked why there are fewer female-driven strong and action-packed films being made in Indian cinema, Roy Kapur said the business of cinema is largely male-dominated even today. Roy Kapur added that even though the scenario is changing for the better, one can't neglect the commercial pressure of luring the audience to theatres.
"Theatrically the commercial pressure of a film is quite different and therefore there are lots of things to consider. The theatrical box office has been led by men. You have female superstars but it's been the male superstars who have driven the big numbers in the past. I think things are changing," he added.
Roy Kapur believes that the digital medium has away the pressure of box office from the minds of creators and filmmakers. "OTT gives you a chance to tell interesting stories because it becomes a part of a portfolio that streamers are putting out. Therefore, there isn't that much individual pressure on a title to perform the way you have it at the theatrical box office."
Produced by Roy Kapur Films and Ramesh Sippy Entertainment, Aranyak is streaming on Netflix.
