Jasmeet K. Reen, director of the Alia Bhatt-starrer “Darlings”, says she visited more than 300 chawls to get the authentic location and look to create the world of the story.
Jasmeet said: “I have checked 300 chawls and done a recce of another 100 chawls and locations with my crew. The aim was to do research, and understand the logistics of the chawls in Mumbai, how the people live there, dress and their attitude and body language.
“We checked out chawls and houses in Byculla. We liked a few but they had to be shoot- friendly and we had to make sure we were maintaining social distance, all of which proved to be quite a challenge, given that these are congested areas. Once things began to ease out with the lockdowns, we decided to build a set so that we could maintain covid protocols and shoot at the same time.”
She added: “Luckily all our research and photos helped Garima Mathur (production designer) and Anil Mehta (DOP) with the visualisation and thereafter the execution. I took them there too later just so they could see the colours, the textures, light. Byculla has this whole old-world contrast — old buildings with ornate window grills with new furniture. That is Mumbai- an old 19th-century house and a swanky skyscraper in one frame.”
The film, also starring Shefali Shah, Vijay Varma and Roshan Mathew, all set to release on Netflix on August 5.