Excited to bring the love story of a same sex couple on the web medium, director Nupur Asthana says she couldn't turn it into a film as she was afraid that the project will get stuck at the censor board.
Nupur's debut web series Romil and Jugal is a take on William Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet.
“It was a film script initially when it was written by writer Anu Menon two-three years ago. It will make a wonderful film but will it ever pass through the censor board? No. So, making a film on it would not be a feasible option at this point and even television channels would not be open to show it,” Nupur told.
“I think digital is the best format today for a story like this, it is the right medium,” she says.
The Bewakoofiyan director feels the love story of two boys is relevant today as the society is changing and people have no qualms in talking about their sexuality.
“It was the right time to explore this subject as web series,” she adds.
The subject marks Nupur's first attempt in exploring the topic of homosexuality.
“Direction was a challenge as I had to put two boys in this Romeo-Juliet classic love story. I don't want the LGBT community to abuse me. I have tried to be real and subtle.”
The Ekta Kapoor produced web show is an emotional love story of two small town boys.
“My attempt is to make people forget that it's a love story between two boys and rather show it as a love story between two human beings. Love is universal, it doesn't know gender… nature has made you certain way. We hope this subject gets acceptance,” Nupur says.
Manraj Singh plays the character of Jugal, while Romil's role is essayed by Rajeev Siddhartha.
The web series also stars Suchitra Pillai, Manini Mishra (De), Mandira Bedi, Vritika Ramnani, and Divina in pivotal roles.
“I found Jugal in 10 days or so but for Romil I had to do multiple auditions. There were quite a few actors who did not want to play the role of a gay. To find a good actor who wouldn't mind getting intimate on screen with another man was a bit tough. We took three to four months to get the cast on board,” director says.
The web series will stream on Alt Balaji app from April 16.