Question 1 – Did you try to give some inputs for your character in Bheed?
Dia Mirza – Anubhav writes very full scripts and he writes very complete scripts. For me personally, this is his best script till date. He is written it so beautifully, it’s so honest, it’s so powerful, it’s so well intentioned, he has such clarity, he is very open and takes suggestions and he is very clear about his stories. And the way in which this film has been shot it’s almost like you are performing a screenplay, like a stage show because all the situations in the film are sequences that involve many layers and the cameras are capturing them simultaneously, so at any given point of time you actually feel like you’re in the middle of that situations.
Question 2 – Reason why you said yes to this film?
Dia Mirza – I have known Anubhav for 23 years. I have worked with him before his 2.0 version (Mulk, Article 15, Thappad, Anek) in film like Dus and Cash. When we were shooting Thappad, I said to Anubhav that I want to be a part of this Anubhav Sinha’s (referring to his 2.0 version) each and every film. I care for what he stands for and the way he tells his stories. And I think in our country there are many less filmmakers who make social political drama films and have audacity to choose such subject and audacity is must in making films on such topics. We also want to be a part of social change, we also want to work towards uplifting society and trying to make a difference and you want to work with filmmakers who are trying to make a difference.
Question 3 – In future which kind of projects are you looking forward to produce?
Dia – There are lots of Dramas and lots of stories. Because I work so closely on environment and wild life protectio and we loose so many people who work in forest across India I would love to produce this subject. And there are such powerful stories from the world on conservation that I want to tell that are connected to human trafficking, drugs, politics and all kinds of things which I would love to make stories on. I am happy that we got an oscar for the short film The Elephant Whisperers. It’s such a sweet simple story about conservation and the connection between animals and humans, it’s been done so delicately and I am so glad that it not only made it’s way to the Oscars but also won it.
Question 4 – Thappad or Bheed, which was the most challenging role for you?
Dia – I feel like because my resonance is so strong, in both the characters, you will be surprised by what I have done in Bheed, it’s not what you would expect of.
Question 5 – From a creative person’s point of view what’s your take about the black and white theme of the film?
Dia – When Anubhav first told me that he was making a film in black and white, I was stunned. I thought it’s great to make such a choice. When we think of history, we usually think of history in black and white and this is a part of recent history. Black and white because I think, thode moments, that period of crisis erased colour from people’s lives.
Question 6 – With Anubhav Sinha you are coming back and you have worked with Hirani, so do you think of commercial potboiler zone?
Dia – I enjoy working with good people. I am happy to do good work with good people but that thing is that the opportunity to work in such subjects is very few. When I think about giving certain time to a film, I want that it adds more value to my life as an artist. And I want that when my children watch my film they should feel proud and should learn something from it. There are many filmmakers who I want to work with like Vishal Bhardwaj and Shriram Raghavan.
