Filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane says his upcoming show Jubilee is a tribute to cinema. Set in a newly independent India, the series is a fictional period drama that will explore the stories and dreams that gave birth to Bollywood as we know it. The Prime Video show is created by Motwane and Soumik Sen and written by Atul Sabharwal.
Speaking at the show’s trailer launch event on Friday evening, Motwane said he wants to show the experience and process of filmmaking to the viewers with the series. “I am thrilled beyond words with the way the show has turned out. The genesis has come from how assistant directors feel on a set for the first time. Like when you walk on the sets, you feel the lights, you feel the crew, the people, who are doing something special. You see the movie in two hours, but it takes years to do it.
“It is part of magic, it is a tribute to what we do every day. It is a tribute to what we do every day. It is a love letter to cinema, the golden age of cinema, to movies, the makers, the filmmaker told reporters. “Jubilee” features an ensemble cast of Prosenjit Chatterjee, Aditi Rao Hydari, Aparshakti Khurana, Wamiqa Gabbi, Sidhant Gupta, Nandish Sandhu and Ram Kapoor.
Khurana, best known for films like Dangal, Stree, Luka Chuppi, said the show gave him the opportunity to explore a different facet as a performer. He called Jubilee as a dream start in terms of a shift in his acting career. “When I was doing back-to-back comedy films, I was not thinking why I was doing the same thing. I was doing it all with love, and good intentions. I was wondering if people will make me do only comedy movies. It is very difficult to break the image.”
Bengali star Chatterjee said after reading about his character of Shrikant Roy, he was instantly reminded of Guru Dutt’s 1959 drama Kaagaz Ke Phool. “When I read the script, I found it wonderful and working with Motwane was a great experience. For this character, the first thing that came to my mind is that we all have seen a film and it is very close to my heart, it is Kaagaz Ke Phool’ and it talks about a period.
“And Shrikant Roy is a character that I really wanted to do because it has so many shades but it is my director who made us all work.” Hydari said working on Jubilee was both challenging and exciting. “Being an actor myself, our life is such that we are accessible and we are part of your lives as much as you are part of us. With Sumitra Kumari (her character), and with that golden age of cinema what makes them different is the very ephemeral, magical, unattainable quality which sets them apart.
“That quality to bring alive with agency and vulnerability was exciting and a challenge. But we had our champion (Motwane) with us. I feel blessed to have been picked.” “Jubilee” is produced by Andolan Films in association with Reliance Entertainment and Phantom Studios. The 10-episode series will be released in two parts on April 7 and April 14.
