How do you visualize the scenes when you pen them down in terms of characterisation?
Ved: I think it’s a very dynamic process. We write, the actors perform and once that is done we see if there is a scope for improvisation in the future .The story hence evolves every now and then. Like in the beginning, when we had the office track for some reason it didn’t really work with the audience and we had to shift it to the house and that worked . So I guess we have to keep changing tracks to see what works.
What is it about Khushi that attracts Arnav towards her ?
Ved: Khushi is weird and that is what attracts Arnav towards her most . He has been around other girls like Lavanya in the past , but Khushi is different since he hasn’t come across anyone like her before. It’s the untold , unexplained chemistry Arnav and Khushi share that connects them together. As the story goes on, this continues to exist in various forms and that’s what makes their relationship attractive as a whole too.
What inspires you when you write a Khushi –Arnav scene ?
Ved: Nothing inspires me . I’m a very cynical person. I don’t believe in love .It’s like” Halwai hai , mithai kitni bhi badiya banata ho , khud meetha nahi khayega who zaroori nahi”.
Which is your favourite character in the show IPKKND?
Ved: Arnav and Khushi as a couple are my favourite. Individually they are like any other normal human beings but when they come together they change the ball game altogether.
Which has been the most difficult scene or track for you to write?
Ved: Actually all are equally difficult and when I say this I mean there is complexity involved at various levels. Sometimes I get stuck, so it’s difficult, sometimes the channel gets stuck, so it’s difficult and sometimes Gul gets stuck and that is difficult too! ( laughs), See How difficult it is? (he jokes). The biggest challenge is to have all of us on the same page when it comes to a scene, track or a character. Hence this is on going process. But if you were to ask me to pick one track which has been difficult since the start it has to be trying to make Khushi realise that she is in love with Arnav. We are still working on that one scene where Khushi comes face to face with her feelings for Arnav that she loves him.
So, who’s brainchild is Arnav?
Ved: The concept of the story and the character of Arnav are Gul’s brainchild. She conceived the entire story. I stepped in and started writing the story in the episodic form much later after everything was decided at the pre-production level.
Does Arnav exist in real life or is he made only for TV viewing?
Ved: If you ask me characters like Arnav do not exists in real life .If Arnav would exist , people would run away from him. Such people tend to start getting irritating to handle beyond a point. These characters are hence best fitted only in Mills & Boons. Gul ( the producer )is still a 16 year old when it comes to romance and believes passsionately in such characters ( he says fondly ).The characters we write on screen are often larger than life which is why people take to them so fondly. We are only filling colours into Gul’s dream of wanting to show a fairy tale romance where the boy is harsh and the girl is a jhalli.
Link to Part 1: http://rangmunchtv.blogspot.in/2012/01/sub-consciously-arnav-is-already-in.html
As told to Niharika Vidya Sagar.
