'I am a space enthusiast'

How 'Mission Over Mars; stands apart from the other adaptations of the mission?

Well, the process of making and storytelling is different but the ultimate goal has been the same for every maker – which is to talk about this incident that put us on the world map. So why we might take different routes to do that if our motive was to celebrate ISRO's achievement and the team behind making it possible.

Did you ever have any instinct that the repetition of the topic in web series could be a disadvantage?

Absolutely not. I think the right kind of repetition is only the best kind of reinforcement. In fact, it is a huge advantage because we have achieved national feet. The story celebrates the women empowerment and men who know the value of gender equality. So, I think repetition is great if it is to reinforce a positive idea.

Since you are playing the character of an ISRO scientist, have you done any research or groundwork for it?

Well, to be honest, I am a space enthusiast and I would have really loved to go much deeper but we did watch the videos of the original team of men and women who made the mission possible.

It was very overwhelming and gave us a very broad sense of their world. But as a creative team, one always takes creative liberties and you cant delve very deep into the science of it because you have to make it understandable for your audience. The scientific research was not done that much. So we only focussed on the characters and the traits to look like a scientist.

How challenging it was to justify the real character? Were you given any reference to the real character?

I was asked to be Meghan Reddy and she is high IQ and low EQ. Apart from that, we all knew that we are essaying the women from the team of ISRO and ISA. But we were not really instructed that we are playing a particular person. It was a combined team and our characters were also had their backstories and parallel lives.

To what extent has it been fictionalised?

The writers have done their best to maintain the authenticity and the generosity to showcase the real event. But as far as the personal lives of the characters are concerned, they are being fictionalised to a certain extent.

How was your experience working with Ekta and director Vinay?

Working for Ekta Kapoor was fantastic. But apart from that, there are so much to learn from her. I really admire her work and feel proud of being a part of her show representing the fierce women as she is a fierce person herself.

As far as our director Vinay is concerned, I have worked with him earlier in a short film and when I got to know that he is directing this show I was very happy.

I knew that this show is gonna be a good one not just because of the content but the way Vinay has written it.

There are 4 protagonists including you in the web series. Does that ever make you feel left out or insecure?

It is absolutely the opposite of what you have asked as it was the most ideal atmosphere in terms of the bonding that we actors have shared and not just the four of us but the entire unit of actors. There was a break room where we used to sit in between takes and it was nothing but a picnic for us. We had a lot of fun together.

So, while shooting for this show insecurity is far far away from what we actually experienced together as a team.

Since film and documentary were already made about Mars Orbiter Mission, what really inspires you to take up this project?

It is one of India's proudest achievement in space exploration and we must not leave any stone unturned when it comes to celebrating that.

I am not surprised that across mediums this mission has been celebrated because I think we need to do our best to celebrate this success so that we have many more achievements in the future.