‘Chutzpah’ highlights the duality existence in real & social world for GenZ

Ever since SonyLIV and Maddock Outsider launched the fascinating trailer of their new web show ‘Chutzpah’, it has created a sense of intrigue and excitement among the audience. ‘Chutzpah’ gives a sneak peek into the digital transformation of human identity in today’s era and highlights five differently flavoured stories woven around the Internet.

Living up to the title, the new-age web show showcases the relevance of the Internet and social media in everyone’s life, which has caught the fancy of the viewers. It features Gen-X popular actors Varun Sharma, Manjot Singh, Gautam Mehra, Tanya Maniktala, Elnaaz Norouzi and Kshitij Chauhan, among others.

Social media has become an integral part of our lives and serves as a platform where people can showcase their talent freely and talk about their fears in front of the world. ‘Chutzpah’ showcases the duality that exists in the real and social world about how the young generation lives every moment of their life with the ‘Internet’.

Adgully caught up with some of the cast of ‘Chutzpah’ to know how these popular Gen X actors view the impact of social media on the youth, how OTT is supporting new and upcoming actors, how they prepared for their roles and a lot more. 

What made you select this role? How did you prepare for the same?

Gautam Mehra: I didn’t select the role, the role selected me. A lot of preparations were done for my character, Kevin. He is a YouTuber in the web show. I did a lot of study and research about what YouTubers do, how they prepare content, the way they interact with their fans, handle their followers and a lot more. Other than that, the emotional and internal preparation was completely different as the character Kevin is very impulsive, which required a different approach.

Varun Sharma: We live in a time where the Internet is a part of our lives – we wake up with the Internet and go to sleep with it. To do a show and be a part of it, which offers everything related to the digital world or social media, comes up with an opportunity itself. We decided to jump on this and be a part of it. It’s a path breaking show and the visual treat of this web show will get enough love by the viewers and for me personally, it is something different that is attempted, something unique that I have tried. The course of the journey of my character, Vikas, is going to showcase different shades in the entire journey and will give a different perspective to the audiences. 

Do you think being on social media so much is creating anxiety amongst the youth?

Elnaaz Norouzi: In so many ways social media is now deeply embedded in the lives of the youth. If you look at women in general, who constantly post these perfect pictures with perfect skin and perfect hair, not only normal people on Instagram, but we as an actor too strive for perfection and that is what has been fed into us.

The whole problem lies with people who don’t speak about being imperfect and the issues that they are going through because of which everything just looks perfect to the viewers. We need to understand that even if there are not enough people to tell us that life is not always beautiful, we need to accept that that it is not about being ‘perfect’ all the time and be okay with it. As a “butterfly” in Sara’s character, you will see her completely dressed up in front of the camera and behind it you will get to see what life she is living and is going through. ‘Chutzpah’ is extremely relevant in today’s age.

Tanya Maniktala: “Social media can be a stressful place, but there is a lot of awareness happening now. It is up to us as to how we perceive it and let it impact our lives. Social media has its own pros and cons. Talking about anxiety is also a progress, which was never discussed before. 

How do you guys on a personal level deal with trolls & negative comments?

Manjot Singh: No matter how hard we try, it does feel bad when someone talks about you or writes about you or trolls you negatively. You can avoid the situation by not replying to the troll, but the comments keep running in the back of your mind, depending on brutal the troll was. The kind of field you are in, one has to be very cautious and smart to deal with these trolls.” 

How do you view OTT supporting new and upcoming actors?

Kshitij Chauhan: OTT is not only supporting the actors, but also all the artists who are into this creative field – be it cinematographers, writers, directors who make use of this extra medium through which they can showcase their talent. Previously, it was only television and movies, where not many people got a chance, but now the scenario has changed and OTT has proved to be a forum where you can present yourself as an actor or as an artist. There are so many stories to narrate to the audiences; it is the right time to shine in this field for an actor and artist by believing in yourself and grabbing the opportunity with your talent.

Tanya Maniktala: There is so much diversity in the content which is being created now on OTT and the viewers get to watch all kinds of genres and stories. I myself started my career through OTT and all the shows that I have done have been released on OTT platforms. Every story has a voice now and it is incredible because new faces are coming along, which state that everybody is now at the same level. 

Produced by Dinesh Vijan and created and written by Amit Babbar and Mrighdeep Singh Lamba, ‘Chutzpah’ is directed by Simarpreet Singh. An out-and-out entertainer, ‘Chutzpah’ premiered on SonyLIV from July 23, 2021. 

Watch the full interview here: