Pallavi Joshi on her Family, Career and Mission for India

After the success of 'The Kashmir Files,' the National-award-winner, Vivek Agnihotri, is back with yet another gripping drama, 'The Vaccine War' which is released on September 28. Pallavi Joshi, who was really appreciated as Radhika Menon in 'The Kashmir Files’, is the actress-producer of ‘The Vaccine War’. In an exclusive Interview with Adgully, Pallavi Joshi shares about her break from TV and how she devoted her time to her family and kids. She also shares about her friendly and not-so typical relation with her husband, Vivek Agnihotri. Joshi also discussed about their (Vivek and her) mission to make India a true democratic country by dedicating their films on real issues.

How was the atmosphere on the sets of ‘The Vaccine War’? Who is in the driver’s seat?

The atmosphere on the sets was as usual but the atmosphere at home changes drastically. It is a quite difficult to work as partners; it is even more problematic as our children are also involved and working with us. So, working as a family becomes overwhelming. Sometimes you need space as a human being. It doesn’t matter how good your marriage, or your partner is, you need your own space. We try to give space to each other at times.

How do you solve your arguments?

Life would be so boring without arguments. How would you make up without any arguments? We both give in after some time.

What can you say about the difference in ‘fan following’ of television earlier and now?

I am glad that I started to work at a very young age. When I had my kids I was practically close to my retirement. With my daughter, I had missed when she was crawling because of my busy schedules. I couldn’t forgive myself as I felt that I shouldn’t have missed that. So when my son came along, I felt that I should take a short break. I wanted to enjoy their childhood. Now, that I have come back, the audience is giving me the same amount of love they did earlier. When my kids were three and five, I started my own production house and did Marathi shows like Asambhav and Anubandh. Having my own production house gave me scope to manage my working hours as I was not dependent on anyone else for reporting.

Children of celebrities lose their innocence very soon in life. Do you agree?

Exactly and I didn’t want that. Since, everyone knew us well, they would ask whether your children will work in advertisements. I asked them but when they said no, I didn’t pursue it.

How old are they now and what do they do?

My daughter is 24 now. She is also into production and did three films with us. She just completed a web series for Excel Entertainment. She has got a good head on her shoulders. My son is assisting Vivek, and the entire post-production of The Vaccine War was handled by him.

Do you only want to work with Vivek or are you open to work with other directors as well?

Of course, I am open to work with other directors as well, but Vivek doesn’t give me any time. It is comfortable to work with the family but it is important to get others' perspectives. Moreover, I am not here just to make money. Everyone dreams of having a big house and getting glory. At this stage, I don’t want to have a big house because who will handle it. Children are going to leave the house anyway as they are not going to stay with us forever.

What is the secret of a successful married life?

I don’t know as I never looked at it that way. When Vivek and I got married, people had predicted that it wouldn't last long. I am not a good wife because I hadn’t been brought up to be potentially a good wife and a mother. Vivek also is the worst husband. So we decided that we won't be the typical husband and wife, where he will earn and buy my jewellery. We decided that we will be friends and partners for life.

Your films have changed the mindset of the people. Did you anticipate that when you started producing films?

Yes, without modesty I visualised that. I never knew that it would grow so much. Our message was made with clarity and I knew people will understand what we want to say through films. The opening of ‘The Kashmir Files’ was phenomenal, like a tsunami. People did group bookings, in fact people like ‘paan-walas’ and ‘rickshawalas’ were distributing tickets to students to go and watch the film. This kind of support was something that we had not anticipated, it was really phenomenal.

How was it working with Nana Patekar this time?

Nana Patekar is like an old wine. He has matured with age. I had worked with him in the 1980’s, in Trishagni and Andhayudh. I forgot my lines while doing a scene with him. I kept watching him in awe, as to see the craft that was unfolding was so fascinating.

You are releasing your films overseas first and then in India. Why is it so?

It's not a strategy. We did all the research work for Kashmir files there as most of the Kashmiri Pandits have settled in the US and the UK. Moreover, they are scattered all over the world. We wanted to go to Australia and New Zealand too but because of the lockdown we were restricted. We went in 2019 and met them and we had committed to them that we will show them the film first. It became a phenomenon on social media.

As a producer, is the focus on making issue based films only?

We had planned a trilogy on Files initially, when we made Tashkent Files, then The Kashmir Files and our next will be Delhi Files. Our focus is on the National Emblem- the Lion, where it stands for ‘Truth Alone Triumphs’. We worked for right to truth, right to justice and right to life. In truth, we decided to work on Lal Bahadur Shastri’s life as we don’t know the truth as to what really happened when he died. Second, we decided on the Kashmir Files as ‘right to justice’. Many people died in communal riots and no one was punished. Everyone has a right to life. But if we don’t save our democracy, India will become a ‘mobocracy’ some day.