Would’ve Become A Problem-Maker If I Said More

Jason Shah gained prominence for his role as British officer Cartwright in Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar. The Netflix original marked the OTT debut of ace filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Months after the show’s release, Jason opened up about his concerns on the set and how he could have been labelled as a “problem maker.” During his appearance on the post Inside The Mind With Rushabh, Jason talked about how he could have performed better. He said, “It was his (Sanjay Leela Bhansali) first time (doing a web series). Film is a little different because web is a little stretched, you’ve got a lot of episodes to make, and it’s not made in a short time… He also wasn’t directing that much. I had other directors with me. I just felt we could’ve worked on it a little more, and a lot more colour could’ve come out. It had the capacity, I feel.”

Jason Shah also revealed that rather than “miscommunication,” there was a “lack of communication” on the show’s set. Giving the example of Ben Kingsley’s role in the 1982 film Gandhi, the actor added, “What didn’t happen was the depth of the character. If you look at Gandhi, with Ben Kingsley, they really show how far racism can go, and the dichotomy between who someone thinks they are, and another human being…” When asked if he raised these concerns with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Jason replied, “I think I said enough. I would’ve become a problem-maker if I said more.”

It is not the first time that Jason Shah has talked about the atmosphere on Heeramandi sets. Earlier, in an exclusive chat with NDTV, the actor revealed that there was a lack of basic human kindness. He said, “I found it to be lacking just simple niceties of human nature. I wasn’t introduced to many people over there, which I found very odd and a little confusing. Then I started to think that since I play the villain, they want me to be angry and disconnected from everybody. But for me, being connected to a human being on set never boils over into my character. I definitely felt a little bit out of place, but I guess you just keep on going with the flow of things.” 

Heeramandi featured Sonakshi Sinha, Sharmin Segal, Manisha Koirala, Sanjeeda Shaikh, Aditi Rao Hydari and Richa Chadha. The show will make a return with its next season soon.