Behind the scenes with Sakshi Dhoni

Sakshi’s daily schedule is the same as that of any other wife / mother in a typical Indian household. Except, she is not just ‘any other wife or mother, she’s the wife of cricketing great MS Dhoni!

Her day begins with the process of sending daughter Ziva to school; a quick round of the house follows, to ensure everything is in order, after which she sits down to make a few phone calls. The afternoons are spent doing work-related chores.  

“Evenings are reserved for chitchatting with the family, watching films and TV shows,” smiles Sakshi Dhoni, in a freewheeling exclusive interview with Hyderabad Chronicle.

She is all set to make her debut as a film producer with Let’s Get Married and is super excited about the project.

“Mahi wanted the first film to be a Tamil one, because, as you know, he is emotionally connected to the place. It was only natural for Dhoni Entertainment to venture into filmmaking from there,” says Sakshi, explaining how she chose her maiden film venture.

She says the Dhoni parivar considers Chennai their second home. “We as a family have received a lot of love and support there. In fact, when I was hesitant, it was this local support which provided me with a solid foundation,” she shares.

Movie buff

Sakshi has been a movie buff since she was a child. “Growing up, I had a strong interest in movies. They entertained me when I was bored, encouraged me when I was bogged down, and made me laugh when I was sad,” she smiles. She says venturing into movie production is her way of giving back to the industry, telling stories of a certain kind.

“When we started Dhoni Entertainment, we first decided on a vision for our production house  — ‘High quality, clean entertainment through thought-provoking stories of the common person,’ Sakshi reveals.

Production debut

“We wanted our first movie to champion our vision. It was a high bar, and eventually we settled on LGM with a specific topic: the relationship between the girlfriend / bride-to-be and her prospective in-laws,” she elaborates. This is a prickly issue and has resulted in many failed marriages, she says. “LGM is an effort to make this topic more approachable for everyone. This is a serious topic, and our approach was to portray such awkward moments straight up, without any concessions, and then break through them via high quality individual interactions, and comedy,” she says of the movie.

What makes this subject really hard, feels Sakshi, is the generation gap between parents and their children, and the societies of the past and present. “For example, most of our parents had arranged marriages while love marriages are more common these days. Most of our parents got married really young, while today the marriage age has increased by more than 10 years. Also, the brides of the past were often not working women,” she says. Since the average age for entering into matrimony has increased, young people  these days really want to understand their choices and make informed decisions rather than playing blind (in the context of understanding the family). “Pubs and parties have become more of a norm now than they were before,” she adds.

The future beckons

How would you measure LGM’s success? we ask. “Hearing families laugh, and discuss their personal stories amongst themselves would be our measure of success. If they do that much, then we have influenced society for the better. We have worked so hard on the movie, and obviously want it to do well,” says the debutant producer.

Sakshi may also foray into other areas in the near future. “Yes, there are other areas of interest. But for the time being, the focus is on Dhoni Entertainment,” she declares.

Not camera-shy

Ask Sakshi if Dhoni will make his acting debut soon and if so, what kind of movie she would like him to do, and she says, “If Mahi ever considers acting, he should look for an action thriller. He is not camera-shy. He has been appearing in commercials since 2006. If we decide to make a film with MS Dhoni as the protagonist, it will only be an entertaining action film.”

What it’s like being married to MSD

Life as a wife of a famous person comes with its own share of challenges. But Sakshi feels life is full of challenges for everyone. “The difference is that you are always in the limelight, scrutinised, and have very little personal space! I was bothered in the beginning, but now it’s just a part of our lives!”she says with a smile.

Coming to Ziva, is she more like Sakshi or Mahi, we want to know. “Ziva is a bit of both of us. She is currently interested in becoming a Naturalist and has a lot of questions about environment and animals,” Sakshi replies.

Sakshi is a total foodie. “When I travel, I look for eateries and local cuisine. At home, I enjoy dal and rice,” she says. When it comes to her clothes, she buys her daily-wear outfits online. “I do buy clothes when I I’m on vacation overseas,” she shares, adding that she prefers simple jewellery for special occasions. Animals are a big passion. “I always check in and communicate with them,” she says.