The Ram-Madhvani-helmed Aarya: Season 2, which is an official adaption of the hit Dutch series Penoza, has recently started streaming on an OTT platform.
Sushmita Sen has returned in the titular role as Aarya Sareen, and the action drama has been winning rave reviews from critics and viewers alike. “My mother binge-watched the second season with me! My father was choked with emotion when he called me from Kolkata and told me how proud he is of me after watching the show. It was a very emotional moment for me. I had always told my father that I would make him proud. It has taken me 27 years to earn this compliment from my dad — that he’s proud of my work,” says Sushmita. “It’s truly one of the most hallmark moments for all of us when our parents tell us how proud they are of our journey and all that we have achieved in life.”
The actress, who refuses to speak about her recent medical condition, instead talks about the tough times they had even to shoot the second season of the series. “We’ve become lockdown specialists now! We either release during a lockdown or shoot during it — that’s our new thing! ” Sushmita says with a chuckle. “Working during the lockdown was amazing; everyone just pulled in following the rules and making it possible. Shooting in Jaipur and executing the patchwork in Mumbai, our schedule was executed through the lockdown. Then on our farewell, we remembered how blessed we were to be working during the pandemic. There were so many people who had to sit at home. The farewell was also a nice culmination of teamwork.”
But no matter how simply she puts it even Sushmita remembers the rigours of shooting then. “My God! The very definition of a bubble is now etched in my mind forever. For any crew member to work in a PPE kit, covered from head to toe for 10 hrs a day is seriously tough! And the constant tests, making sure we lived away from our family, the quarantine for 7-10 days before starting to work — all these measures initially seemed difficult. But we were full of gratitude to be working at such a time and to be able to create something that you love. I mean Aarya: Season 2 is a big leap from the first season!” she says.
While the second season’s already gotten her many accolades, the first season also fetched an Emmy nomination. “It’s delightful to see the same series move with such pace when you’ve already taken the story miles ahead and it always used to be a question mark! Ram would wonder, ‘What are we going to do in the rest of the season? And then he’d also say, ‘Wait for it; we’ve a lot of content!’,” she says.
