Jason Shah On Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Involvement In 'Heeramandi': 'We Could’ve Worked On It A Little More'

Jason Shah, who portrayed Cartwright in the 'Heeramandi', recently gave an interview in which he shared Sanjay Leela Bhansali wasn't much involved in direction.

Jason Shah talks about his experience in 'Heeramandi', directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

Source : Instagram/Jason Shah

New Delhi: The web series ‘Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar’, written and directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, generated immense excitement among viewers upon its release. Among the many famous faces that graced the cast were Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Sanjeeda Shaikh, Richa Chadha, Sharmin Segal Mehta, Farida Jalal, Fardeen Khan and Jason Shah. Actor Jason Shah, who portrayed British officer Cartwright, recently said that he felt his talent was underutilised since Bhansali was not heavily involved on set and did not direct many of his sequences.

On an episode of ‘Inside The Mind With Rushabh’, Jason Shah offered some insightful stories about ‘Heeraandi’. He elaborated on how director Sanjay Leela Bhansali had a lot on his plate as the first season reportedly took three years and 350 days to film. 

Jason shared, “It was his first time (doing a web series). Film is a little different because the 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.”

 

 

 

 

 

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Jason went on to say that he would have been called a "troublemaker" on set if he had continued to voice his artistic views.

The actor went on to say that ‘Heeramandi’ sets suffered a lack of communication. “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,” the actor said.

About ‘Heeramandi’

‘Heeramandi: The Diamond Baazar’, which premiered in June 2024, is about the conflict between the British Raj authorities and the courtesans of Lahore's Heeramandi red-light district. It takes place during the Indian independence struggle.