Filmmaker Kiran Rao recently revisited Lucknow, a city she last visited during her childhood. Speaking about her enjoyable experience on returning to the city after a long gap, Kiran described Lucknow as a place of “fun and food.” She shared a personal connection with the city, mentioning that her mother is an alumna of IT College and was born in Shahjahanpur. “My mother came here recently. She and my aunt have studied in Lucknow. She was born in Shahjahanpur. She was so excited that I was here. She was like ‘kya-kya dekha, isn’t Lucknow beautiful? How much has it changed, wagairah’. We’ve been rushing around since we arrived in Lucknow, trying a variety of delicacies and ticking items off our list, including Malai Makhan and Malai Paan,” said Kiran.
Kiran and Aamir Khan, after 15 years of marriage, parted ways in 2022. When asked about being referred to as Aamir’s ex-wife despite her successful filmmaking career, Kiran responded, “No, honestly, it doesn’t make me feel irked. I’ve kind of grown very used to having my identity in some way mediated through that lens. I feel quite secure in my abilities and personality. How people view me is for them to decide really. I feel like my work should speak for itself, carve a niche if it has to, and appeal to people if it can. What people think of me, honestly, beyond the point I can’t control and I don’t let it bother me.”
On the topic of self-censorship in filmmaking due to the potential to offend diverse audiences, Kiran remarked, “As filmmakers, we are now in a mode of self-censoring because different people might take offense to different things. It leads you to put everything that you write under scrutiny, a filter that most filmmakers always have. The reason is that we as a society are very diverse, and when we are making a film we do it for a broad audience. So we’d like to stay away from things that could derail the conversation that you want to have with your audience in a film.”
Regarding the perspective a female director brings to a story, Kiran, who received rave reviews for her latest film, believes each gender offers a unique viewpoint. “I think that having experienced life as a woman in some way gives me the advantage of being able to bring a nuance to the story that perhaps men will not know for not having that experience. As a woman, I am drawn to certain subjects that I am exploring which a male director will not find that interesting to explore. Nevertheless, being a woman gives me a certain perspective that is different from a male director,’’ she said.
She added, “Without generalizing on gender, I am sure there will be women directors who make films that don’t differ that much from a male perspective. For people to tell their own stories, and speak from their experiences and interests is crucial. Many male directors who are extremely sensitive would love to make films that depict more shades of women. It’s necessarily not gender, but I do feel I bring a certain perspective being a woman.”
Kiran Rao shared her experiences in Lucknow through her Insta stories during her two-day stay in the city.
