One of the most-awaited shows of Amazon Prime Video, Panchayat, is back with season 3.Created by TVF and directed by Deepak Kumar Mishra, Panchayat will see the return of our favourites - Jitendra Kumar, Neena Gupta, Raghubir Yadav, Faisal Malik, Chandan Roy and Sanvikaa.
The Quint caught up with the director and actors Neena Gupta and Faisal Malik and spoke to them about the show, the challenges they faced in their careers, what change would they like to see in the country, and more.
We asked Neena Gupta about whether society should stop giving importance to a woman having to have a man in her life, and how she navigated the years when she had to raise her daughter Masaba all by herself.
To which the veteran actor replied, "Not much has changed and things are still the same. It will take a long time for things to change in our society. When Masaba was born, it was a difficult time for me. From my experiences I have learnt why I could face the challenges in life. It is because I did not need either money or emotional support from anyone. The moment you ask for either, people start hesitating."
The trio also spoke about the challenges they faced in their professional lives. Neena said that when she looks back at her journey she wonders how she got through those trying times. "My life has been full of hardships," Neena told The Quint.
Faisal opened up about losing his father during COVID, and how having to shoot during that time was extremely difficult. On the other hand, Deepak spoke about leaving a well-paying IT job and joining the film industry at a meagre salary of Rs 8000. "There was a lot of pressure during that time to sustain. I feel that when things start working out and you are at ease, then you can focus on creating better content."
Faisal and Deepak also spoke about how they didn't anticipate Panchayat to receive such massive love and appreciation.
The third season will stream on Amazon Prime Video from 28 May.
Video Editor: Arnab Chakravorty
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