Nitish Bharadwaj Feels New Mythological Shows Are All About 'Six-Pack Abs And VFX' Says Rest Is All Plastic And Artificial

Nitish Bharadwaj, just like Mukesh Khanna, isn’t fully convinced with the new mythological shows made these days. The actor had played Krishna in BR Chopra’s Mahabharat in the 80s and believes things are more plastic and artificial these days.

Ask him if he finds a major difference between his show and the more recent ones, he doesn’t look pleased. He says, “I saw a few shows and they lacked in research and good dialogues. One particular scene surprised me – Ved Vyas was wandering somewhere in Tibet, saying ‘Oh God! Why I have to see all this?’ Was he a common man? He could see everything while sitting in his place and made Ganesha write Mahabharat as he spoke. Mahabharat is a poem and Ganesha wrote it on one condition that Ved Vyas shouldn’t stop speaking. But in one of the shows, he was shown running from here and there –- is this your understanding of Mahararishi Ved Vyas? If you couldn’t understand Ved Vyas – how will you understand Mahabharat! You are only focussing on great VFX and six pack abs. Everything has started to look plastic and artificial. That is why it will not work.”

“Mahabharat is a book of life – it is the art of living. It teaches you how to live life. If there is Mahabharat (the book) in your house, you will know what all you are not supposed to do.”

Also read: Mukesh Khanna slams Ekta Kapoor: ‘She murdered Mahabharat, put a tattoo on Draupadi’s shoulder’

‘Technology has brought us together in the virtual world but in reality, we have separated’

Besides the use of extreme VFX, Nitish also doesn’t approve of the trend of having TV sets in each room. Talking about people watching their favourite shows in separate rooms, he says, “Kids don’t sit with their parents to watch TV, people don’t sit together to have dinner. Even if they sit together, everyone is busy on their own cellphones. Technology has brought us together in the virtual world but in reality, we have separated. I want to be rooted in the reality; the virtual world is not the reality. All this is a choice, are you choosing wisely. You are not a mouse who will eat whatever is near you.”

‘Use lockdown for family binding’

Nitish says lockdown is a good opportunity to connect with family, friends and relatives via phone. “You have to be careful and utilise this time for family binding. Even if you talk on phone, your friend will feel your words. Texting on WhatsApp groups can’t match that. Spend time with kids. There is nothing important happening outside that you may miss. Your daily life will not be affected in any way. Just follow the advisory by the government. Practice yoga, follow your hobbies, read, cook, listen to music and think positive.”

Also read: Nitish Bharadwaj: ‘If there was a power cut during Mahabharat, people used to set transformers on fire’

Nitish on spending time in isolation

Besides reading, Nitish is pursuing his hobbies during lockdown. “I do photography and have been going through all my pictures and arranging them in my computer. I am refining my skills. I love background scores. I have been listening to Hans Zimmer’s background scores. I am listening to his music from Interstellar, Inception to Gladiator and Titanic. Use the technology to give the right kind of food to your brain and heart,” he says.

He is away from his family but tries to stay connected via video calling and reveals, “My kids stay with their mother in another city. Whenever I visit them, I do everything right from giving them oil massage to bathing them to cooking for them and feeding them with my own hands. I feel so good. I tell them stories and we all four sit together and sing songs and play board games. Now I am far from them in isolation, I try to do all these things via Skype. One needs to use technology in a clever way. Technology is created by man and it shouldn’t rule him.”

Author tweets @ruchik87