Behind the gloss

Chai Bisket’s micro drama ‘*her’ featuring Regina Cassandra talks of the need to respect a celebrity’s privacy

A screenshot from '*her'

An actor is often considered public property, when it comes to speculations about link-ups; too much is written and talked about their personal lives. This, despite the fact that actors too have a space of their own and that they need to face reality once they leave the set.

It is precisely this theme that Phanindra Narsetti’s *her , a micro drama (8 minutes 47 seconds) he directed addresses. Starring Regina Cassandra, the video is earning acclaim on multiple streaming sites. The Chai Bisket-production shows an interesting encounter between the actress and her fan, when the former’s car breaks down on a highway. The fan comes up with innocent, yet original questions that focus on general star-obsessed issues besides talking of celebrities becoming selfie objects. The film ends with the fan getting sensitised to the actor’s real self.

“Sandeep, who has written the story, came to me with the script planned for Women’s Day, which I felt had to be reworked to bring more depth. I’ve always believed women are heroes and they deserve respect. Moreover, regardless of industries, from Deepika to Anushka, people have crossed the line when talking about them. So I had to make

*her in such a way that it conveyed an issue and yet go about it positively, for the essence to soak in,” elaborates director Phanindra.

Regina was roped into the project because of the fruitful association she shared with the Chai Bisket team amidst the backstage coordination of IIFA Utsavam. “She didn’t take any remuneration for the film. She worked through the night and didn’t complain about mosquito menace on the location. Her passion for work truly showed,” says the maker.

On the reason behind calling this video a micro drama, he adds, “I believe drama is about the psychological exploration. With the length and the theme, came the label.”

Phanindra Narsetti made two movies,

Backspace and

Madhuram which released online, both earning critical acclaim and hitting the right numbers on YouTube.

Madhuram in fact has already notched 20 lakh views on YouTube and is still going strong.