It's beginning & end of characters of Shruti, Gauahar, etc. that'll drive you - Bestseller producer Siddharth

Amazon Prime Video dropped the trailer of the much-awaited psychological thriller, Bestseller just last week and it gave a glimpse into the lives of the characters and a riveting plot. Within little time, it has led to a lot of curiosity and intrigue among audiences. Ahead of the show's release, India Forums got a chance to speak to producer and creator Siddharth P Malhotra, along with director Mukul Abhyankar.

We asked Siddharth about what goes into getting a thriller show up and running, especially given the fact that it has been an overtly crowded genre at that. He tells us,

''It is not a run of the mill thriller, and if you have characters which are well-defined and well rooted, and give it a setting and story, and you have to change the world, which is serving the food in the same plate but do it differently, so it is the writing it all boils down to, the writing you are seeing and this is the publication world that we are talking about and we've not seen it on OTT shows. It is the characters of Shruti, Mithun, Gauahar, and it is the beginning and end of these characters that will drive you and leave you compelled to come back for more and invest in them because you can't do so in the film, but here, you can, and still want to see what happens in their lives next and that compelling factor is what the genre of thriller does. The answer would be reinvent yourself and present it in a new way.''

Further, we also asked him how involved is he in the filmmaking process, and about that, he tells us,

''After the scripts, as a creative producer and creator of the show, after getting the book rights, etc. I realised that nobody better than Mukul can direct this and we go back as friends. I have worked with enough directors where I know as a producer I have to support them with any kind of ability and if they need my advice as a director, I am going to be there, if they don't, I am choosing them to do the job so I don't need to. The best way to do so is to have a creative collaboration.''

Meanwhile, we also asked the director, Mukul, about the kind of thought process that goes into creating such a show, with so many characters, all the intensity, and in a psychological thriller. He tells us, 

''The biggest challenge you face is maintaining the continuity of the characters, and since it is a six hour long journey for the audience, they shouldn't feel like the character changed its colours or started behaving differently. You will not find any thriller element in the storyline, and it does not start with 'once upon a time somebody was murdered', it is a very slice of life and you will be shocked to see how quickly it turns into a thriller. The canvas of a web series is bigger than feature film, the writers have invested enough in characters, so when you read the script, they come alive in front of your eyes and you know who is who. It is the beauty of writing that the show is based on 6 main characters but you will not find a single minute that it is boring, as it will keep you hooked.''

The series is slated for a release on February 18, 2022.