Exclusive It was my duty to challenge Bollywood's romanticization of Karva Chauth, says Mrs. director Arati Kadav

Director Arati Kadav discusses in an exclusive interview how she rewrote the slow-burning thriller The Great Indian Kitchen as a coming-of-age tale without making the male characters blatantly evil.For some time, Arati Kadav has been marginalized. She is one of the few filmmakers who seems to effortlessly establish her voice, with a small but impressive body of work that includes two innovative shorts (55 Km/sec, The Astronaut and His Parrot) and an impressive feature-length debut (Cargo). Although science fiction seems to be her preferred genre, her skill is integrating the fantastical into this nation's social and cultural fabric. An independent female director, particularly one who creates entire universes on shoestring budgets, is not only ignored, though, as is frequently the case in Bollywood. After all, the guidelines have always been straightforward: follow them or go extinct. Furthermore, you never define the game.However, Kadav appears to have undergone a sea change in the last three weeks. Her fantastical sci-fi thoughts have long been ignored by the industry, but now it seems to be taking notice. It's not just them, either. The crowd has also thrown out its arms, anxious to hear her thoughts.

Her most recent movie, Mrs., which stars Sanya Malhotra and is an official remake of the landmark Malayalam classic The Great Indian Kitchen, is at the center of this change. With good reason, the movie has become a cultural hot spot, buzzing on social media and elsewhere. Men are starting to face their reflections in dining rooms and during quiet talks, as if the movie has unintentionally put a mirror in front of them.Women have responded to Kadav in the most significant way. She feels connected to a sisterhood now. Women of all ages are sending her messages, not only from complete strangers but also from people she had lost contact with for a long time. She also discovers something uncommon in their words: a feeling of inclusion, as though the movie had somehow spoken for her and drawn her into a community she was unaware existed. This unexpected surge of acceptance caught her off guard. However, it is a long-overdue and welcome change in her life. She is now recognized by strangers in public places, which prevents her from thanking them for the movie.