TOTAL HEALTH HONESTY WILL COME ONLY WHEN WE REMOVE THE STIGMA THAT IS BECOMING ASSOCIATED WITH THE DISEASE

permissions first. This wasn’t that difficult as we were doing this for the health ministry.

The next most important thing was to have a lean crew: each person at the shoot had to be actually indispensable. Such shoots usually have a crew of about 60 to 70 people. But we cut it down to 20. We ensured that everyone was picked up and dropped home in cars with social distancing norms in place, that everyone was wearing a mask, and that at no point would those masks be removed. wouldn’t bother about. But then you get used to it and get back to work. Everyone was keen to get back to work. This was a kind of dress rehearsal for them before getting started with bigger productions, and they diligently followed the guidelines while shooting.

Armed with this experience, I can tell you that it is definitely feasible to start shooting feature length come only when we normalise the situation and remove the stigma that is becoming associated with the disease. If you are sick, say it up front, take a break, stay home, get better, resume work. Each step is crucial. Also, the more we see people defeating the virus and resuming work, the more confident we will be about dealing with the situation. And we need to remember that more than 95 per cent of us will be marginally, if not at all, affected by the virus physically.

We can’t stay stuck at home indefinitely. With so many people working at the frontline, battling the virus every day, we must take the first step outside.