For the film "When Kiran Met Karen," Tushar Unadkat takes on a dual role as Production Designer while also playing "Himesh Bhai," the sleazy Bollywood producer who is notorious for sleeping with his actresses. Ofcourse Tushar is nothing like Himesh Bhai, but he does have a sharp eye for photography and set design.

Peta Cooper: You play Himesh Bhai in the film WKMK. You told me Himesh Bhai sleeps with the actresses he works with. Does he sleep with Kiran?
Tushar Unadkat: Kiran is ambitious and in the film she sleeps with Himesh Bhai to get her first big break.

PC: Do you believe the "sleeping with the producer" stigma still exists in Bollywood?
TU: "Sleeping with the producer" sounds like "sleeping with the enemy." (laughs) Well, in my opinion, sociological trading of sexual favors for careers which are highly desirable and traditionally difficult to break into, such as the movie, television and music industries, have been the subject of casting couch stories in popular culture. Having said that, I hear this stigma exists in Bollywood as well as the Hollywood entertainment industry.

PC: What's Himesh Bhai's opinion on lesbian relationships?
TU: Hmmm... dissecting Himesh bhai in-depth, I'd say that he would be afraid to approve of the lesbian relationships. However, we haven't dwelled into the character to that extent in this film.

PC: What's Tushar's opinion on lesbian relationships?
TU: I live in Canada, where same-sex relationship receives legal equal-rights. I believe in "live and let live." If women love women, then I say so be it!

PC: You look great! Being a part of the production team as "Production Designer" - is this the way you keep in shape?
TU: Thank you Peta! (smiles) You made my day! (laughs) Production Design demands a bit of a workout as it involves a lot of physical activity. The PD works hand in hand with the Director & the Director of Photography so there is always a lot of running around going on but it is a lot of fun and challenging to come up with new concepts or satisfy certain requirements for the look of the film.

PC: If WKMK were shot in India, do you think that could have jeopardized your sets? Just like Deepa Mehta's sets for her film "Fire" were destroyed?
TU: Hmm... this is an interesting question. "Fire" is more than a decade old and while WKMK is complex, today, due to the revolutionized television industry, I see that the urban Indian audiences have a larger appetite than we can imagine. To begin with, WKMK is filmed in English, shot in New York with new-age characters and not targeting rural India. Finally, WKMK may not have faced any jeopardy on sets mainly because the project's sensibilities have not mixed ingredients that inflame anger.

PC: What sort of backlash have you faced being a part of WKMK, if any?
TU: There has been some criticism about the project, but as a "production designer," I hold the least amount of responsibility for the story or the message of the film. Several industry professionals raised eyebrows when they confirmed that I was associated with the project but hey, my job is technical and to make each frame look artistically authentic within the given time and budget.

PC: In what ways has WKMK made you grow as a person?
TU: Working with the cast and crew of WKMK I had the opportunity to think and understand social issues of life that get brushed off. The entire cast and crew worked with genuine commitment and passion on this project and that made me more of a human and less of a hypocrite!

PC: Do you think WKMK is going to start a positive trend of having lesbian leads in Desi themed movies?
TU: It's difficult to forecast these trends as "lesbianism" is an unconventional concept, however the debate WKMK raises will generate a positive outcome and hopefully more acceptance towards these types of relationships.

PC: Do you have any final words for the Desiclub.com readers?
TU: Desiclub is bold and beautiful! As they say "It's people like you, makes people like me, like people like you." New-age Desi readers and Desiclub.com are the two sides of the same coin! Great job! Keep it up! I encourage Desiclub.com readers to visit: Tushar Unadkat for more information and review my work.

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