Tribhanga came from meeting someone who had an acrimonious relationship with her mother, says Renuka Shahane

Kajol, who was last seen in Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior (2020), has a much bigger part in Renuka Shahane’s family drama Tribhanga: Tedhi Medhi Crazy (2021). The actress plays a famous classical dancer, Anuradha Apte, who is estranged from her mother Nayantara, a famous writer.

In fact, the film’s title is inspired by the lead character’s profession. Shahane explained, “Tribhanga, an Odissi dance pose that looks beautiful despite its asymmetry, is used as a metaphor to represent the women in this film who have their own quirks and idiosyncrasies and yet are fascinating, beautiful and vibrant.”

“I believe that women who make unconventional life choices and women with a wide range of personalities need to be represented in films,” she continued. “The idea for this film came from my experience of meeting someone who had a very acrimonious relationship with her mother, unlike my relationship with mine.

“I wanted to capture the dysfunctional family dynamics when the core, the relationship with the mother, is shaky and unstable. I added three different generations to better reflect the intergenerational perspective in looking at the same event in three different ways,” she said.

Kajol said the film is a celebration of women and all their beautiful imperfections. "We need to embrace these imperfections and live on our own terms, just the way Nayan, Anu and Masha do in this film. My character is outspoken and opinionated much like how the audience knows me, yet is completely different,” she said.

The actress said that as a mother, she could vouch for the fact women face challenges daily as the smallest of things they do affect their children. “Motherhood is a minefield of emotions captured extremely well by Renuka. I am very excited for the audience to see this film and hope it will resonate with people of all ages,” she said.

Meanwhile, Tanvi Azmi, revealed that even though her character is from an older generation, her ideals are modern.  “She is constantly challenging the normal, ahead of its time. In essence, Tribhanga showcases the twisted journeys of three women who are related but could not be more different. Renuka has beautifully and sensitively captured the intergenerational family dynamics and their struggles,” she said.

Actress Mithila Palkar, who plays the youngest member of the family, Masha, said that her character is a calming force. “My character Masha is poles apart from me and this is the first time I am playing a character like this,” she said.

“It has been such an enriching experience being a part of this film and working alongside stalwarts like Tanvi ma’am, Kajol ma’am and Renuka tai. Tribhanga beautifully encapsulates the unconventional life choices of three women and how they deal with every situation that comes their way.”

Tribhanga is being produced by Ajay Devgn, Siddharth P Malhotra, Sapna Malhotra, Deepak Dhar, Rishi Negi, and Parag Desai. The drama is due to be released on Netflix on 15 January.