Scary time for artists and writers in India, says Nandita Das

The ongoing protests around the release of Padmaavat hasn't just been the bane of its cast and crew's existence. It's spooked the rest of the industry too.

Speaking at the Kolkata Literary Festival yesterday, Nandita Das admitted that it's a “scary time for artists and writers” in India. She said she felt that it's not currently possible to attempt the daring projects she's done earlier in her career.

“I do not know if I could do a Firaaq (2008) or act in a film like Fire (1996) today and if these films would ever be made now. There was an episode on Padmavati in Bharat Ek Khoj that Shyam Benegal did many years ago. Things that we could do then... and we had our ways to agree or disagree,” Das said.

Surprisingly, Das went on to say that it's time to be more careful and "self censor ourselves".

"It is also a time for us to be more responsible and at least self-censor ourselves before something happens. Unfortunately, the atmosphere is such that a lot of things are happening out of a certain sense of fear,” she said.

“We do not have to like every film. Now there are more platforms for voicing one’s dissent. The social media has democratised the whole thing. So all of us can now find some way to do it and despite that, we are resorting to such violence. Even if it is a handful of people, the fact is that the handful seems to grow,” she said.

Das' next big project is a film based on Manto, which she says is "driven by what I wanted to say and which things about Manto I wanted to share with everyone."