‘Taj Mahal 1989’ cast decodes love in the time of WhatsApp

By Aryndhuti Banerjee

Feb 14, 2020

Mumbai: A bunch of young actors — Paras Priyadarshan, Anshul Chauhan and Anud Singh Dhaka — has got a chance to live the nineties era courtesy the upcoming Netflix original series “Taj Mahal 1989”, when love stories bloomed in reality and not in edited pictures on social media. The actors felt youngsters these days do everything to post on the virtual world than work at developing real-life heart to heart connection.

“Taj Mahal 1989” revolves around three love stories of two different generations, and all of them are intertwined.

Asked what was the one practice that new-age love stories miss, compared to the nineties, Anshul told IANS: “For me, the willingness to make a relationship work, was so important back then. Putting effort instead of just leaving it and moving on faster (was important). That, of course, requires a lot of patience, and it needs a strong mind not to give up easily.a

Paras, who plays a young lad, focused to build his career but also very much in love, completes a love triangle in the plot.

“I think the authenticity of every idea — whether it is poetry, cinema, or impressing your lover — there were no templates but an original way of doing things. These days, everything falls in a formula. I wish instead of doing photo-shoots of couples to put out on social media, we live the moment to create a lifetime memory. Sab kuch Instagram thodi na hai yaar (everything isn’t Instagram, friend)!”

Anud focuses on the importance of spending quality time with family and loved ones.

“I think it has also a lot to do with spending quality time. Earlier there was a balance of personal and professional life. Spending time with not only the immediate family but also relatives and neighbours (was important). People used to engage in conversation. So back then, once you fell in love, you would be ready to wait for the moment when she would arrive, look at her from a distance and feel how your heart would race! That was the excitement! Now, we have whatsapp, (so) I know she is coming in 10 seconds!” said Anud.

The series “Taj Mahal 1989” streams from Friday. It also features Danish Hussain, Sheeba Chaddha, Shiri Sewani, Mihir Ahuja and Vasundhara Singh Rajput, Geetanjali Kulkarni among others.

Neeraj, who plays a middle-aged professor of literature who is trying hard to save his marriage, recalls his young age and remembers how he was deeply in love in the nineties. Speaking about an interesting change he has observed in the new-age relationships, he said: “I like how young couples these days express their thoughts and emotions very honestly. They know how to put everything on the table. It has its pitfalls but they do not hesitate to talk about everything. Not that we were unreal in our days back in the nineties, but these days youngsters are open to approaching things in a more practical and articulate way than our times.” IANS