"Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes are great champions; we wanted to present their story with complete honesty"

Filmmaker Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari (Image: Forbes)

When the lockdown brought uncertainty and anxiety with it, filmmaker Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari was fortunate to be offered an irresistible opportunity. On the back of fiction features such as Bareilly Ki Barfi and Panga, she took on a docu-drama about the iconic Indian tennis duo of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi and their eventual break-up.

The seven-episode series, Break Point, which she co-directs along with her filmmaker husband Nitesh Tiwari (Dangal, Chhichhore), is now streaming on Zee5, Iyer Tiwari’s third project this year. Not only did she direct one of the short films in Ankahi Kahaniya, but she also wrote her first novel called Mapping Love. The 41-year-old director-producer-writer and mother talks about her experiences with new formats of storytelling.

How did Break Point come to be?

In March 2020, soon after lockdown, I got a call from the Collective Artists Network asking if I would be interested in telling Leander and Mahesh’s story. They also suggested that Nitesh and I could do it together. I was interested, and  Nitesh was very quick to agree to it too. The series gave us something to look forward to at a time when we didn’t know what the future held. We were attracted to the story because not only would we get to interview Leander and Mahesh, but it would be so much fun for our generation that followed these two tennis champions. A docudrama was something we had never attempted before so we decided to do it keeping in mind the emotional quotient and the opportunity to make it world class.

Also read: Review | 'Break Point' is a simple but evocative piece of storytelling

Do you follow tennis?

I am a big fan of Roger Federer. Nitesh is a fan of all sports. We saw Federer play at Wimbledon last year. The first time I met Leander, I asked him if he would introduce me to Federer! In fact after the birth of my children, I wanted to learn tennis but the coach told me I was too old to learn! With the series coming out, he is now apologising for discouraging me. I feel it is important to encourage youngsters to get into all kinds of games and learn teamwork and to understand how good partnerships work and help you grow.

You started work on this during the pandemic. What were the production challenges?

Besides being the directors, we have also produced the series. The first eight months were about video calls, drafting questions and getting our narrative structure in place. Then we started creating a human map and mind map. After that we shot remotely, using line producers in various places including Poland, Australia, USA, etc. We sent them the complete deck of colours, framing, background, light, and then we did a tech check before the shoot. We worked on the India shoot between the first and second wave and then focused on editing and writing.

Was it easy to get Paes and Bhupathi to open up and speak candidly?

We got introduced to them in March 2020, and then met them over video calls for about eight to nine months. By then we felt like we knew each other. They had trust and we gave an assurance that we would tell the story without taking sides, without judgement about either of them. They are great champions and we wanted to present their story with complete honesty.

You have been busy. How do you find time for it all?

I need a break. I need uninterrupted sleep, without 7 am school wake up calls. Honestly, I don’t get into things mapping my journey. When I want to cut off, I can. From advertising days to Nil Battey Sannata, my journey has been very organic. I never consider what the view will be from the top of the mountain. The climb up, the people I meet and friendships made along the way are more joyous.

Even with Mapping Love, we shouldn’t doubt ourselves too much but just write those 500 words a day. Before you know it, that becomes a 50,000-word manuscript. It is about discipline and also about having a lot of fun. The one thing that keeps me going is the joy of creating stories and a whole breed of young storytellers who evolve with me through every story. The people I meet, the discussions and process of creating give me utmost joy, where I just create for the archives and let my work speak for itself way after I am gone.

What is it like working on an unscripted show after being part of mostly scripted, fictional films?

We didn’t approach Break Point like a quintessential documentary. It is unscripted, but not unstructured. We wanted to have three points of view and a structure. We have a beginning, middle and end for every episode. We needed a structure on paper otherwise we could have gone all over the place. Each episode is about one event or story – Wimbledon, the Olympics, Doha, and so on. Then we spoke to people involved with that story and formulated questions that revolved around that one thing.

What else are you working on?

We are still writing the film on Narayana and Sudha Murthy. Before that I am directing Faadu, a web series that is an intense love story. There is a lot of action and a very strong male protagonist, and will be very challenging for me.