Deepti Naval: Rituparno Ghosh was one of a kind; I will always miss him

On Rituparno Ghosh’s birth anniversary, actress and writer Deepti Naval recalls her first meeting with the brilliant filmmaker and being his co-star on ‘Memories in March'.
"Rituparno Ghosh was one of the finest filmmakers of India, I had seen his films - ‘Raincoat’ and ‘Chokher Bali’ and I had always admired his body of work,” begins Deepti, and recalls, “When I landed in Calcutta for a film shoot, I met Ritu, in between our conversation, he asked me to watch his film ‘Chitrangada: The Crowning Wish’.I did watch the film and it was so amazing. You see, I always wanted to work with him as a director but I got to work with him as a co-star in ‘Memories in March’. And although the film was not directed by him, the entire sensibilities was his as he had written the film. It was lovely to work with him as a co-star in the film.”

Off the sets, Deepti recalls a wonderful gesture by the late Bengali filmmaker that stayed with her.

“I remember when I went to his house, it was an eclectic place with lots of memorabilia from world cinema, it was very cosy. And we were trying out different costumes but he did not like some of it. So, he gave me a saree and a blouse which was worn by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. I told him, ‘I am playing your mother in the film, why would I wear a round neck blouse?’ To which he said, ‘No- no, I want you to look vulnerable.’ I was so impressed with his eye for details. Rituparno was one of a kind; I will always miss him,” says Deepti.