Sonakshi Sinha.

The second song, titled “Tilasmi Bahein,” from the upcoming streaming series “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar” was unveiled on Wednesday. The song, directed by auteur Sanjay Leela Bhansali, features an Arabic sound with percussions and pizzicato, lending a unique texture to the track. The music video features actress Sonakshi Sinha in an ethereal avatar. She dons an ivory-coloured shimmery saree in the video and rounds up the look with curly hair. She is surrounded by men dressed in Western clothes and women sporting dark coloured sarees inside a dimly-lit room with Victorian-era chandeliers. As the song progresses, the actress breaks into a euphoric dance. Her carefree spirit and infectious charm captivate the audience. The actress essays the role of Fareedan in the series.

The enigmatic character carries herself with effortless grace, casting a spell that lingers long after the song fades. The frames are adorned with signature Bhansali aesthetics with perfect colour coordination, frame composition, the texture of the fabric, the art and the props. “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar” marks the OTT debut of Bhansali. He is known for his acute sense of aesthetics given in his background in theatres, and has engineered his trademark style of storytelling where he uses even inanimate objects as a catalyst to the story through, costumes, production design and music. “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar” also stars Sharmin Segal, the niece of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Manisha Koirala, Aditi Rao Hydari, Richa Chadha and Sanjeeda Sheikh The series will be available to stream on Netflix from May 1. Meanwhile, Richa Chadha, who is all geared up for the release of her upcoming period drama “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar,” has revealed how the Indian auteur Sanjay Leela Bhansali (SLB) has used real vintage jewellery, fabrics for the costumes to achieve the grandeur of the series.  Marking the OTT debut of Bhansali, the series explores the cultural reality of Heeramandi, a dazzling district, through the stories of courtesans and their patrons set against the tumultuous backdrop of the Indian freedom struggle of the 1940s.

Talking to IANS, on the sidelines of the Cinevesture International Film Festival 2024 (CIFF), Richa, who was last seen in ‘Fukrey 3’ said Bhansali is very conscious of his world. “He is very aware that it is not realistic. But that’s his vision, he wants that grandeur, poetry, music, velvet, costumes and jewellery. All the jewellery we are wearing is real. Even if it’s three-four kgs of jewellery it’s all real, all vintage pieces.

Vintage fabrics have been used to sow the costumes,” shared Richa. “So, I always feel like “aisa bhi to koi hona chahiye’, when we are making all these gritty and realistic cinema. While we are doing “Fukrey,” and other movies, we need someone who brings to life these larger-than-life characters, just literal magnum opus.” Speaking about the preparations that she underwent for the role of ‘Lajjo’, Richa said: “A lot of Urdu diction and talafuz classes. I have studied Kathak for a decade when I was a kid, so I had to polish that up. I did voice modulation.”

Indo-Asian News Service