The actor stars in the Zee Theatre teleplay ‘Love’, a contemporary adaptation of Bernard Shaw’s ‘Pygmalion’
Mumbai: Rajeev Siddhartha has come a long way from his debut in the 2007 film ‘Dil Dosti Etc’ and has a vast body of work spanning cinema, television, and web shows today. He also headlines Zee Theatre’s teleplay ‘Love’, a futuristic adaptation of the George Bernard Shaw classic, ‘Pygmalion.’ The former investment banker has a special place in his heart for theatre, having also starred in Lillete Dubey’s directorial ‘Adhe Adhure’ as well as plays like ‘August Osage County’ among many others.
Set in the future, ‘Love’ is about an inventor who develops a robot with Artificial Intelligence (AI) to fool his mother into believing he has found love. The teleplay goes on to show how science is infiltrating our lives and impacting relationships.
Talking about his own role in the teleplay and its seminal themes, Rajeev says, ” I loved every single moment that I spent preparing for my part. Despite being set in the future and incorporating elements of AI and technological advancements, this teleplay, as the title suggests, is rooted in love. I play a snobbish, snooty, arrogant sort of inventor who finally falls in love with his creation. Love transcends all barriers to show that despite technological advancements and the presence of AI, pure emotions will always exist. Nothing can alter the true essence of love.”
Though technology and AI have altered the way we connect with people, the actor does not think they will fundamentally redefine love. As he says, “The depth and unconditional nature of romantic love will probably remain the same. And I hope that life doesn’t become so superficial that we start depending on the click of a button to pair us with someone we don’t know fully. Technology may help us to meet many interesting people but a soul connection requires emotional depth.”
Discussing his idea of love, Rajeev says, “True love is unconditional but in the times that we live in, the depiction of love in books, movies, and even in life seems to be very conditional. True love should have the kind of unconditional commitment that the sun displays towards the earth.”
‘Love’ is adapted by Iti Aggarwal and also stars Yuki Ellias, Shivam Patil, Sonali Sachdev, Payal Nair, Nandini Sen, Priti Shroff and Suhani Gandhi. It is filmed by Karan Talwar and can be watched on 23rd September on Dish TV Rangmanch Active, D2H Rangmanch Active and Airtel Spotlight.
