Why Panchami Ghavri Wants To Be Known As One Of The 'Nicest' Casting Directors

Casting director Panchami Ghavri is a great person to talk about movies with; not because she's at the helm of the filmmaking process but because she genuinely loves movies. For a film buff like me, it was quite surprising to see how naturally an interview call could flow into a film dissection conversation. When Panchami and I connected to discuss her journey into casting, her eloquent thoughts on movies, actors and the process deeply reflected her love for all things Bollywood. Ten minutes into our conversation, we quite naturally digressed to talk about the interlinked storylines of Laapatta Ladies, actor Tanya Maniktala's powerful turn in Kill and why she feels OTT has breathed a new life into the filmmaking process. 

Panchami recalls her journey into casting was a happy accident rather than a planned one. Starting work at the age of 18 on Ayan Mukerji's Wake Up Sid, she initially assisted Nandini Shrikent and discovered a natural flair for the job. 'I think it goes very well with my personality," she says with laughter. 

'Casting is a people's person job. It requires you to interact with people very deeply and not on a surface level. What failure means, how to handle success, how deep one needs to tap into for a good performance - most of my screen tests cover these kinds of questions to understand an actor better," she adds clarifying how she is a very social person.

However, casting also means marrying the choices of writers, directors and producers to ascertain a role. When I asked how she manages to make sure everyone’s creative visions are attended to, Panchami admits working 'strong on her director's vision even if it upsets the producers.'

Process of selecting the right person for the right role

She elaborates, "I feel if the director and the writer have envisioned the script a certain way it is my responsibility to open that avenue to bigger and other possibilities as it's very difficult for a director to be on a set where they are not happy with their cast. So, I've always tried to keep a good balance between what I want, and what the production and the director want. I think what's important to me is that the director is happy and comfortable with the person that we've cast as they are the captain of the ship."

In an industry mostly dominated by male-centric narratives, Panchami has a knack for assembling stellar casts and championing compelling narratives. Her recent releases include The Crew, Mr and Mrs Mahi, Murder Mubarak, Class, Mismatched, Yodha, Karmma Calling, and Showtime.

Panchami feels that having a female boss (Nandini Shrikent) at the beginning of her career was a bit of a lucky break, as she received excellent mentoring. 

"I started with a great boss energy when I was younger. And I think what happens is that you gain a certain amount of experience when you're working with someone that's a woman boss herself, you pick up a lot of notes from them and you're able to inculcate a lot of those working styles," she adds. 

However, Panchami admits, that while she did not face any male bias in the film and OTT world, casting for advertisements came with a whole lot of challenges. "My first three directors were Devika Bhagat, Karan Malhotra and Shakun Batra who are progressive in their own way. But I can't say I have not seen the male bias as I experienced it more once I started doing independent work and especially in advertising."

Nevertheless, Panchami thinks change is coming and quite rapidly at that with women taking the baton behind the camera as well. One tiny yet powerful change Panchami recalls is witnessing parents accepting daughters for working late in her industry.  

"As a woman from the world of casting business, the whole narrative has evolved. Parents used to be terrified of our industry with notions like 'filmon mein kaam kar rahe ho, jaldi ghar nahi aaoge, it is dangerous. Such attitude is changing as well. Now when I interview women for my team, I no longer have to ask if your parents will be okay with it. That's just not a conversation anymore."

How digital streaming platforms changed the game

As a casting director, Panchami has also witnessed the changing landscape of show business, one of them being the advent of digital streaming platforms. 

"I'm a big fan of movies but I've always been someone who has liked good content. I've always felt connected to a film if there's a good storyline, narrative, and well-built characters. That is what OTT has done, it has created more wholesome roles for characters that sometimes did not find space on the silver screen. It is so refreshing because you know at the end of the show you're kind of like looped into six different stories," she adds. 

But how has OTT changed the landscape for casting?

"Let's say, Mithila Palkar, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Shreya Dhanwanthary, Divyendu - these are people who were always testing and giving wonderful tests but we always felt like there's a little bit of a gap in the market because they don't fit in the definition of 'conventional stars' because we put them in these boxes whereas, in reality, they are amazing actors.

OTT really just opened this plethora of opportunities because now suddenly all of these actors are busier than any of the stars which I think is such a welcome change. No one has to wait for a 'launch' or the 'big day' anymore and that's only because of OTT."  

Favourite casting ensembles

Panchami has many credits to her casting portfolio, however, her favourite works include ensembles like Class and Kapoor and Sons, "I'll always be attracted towards ensemble cast because it's more diverse for me to look at and more thought process goes into it. I think one of our better works has all been big ensembles like Class, Kapoor & Sons, Mismatched or anything that stood out because it had a bunch of people involved in it and I think those are more exciting to cast."

Panchami also remarked how much she was impressed by the recent film Kill. "I met Anmol Ahuja (Casting Director, Kill) at the premiere and congratulated him for it. I liked how perfectly every character was cast, Ashish Vidyarthi, Raghav, Lakshya Lalwani, and Tanya Maniktala. Kill perfectly encapsulated the switch of what our mind expects and what it can be for there's so much opportunity just in the middle and that's only because of an amazing cast."

What will be her legacy?

"It is important to me is that I leave a legacy of having been good to actors and good to people that have come in to audition. I think that's something that I've very strongly built as a foundation in my company. People should be treated well, they should not be made to feel like we have any ability to make or break them, and they should not have any kind of fear while approaching or speaking to me or my team. If I had to leave a legacy behind it would be to be known as one of the nicer casting directors versus being the stronger and the bigger one," Panchami concludes with laughter.