Karan Vyas spills beans on ‘Scam 2’; says Hansal Mehta aids and empowers him as writer – Exclusive
Scam 2
Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo, Homi Adajania’s newest OTT series, has been universally praised. Particularly captivating to viewers has been the unusual language and use of Rajasthani slang. In an extensive interview with ETimes, writer Karan Vyas discussed his experiences writing for films versus over-the-top (OTT) shows, his time spent on set with Hansal Mehta on ‘Scoop’ and ‘Scam 2,’ and much more. Reviews for “Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo” have been uniformly enthusiastic. Just how do you feel?
Whose lines in the series’ dialogue did you have the most fun writing?
It’s a tough call to narrow down the cast to just one person. Each and every one of these people is unique and fascinating in their own right. I had a great time developing each and every one of the characters. It’s a tough call to choose only one.
Characters on the show speak with a Rajasthani accent and the setting is in Rajasthan. Just how did you pull that off?
To leave things open, we haven’t settled on a specific location for the show. While the show is situated in a fictitious district named “Runjh,” we have preserved a very basic Rajasthani dialect for flavour. The show’s dialect wasn’t written in at first, but after Homi, myself, and associate director Vikram Dawar decided to reach out to native speakers of the language, we were able to incorporate it.
How would you describe the transition from writing for a feature film to an OTT?
Show writing and film writing are two whole different beasts. Long-form television focuses heavily on its characters, while feature films are more concerned with the story. The tricky aspect is getting the film’s structure in place quickly. The tone and structure of a presentation, on the other hand, can be established at a more leisurely pace. However, the difficulty here lies in maintaining spectator interest from episode to episode.
Since Homi Adajania first had the concept over three years ago, the entire team has been thrilled with the positive reception. The whole series has been well received, as have the contributors’ individual contributions. When people respond positively to discussion, it makes you feel more special.
How did you end up being a part of the show?
I had already been referred to Homi from within Maddock Films, where I was working on another film at the time. I began writing the script in 2019, but I had to relocate to Canada for a few months, so my co-writer Saurav Dey and his team of writers, Nandini Gupta and Aman Manan, finished it. After being locked down for about seven to eight months, I rejoined the team and took over dialogue duties.
