The Family Man Season 2 has several USPs, and one of them is that how even the supporting characters had a lot of meat in them. Acclaimed actress Seema Biswas, who plays the role of the Indian Prime Minister Basu, was one such part. The whole madness erupts because of her character’s adamant stand of wanting to conduct the bilateral talks in Chennai.
When Bollywood Hungama reached out to her exclusively, the actress was more than happy to share how much love PM Basu’s character has garnered. She says, “It was a small role. But the length of the role has never mattered for me. I had loved The Family Man’s first season so much that I had seen it at one go. And when they approached me for season 2, I had made up my mind to take up the offer, even without knowing what my role is. I shot for just 2 ½ - 3 days but it was a wonderful experience. Even the other actors have done a great job and I believe that they were much better than me.”
Modesty is clearly Seema Biswas’ middle name. She tells, “I thought that maine bahut kharab kaam kiya hai. But the makers assured me that ‘aap dekh lena. Aap ke role ko bahut pasand kiya jaayega’.”
Regarding the feedback, she reveals, “I am amazed at the viewership the show has got. I am getting messages from viewers not just in India, but even from the USA, UK etc. It’s great to see that the show’s makers and writers have maintained the popularity. I am excited and thrilled with the response.”
Seema Biswas makes it clear that the writers deserve a lot of credit for the success of the show. She continues, “Even as an audience, I had observed the detailing and the intelligent writing in the first season. While shooting, I could see the writers were constantly monitoring the scenes. They were ensuring there’s no compromise in any department.”
A lot of viewers have drawn parallels between PM Basu and that of the current chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee. So is her character inspired by the feisty politician? Seema Biswas explains, “To be very honest, no name was mentioned and I was not told that PM Basu is inspired by any real-life personality. As per the brief given to me, I just prepped and tried to understand what the body language of the character should be. So, mentally and physically, there was no reference to this character. I just thought that ‘Agar main Prime Minister hoti, toh main kaise behave karti’! Moreover, I am also a Bengali, just like PM Basu. So that made my job a bit easier.”
The Family Man Season 2 culminated with a promise of a season 3. Will PM Basu be back to add to the fun in the next instalment? To which Seema Biswas says, “Going by the trend nowadays, the season 2 has ended with a hint that the third season is in the offing. But till now, I haven’t been told anything. The only information I have got is that they might shoot it in the North East. And anyway, I am a shy person and don’t cross my limits. So I didn’t prod further.”
For now, Seema Biswas is happy taking in all the feedback and love pouring from all quarters. She signs off by stating, “The makers were quite generous and said that they are thrilled to have me. The feedback was heartening and unexpected. I believe it’s always better to underestimate rather than overestimate. The other important thing for me is that imaandari aur lagan se kaam karna chahiye.”
