Sayani Gupta fears getting cheated on in a marriage: ‘I won’t be able to forgive'

Sayani Gupta has spoken about why she doesn't want to get married and her new anthology series, Kaali Peeli Tales.

Sayani Gupta’s latest series to arrive online is an Amazon Mini TV anthology, Kaali Peeli Tales. The six stories in the series trace the lives of a few Mumbaikars hoping to find love, acceptance, or some closure.

Sayani Gupta stars in Kaali Peeli Tales.

Sayani stars in Single Jhumka with Priyanshu Painyuli and Bhuvan Arora. She plays a woman who cheats on her partner but isn’t sure if all it lost between them. Of the half-dozen stories that feature in this series, as many as four touch upon or take a deep dive into infidelity in relationships.

Mainstream Hindi cinema has mostly shied away from exploring infidelity. A more mature, nuanced and sensitive take has usually been deemed ‘too forward’ for our desi, ‘cultured' sentiments. In 1981, Yash Chopra’s attempt—Silsila—was met with raised eyebrows and shunned by audiences. Years later, Karan Johar’s Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna got a softer landing on comparison. Since then, films on the topic have been rare to come by.

But Sayani believes it is finally time for change. Speaking to Hindustan Times, she said, “I think yes because times are changing and the reality has changed. But more than that, I feel man cheating on a wife and the wife taking him back is still more common. In this case, Single Jhumka, the woman cheating and the man is taking her back, or willing to have a conversation, and not be hurt, not coming from a deep-rooted male ego, ‘how could you do that to me’ kind of, this thing is more rare.”

In Single Jhumka, Sayani’s Ashima tells her partner that she has cheated on him immediately. While he's heartbroken at first, he realises that they need to address the incident more calmly and work out what they want from each other. Sayani hopes more couples could find such maturity in them. “For Adeeb Rais (director) to have written it the way that he did and put it so simply, because, the conversation that happens after what goes on in their lives is very interesting and it’s so real, it feels so normal, so uncomplicated and honest. I wish couples can have a conversation like that,” she said.

As for herself, Sayani doesn’t feel she would be able to take higher the ground should she face a similar issue in her life. “Of course, it would be traumatic for some. It’s definitely not nice to be cheated on, no matter who you are. But it happens so much. I feel so scared honestly. It’s one of the reason I think I don’t want to get married because I’m like…what if? These days options are also more, everyone is more accessible. I don’t understand open relationships. I am only talking about how I feel. So I am very petrified and it’s one of the reasons why I’m like nahi bhai shadi toh nahi karni hai, kuch hogaya toh main nahi maaf kar paugi (I do not want to get married. I wouldn’t be able to forgive if something happens). I don’t know how I would react but I wish I could be as cool as Ashima’s husband is,” she said.

Kaali Peeli Tales also stars Soni Razdan, Gauahar Khan, Maanvi Gagroo, Sharib Hashmi, Vinay Pathak and others. It released on the Amazon shopping app on August 20.