Prateik Babbar on Four More Shots Please! S3: 'Feel I'm now a part of the girl gang, almost the fifth girl'

Four More Shots Please! is now heading for its third season that will stream on Amazon Prime Video IN from October 21. The series, hailed, compared, or maybe described as the Indian version of Sex and the City, tackles the lives of four female protagonists and gazes at their sexual, sardonic and sentimental encounters. The choices they make are flawed and frustrating, but the treatment of the narrative is filled with froth, and expected frivolousness. Because life doesn’t have to make sense all the time, specially when you are with your friends that mean life to you.

For season 3, Joyeeta Patpatia sits on the director’s chair after Anu Menon and Nupur Asthana, and in an exclusive interview with Firstpost, in the esteemed company of Rajeev Siddhartha and Prateik Babbar, two essential characters of Four More Shots Please, spills the beans on a lot of stuff. Prateik is particularly candid as he delves deep into the show’s theme and the choices the four women make.

Joyeeta, the earlier two seasons were directed by Anu Menon and Nupur Asthana. For season three, how have you blended your vision as a director with the essence the show?

It has been a very interesting journey. I have come up to a very successful and popular show. It’s a part of the pop culture. There’s pressure but I’m free to do what I want because the show already has a fan base, the girls are already familiar with the audience. So somewhere I feel, with season 3, we have matured, in terms of script and process. It has been almost two years now since we started, so I have spent a lot of time with the material, the pandemic allowed me to do so. The first thing I noticed when I was thrown in was the layers the script had. We are exploring a lot more this time around, we are exploring complex relationships, which is the sign of the time we are in today. The actors have also brought a lot of sensitivity with them. I’m very excited to see what the audiences feel about this season.

Prateik, you have been a part of this world, so how much do you feel you and the four women have evolved from the previous season to the new one?

There’s an evident evolution. As you said that I’ve been an integral part of the show. I almost believe I’m a part of the girl gang, I feel like I’m the fifth girl. Let me rephrase that, I feel like a part of the girl gang, I’m not the fifth girl, I’m a guy. It’s been a ride. Because of the pandemic, everyone was eager to get back on sets and work, put their best foot forward, and that’s exactly what happened. Being away from the action and that break helped us become better performers. It worked out wonderfully for all of us. There’s an evident evolution in my character and the character of Damini, you’ll see a very different side to their relationship. Shooting, resuming, stalling the shoot due to the pandemic, that happened a couple of times. We were shooting for the last schedule in Italy when the entire cast was flown out. I think that schedule made us grow as artists and as a team. We are a rock solid team now.

Rajeev, how do you view the world of Four More Shots Please! and especially the way the four women live their lives?

It’s fantastic. Living your life on your own terms, making mistakes and making no bones about it, and that too without any fear of judgement. In every relationship, there are ups and downs. Television, films, and series, as Joyeeta pointed out, are a reflection of the society. The fact that we are in season three right now, goes on to show the audiences have loved it. You love something when it’s entertaining or when you say, ‘Wow. I’m like that.’ For me, Four More Shots is a very binge-worthy series. We have not made anything, we have got nominated for the International Emmy, so the critics also have loved it.

Joyeeta, have you instilled any of your characteristics or experiences into the four characters of the show?

Movies mirror life. Everyone will find pieces of them in each of these characters. I resonate with each of these girls in their own way. Umang’s stubbornness, for Damini, work comes first, and I don’t know whether that’s a good quality or not. Maanvi’s character of Sidhi always has sharp insights. I’ve instilled some qualities and some I’ve taken from them.

There’s a section of the audience that feels content on OTT may not be for universal viewership. Do you agree with the choices the four women on the show make, in terms of language and lifestyle?

Prateik: That’s an interesting question. The show is very today. It is today. This is what happens. These are the kind of relationships and complications we are having. Why shouldn’t we talk about it? We have to live and let live, love and let love.

Rajeev: If people didn’t agree to the choices they make, they wouldn’t have watched the show in the first place. With OTT, you have the freedom to make content that would’ve been probably rejected for a film. As Shakespeare said that nothing is right or wrong, think and make it so. So this season, the story has evolved, the writing is more complex, and Joyeeta is the new captain of the ship.

What can be the viewers’ takeaway from season 3?

Joyeeta: I think it can be revelation.

Prateik: I think the audiences have evolved with the show. And will evolve further

Rajeev: The moment they are done watching season 3, they’ll ask when is season four coming up.

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