Sherlock Holmes is said to be the most adapted character in cinema. As of last count, over 110 films and TV shows have been made on the iconic detective from Baker Street, first conceptualised by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. This, of course, does not count the several ‘inspirations’ created from the character, newer stories and characters derived from the world of Holmes.
One such story was made in India not too long ago. Shekhar Home, a Hindi OTT series, saw Kay Kay Menon play the sleuth Shekhar in a small town in West Bengal in the 90s. The actor spoke to DNA about getting under the skin of this unusual character and why comparisons with Holmes did not bother him.
Ask him how he managed to make his character stand out and not look ‘inspired’ and the veteran actor simply answers, “There is nothing in this world that hasn’t been done before. Arthur Conan Doyle created a world for that time. Taking inspiration from that, we have created a new world, new town and telling the story there.
The inspiration is, of course, there but things are very rooted and everything is very Indian.” Shekhar Home , which also stars Ranvir Shorey and Rasika Dugal, was largely shot at real locations with the production team painstakingly finding locations that mirrored the pre-mobile phone time of the 90s. All that helped Kay Kay get into character, the actor says.
Explaining his process, the actor says, “My process is simple. I see how much I can limit myself in terms of domain of funct.