Photos: An angry goddess and demons in the latest mythological show ‘Mahakali’

Life-sized synthetic elephants guard a red-tinted fortress as the car pulls through the gates of Vrindavan studio in Umbergaon in Gujarat. The journey hasn’t been easy – the roads have been covered with monsoon slush. “How is this better than any big Mumbai set,” fumes the driver as the car sputters to its destination.

‘Mahakali’, reads a small sheet of paper plastered onto a tree in front of a large gazebo. Inside, the set is as black as the crimped raven hair and skin tone of Pooja Sharma, who plays the goddess Kali in the latest Colors mythological serial. Sharma emerges out of nowhere as the set lights up. After she destroys a round of demons in a dance, she pokes her scarlet red tongue out and the set blacks out to a round of applause.

Bankrolled by Swastik Studios, Mahakali will go on air on July 22 on Colors. The show, which boasts of female empowerment in the television world of celestial beings, will be screened every weekend.

“As a child I grew up hearing stories about Kali, who was supposedly completely black and emerges only to kill bad people,” Siddharth Kumar Tewary, the head of Swastik Studios and the saga’s director, told Scroll.in. “Why – I didn’t know the answer to that question. Indian mythology is not superficial and every subtext contains meaning. Why would Parvati, who is a lover of nature, turn into a destroyer? With Mahakali the thing that we are trying to say is that a woman is not weak. She is mother earth, she is a giver and wherever she is present, there is beauty. But if you push her, she can turn you into ashes.”

Mahakali is only the latest mythological and period drama to roll off the Swastik assembly line. The studio has produced a number of shows with grand sets and costumes, including Karmphal Data Shani (2016), Mahabharat (2013) and Razia Sultan (2015). Karmaphal Data Shani, which follows the life and exploits of Shani, the celestial incarnation of the Saturn planet, has been one of Swastik’s biggest successes.

Over 1,200 people have worked on the main sets of Mahakali, which include Paatal Lok, where Kali makes her transformation, and Mahadev’s home Kailash. If the design of Paatal Lok, where Kali does her introductory act, causes a sprain in the neck, it is deliberate. “Every object is pointed upward, as if looking up at the heavens,” a member of the production team explained.

A two-horned statue with blood-shot eyes watches over Kali’s throne. The first three episodes, which explore the advent of Kali, will be war-themed and took more than 45 days to produce. “Shani is all testosterone; everything on its set is edgy and angular,” said costume designer Shweta Korde, who also works on Karmphal Data Shani. “In Mahakali, although the props are edgy, we have added a touch of femininity.”

The look of the deity’s character was a challenge, and finding an actor who could subject herself to full-body black body paint even tougher. “While it is an absolute delight to go from a soft nature like Parvati to the absolutely ferocious untamed Kali, the makeup was overwhelming,” Pooja Sharma said. “Once that is out of the way, more than half of my work is done.”

Sharma is best known for playing Draupadi in Mahabharat. She learnt the kalaripayattu martial art to train for Kali’s action sequences.

The demons Kali will combat all sport Mohawks – a flight of fancy in a show that is otherwise hoping to stay authentic to commonly accepted depictions of gods and goddesses. “There are so many parameters that you will have to consider while working for such a character: you have got to stick with the calendar image, make it relevant and up your scales of what other people have done and most of all not hurt the sentiments of the people,” Korde said.

A few kilometres away from the Vrindavan studio is the set for Mount Kailash, where Saurabh Rai Jain reigns in the role of Mahadev. If moss dropped from the ceiling in Pataal Lok, snow-crusted leaves wedged into glaciers decorate this space. One stairway leads to an underground waterfall, while the other goes up towards Mahadev’s icy abode.

Jain, one of the most familiar faces in Indian mythological television, looks at ease as he trades his snake and rudraksha necklace for a pair of denims and sneakers. Jain played Vishnu in Devon Ke Dev Mahadev and has been a part of Jai Shri Krishna and Mahabharat. He says he is flattered to play immortals. “Siddharth was the one who cast me as lord Krishna in Mahabharat and now I am playing Mahadev in this show,” Jain said. “Though mythological, I am now getting to play a contrasting character.”

The focus in Mahakali will be on Pooja Sharma’s Kali, with Mahadev offering the benefits of his wisdom. “The Mahadev in this show is a mahayogi and not a body builder,” Jain said. “His job in the story is to support Parvati attain her divinity and stand behind her like a silent spectator.”