If you’ve watched Neerja and walked away teary-eyed, you’re not alone. And chances are, you didn’t just cry because of the story — it’s how it was told. At the heart of it all is director Ram Madhvani, who, without wearing the “feminist filmmaker” badge on his sleeve, has given us some of the most layered women in Indian cinema. In a heartwarming chat on the AfterHours with All About Eve podcast with Bani Anand, Ram Madhvani took us behind the scenes of Neerja revealing an unseen side of Sonam Kapoor.

“I don’t want the spotlight on myself”

When asked about his representation of women in cinema, Ram said he doesn’t believe in putting a spotlight on himself for telling women’s stories. In fact, he’s refreshingly candid about it. “I don’t want to ride the feminist train,” he says. “I’m just surrounded by strong women. And I find the many roles they juggle fascinating.” According to him, men often get to play one or two roles, but women? They’re constantly switching hats—mother, daughter, worker, wife, friend, often all in a single day, with grace and zero fanfare.

That quiet observation of women negotiating their lives with such fluidity is what shows up in Ram Madhvani’s characters. They’re not superheroes or tragic clichés. They’re real. They fail, they succeed, they carry the weight, and sometimes, they let it drop. And in Neerja, all of that came alive through Sonam Kapoor.

“Sonam has elder sister energy”

When Sonam Kapoor was first announced for the role of Neerja Bhanot, a few eyebrows did go up. Fashion-forward, always red carpet ready, how would she embody a down-to-earth 23-year-old flight attendant caught in a hijack? When Bani asked Ram how he managed to represent Sonam in such a different light, the director revealed her thoughtful side and said, “She has this elder sister kind of habit. We’d be heading for a trailer launch, and she’d suddenly call to say, ‘Ram, carry a handkerchief. It gets hot on stage.’”

Praising Sonam Kapoor’s performance in Neerja, Ram Madhvani shared an anecdote from the sets. One of the most emotional scenes from Neerja was when she receives a letter and a biscuit from her boyfriend, played by Shekhar Ravjiani. But there’s a hidden layer. That scene was Ram Madhvani’s homage to his favourite director, Krzysztof Kieślowski. It was inspired by Juliette Binoche’s performance in Kieślowski’s Blue, where she eats her deceased daughter’s lollipop. But he was so taken in by Sonam’s performance that he forgot all about his homage. It was Sonam who reminded him that she had to eat the biscuit too.

Sharing this anecdote, Ram Madhvani said, “This wasn’t me directing. This was me making the space comfortable enough for her to tap into herself.”

And that’s the magic of it. When artists forget everything except the work in front of them, we get films like Neerja, ones that don’t just move us but stay with us. Long after the end credits.

Watch the episode here.
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