There’s something about Hyderabad that stays with screenwriter Divy Nidhi Sharma and it’s not just the food, though he admits that’s often the first thing on his mind when he lands. “I love the city — the hospitality, people. The moment I’m at the airport, I’m already thinking about what I’m going to eat,” he begins with a laugh, adding that work often takes a backseat when he’s in the city. Having visited the city multiple times for narrations and meetings, he also reveals that he’s been trying to bring a project together in Hyderabad. He shares, “I can’t reveal much, but I really hope it happens soon. It’s a city I genuinely enjoy coming back to.”
That warmth and rootedness perhaps echo in his writing as well, be it in films like Sitaare Zameen Par, Laapataa Ladies, Heeramandi, Freedom at Midnight or shows like Anupamaa, Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai — stories that feel lived-in, emotionally layered, and deeply human. His latest project, Chiraiya on JioHotstar, starring Divya Dutta and Sanjay Mishra, is a striking example of that voice — one that is as unsettling as it is affecting.
Divy’s journey into storytelling began in a very different landscape. Growing up across small towns and villages in North India during the 1980s, cinema wasn’t easily accessible, it was something to be sought out. “We would travel to nearby towns just to watch films, sometimes even just to see posters. I used to memorise the credits off those posters — I was fascinated by names like Salim-Javed and kept wondering who they were. Becoming a writer, especially a screenwriter, felt like the most natural choice,” he recalls.
But if the beginnings were organic, Chiraiya proved to be one of his most challenging creative journeys. Divy admits that when he first began writing it, he was overwhelmed. “I remember telling my wife that I couldn’t do this, that I wasn’t able to do justice to the story,” he shares. It was her reassurance that pushed him forward. She urged him not to be intimidated by the subject or his lack of lived experience, but to lean into empathy. He expresses, “I gave it everything I had. But it was a tough journey. To write those sequences, you have to put yourself in the shoes of both the victim and the oppressor. It was more difficult than even watching it.”
That emotional intensity seeped into his process. “If you don’t feel it while writing, it won’t translate on screen. There were moments when I would feel deeply affected — sometimes sad for days after writing an episode. Some scenes were incredibly difficult to imagine,” he shares.
Interestingly, the script was written before any casting decisions were made. “At that stage, I didn’t know who would play these characters,” he says. It was only later, when he took on the role of showrunner, that casting discussions began. “When we started thinking of actors, Divya Dutta was the only name that came to mind,” he notes.
Despite his reputation for lyrical dialogues, Divy maintains that storytelling, for him, begins visually. He explains, “We work in an audio-visual medium. So, visuals are the grammar. Words come later, they support what is already happening.” This approach is especially evident in Chiraiya, where the title itself becomes a central metaphor.
The characters, he adds, are not drawn from a single source but from a mosaic of experiences. “They are composites — formed from interactions, observations, and emotions gathered over time,” he explains. What has stayed with him most, however, is the audience response. “It’s been overwhelming. So many women have reached out saying they’ve experienced similar situations. You realise the issue runs much deeper than you imagine,” he states.
For Divy, this is where storytelling finds its purpose. “As storytellers, we have to ensure that the messaging doesn’t become too heavy. The story should still engage. What excites me is that these stories are being watched widely. If they succeed commercially, it encourages more stories like this,” he highlights.
Looking ahead, he does have a busy slate. His upcoming film Nayi Naveli is set to go on floors soon, followed by another project with director RS Prasanna, currently in the casting stage.