Swara Bhasker's latest offering Rasbhari has been in the news all week. The Amazon Prime Video series, which has Bhasker play a teacher whose teenage student becomes obsessed with her, has been slammed for its risqué content. The actor admits she too had her share of doubts when the project came her way. "Since it deals with adolescent sexuality and infatuation, the show depends heavily on the writing. The reference point was Malena [2000], but this show has a comic take. Malena was quite sexually explicit, so I asked for a full script. Upon reading it, I realised this show goes beyond adolescent sexuality and highlights the prejudices of repressed societies. It shows how on one hand, people lust after women, but on the other hand, female sexuality is equally vilified," says Bhasker.

The explicit display of sexuality hasn't gone down well with many, with a section of netizens terming it "soft porn". But she reasons it was necessary to tell the story from a male gaze. "The story is a young boy's perspective and thus told from a male gaze to highlight the blatant objectification of women. The show is not a mere raunchy comedy and Nikhil Bhatt [director] created the climax in such a way that Rasbhari is a catalyst in creating a better man of its adolescent hero. It's not an easy show to watch, especially for those who are conservative. The show holds a mirror to all of us. But isn't that the point of art?"