27 July,2026 07:28 AM IST | Mumbai | Mohar Basu
A still from the series. Pics/Instagram
Adapting Musafir Café, author Divya Prakash Dubey's popular novel, wasn't about recreating every page on screen. When directing the love story's screen adaptation, Ruchir Arun knew he had to preserve one aspect over everything else - the honesty that made the novel resonate with readers.
"When my writer and showrunner, Sharanya [Rajgopal], first brought the project to me, what struck me first were the characters' names - Chander, Sudha, and Preeti. These old-world names instantly made them feel like people I had known all my life. I wanted to ensure that these characters' simplicity and the authenticity of their relationships translated perfectly to screen," recalled Arun.
Led by Vikrant Massey, Mahima Makwana, and Vedika Pinto, the Netflix series traces the journey of the protagonist Chander across two phases of his life. For Arun, casting Massey was a no-brainer. The director reasoned, "Vikrant was our first choice for Chander, and having worked with him now, it's difficult for me to imagine anyone else in the part. We need romantic heroes who don't have to be larger than life. We need stories of decent people, men who are the so-called green flags. Vikrant's Chander reminds us that kindness, vulnerability, and sincerity can be deeply attractive."
Musafir Café may be steeped in romance, but it's also a story about growing up. Arun shared, "We first meet Chander in his 20s and then reconnect with him almost a decade later. Time has changed him, not just in the way he looks, but how he loves, what he values, and how he sees the world. Our understanding of love evolves as we grow older. I think Musafir Café is equally a story about growing up and discovering different versions of yourself."
"What made me nervous were the places where we diverged from the novel, especially towards the end. We felt those creative decisions served the story well," he said
