Location: Taj Lands End, Mumbai – Press Conference Hall

Flashbulbs burst like firecrackers. Reporters leaned forward, eager, pens trembling with anticipation.

At the center sat Piya Kaur, dressed in a minimalist white suit, grace and command in every line of her posture. Beside her, film director Kunal Dev Raj smiled with restrained excitement.

The moment had arrived.

"As promised," Piya began, her voice steady, "this film will not just represent my truth — it will live it.

I've personally selected the cast. Not for glamour, but for truth."

She tapped the mic gently, and behind her, the massive screen lit up:

⸻

🎬 CAST ANNOUNCEMENT: "Daughter of Ashes — The Piya Kaur Story"

    •    Young Viyom Chaddha – Siddharth Nigam

(The loyal boy with eyes full of fire and innocence)

    •    Dr. Viyom Chaddha (Present Day) – Vicky Kaushal

(The protector, the healer, the unshakable force by Piya's side)

    •    Young Piya Kaur – Jannat Zubair

(The bright, bold girl whose light was nearly stolen)

    •    Piya Kaur (Present Day) – Erica Fernandes

(Powerful, poised, and born from her own fire)

    •    Kiranjeet Kaur (Piya's mother) – Dahiya

(Grace under fire — her final scream was a roar of love)

    •    Ranjan Kaur (Piya's father) – Sathyaraj

(Wise, fearless, the lion of the Kaur house)

    •    Karamjeet, the Loyal Butler – Rao Ramesh

(The man who made one phone call... and changed everything)

⸻

Gasps echoed through the room.

Kunal Dev stepped forward, adding:

"These actors will perform not on a set, but in the real places. The actual hospital. The burned estate. The courtroom. Every tear will be real. Every scream... historic."

Reporters flung questions forward —

"Piya, what made you choose real locations?"

"Will the brutal scenes be kept intact?"

"What message do you want the world to take?"

She smiled, answering only one:

"The truth doesn't need filters. It just needs courage."

⸻

Scene Ends: A Nation Waits

That night, hashtags trended across the globe:

#DaughterOfAshes #PiyaKaurStory #TruthInCinemas

And somewhere in her old home, now a museum-in-the-making, a diya flickered before a photograph of Kiranjeet and Ranjan — a story they died for, finally being told.

Each day on set wasn't just filming —

It was witnessing.

The real Kaur Estate, restored just enough for the shoot, stood like a silent shrine. Its walls bore the fingerprints of pain. The team entered barefoot, by Piya's request.

No phones.

No outside visitors.

Just truth.

⸻

🎬 Day 1 – The Dining Room Scene

Cast: Erica Fernandes, Sathyaraj, Dahiya, Jannat Zubair

The camera rolled as the actors sat around the dinner table, reenacting the last peaceful meal of the Kaur family.

Erica, portraying the elder Piya, sat behind the monitor watching. Her knuckles whitened as she gripped her chair.

Jannat turned to Sathyaraj in the scene, laughing —

"Papa, one day I'll have a restaurant named after you."

Erica excused herself.

She stood at the corner of the room, hand over her mouth, eyes brimming.

Viom followed silently, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"I can't do this every day," she whispered.

"You already have," he replied gently. "And you're still here."

⸻

🎬 Day 3 – The Staircase Scene

Cast: Rao Ramesh as Karamjeet

The moment where Karamjeet crawled with a broken hip to make the emergency call — was silent. Real. Rao Ramesh, a seasoned actor, wept when the scene ended.

"I thought I was acting," he confessed. "But that wasn't acting. That was him. I felt him. Every step."

Piya nodded softly.

"He saved me. And he never wanted credit."

⸻

🎬 Day 5 – The Blood on Marble

Cast: Dahiya and Sathyaraj's death scene

The floor was cold. Dahiya lay in a pool of stage blood, her face turned to the camera — eyes glassy.

But when the director yelled "cut,"

no one moved.

No one breathed.

Erica walked into the frame and knelt beside Dahiya.

"She looked like this," she whispered. "Exactly like this."

Siddharth Nigam, who had been rehearsing nearby, stood still. His eyes locked with Vicky Kaushal's.

Even seasoned actors were no longer playing roles. They were reliving a memory they never had — but now felt responsible for.

⸻

🎬 Day 10 – The Courtroom Scene

Cast: Full cast, extras, media simulation

The most difficult scene — where Piya faces Param's confession.

As Vicky Kaushal, in his full doctor's coat, stood behind Erica (Piya) during her courtroom breakdown, he whispered:

"You're safe. Speak, and I'll be here — like he was."

After "cut," no one applauded.

Instead, crew members cried silently in the dark corners.

⸻

🎬 Throughout the Shoot – The Unspoken Rule

No one left the premises.

Phones were surrendered.

The cast and crew slept in guest quarters nearby.

Meals were eaten together — family-style.

They became a new family — one built on remembrance, not scripts.

Erica wrote a note and pinned it to the estate's inner courtyard:

"We came here to act.

We leave here changed."

⸻

Scene Ends: The Wrap-Up Shot

The final shot was taken at sunrise — the diya scene.

Jannat placed the diya in front of the same staircase Piya had bled upon years ago.

Erica joined her, eyes shimmering.

The camera rolled in silence.

"For those who had no voice...

and those who lit the fire anyway."

📍Location: A minimalist studio in Mumbai.

Backdrop: Black. Spotlight on one chair.

Title Card: Post-Wrap Reflections – "Daughter of Ashes"

⸻

🎙️ Erica Fernandes – Elder Piya Kaur

Erica sat still for a moment, adjusting her mic. Her voice was soft when she began.

"I've played a lot of strong women before. But Piya..."

(She pauses, breathing deep)

"She wasn't written strong. She became strong. Brick by brick. Tear by tear."

Her eyes welled.

"There was a scene where I broke down after hearing the dialogue from Param's confession. I didn't know I was still holding on to it, even when they yelled 'cut.' I cried for two hours. I cried for her. For every girl who was never heard."

She looks into the camera.

"Thank you, Piya. For letting me carry your pain... and your power."

⸻

🎙️ Vicky Kaushal – Elder Vyom Chaddha

Vicky leaned forward, visibly emotional.

"Vyom wasn't just her husband. He was her safe space. Her anchor. And as I played him, I kept wondering... 'Do men like this really exist?'"

A faint smile tugged at his lips.

"I realised... they do. And we need more of them.

I learned what it means to hold space for someone — not save them, just stand beside them."

He nods slowly.

"Piya's pain taught me masculinity doesn't mean shielding — it means showing up. Over and over."

⸻

🎙️ Jannat Zubair – Young Piya

Tears fell freely as Jannat spoke.

"At first, I thought I was too young to understand her trauma. But when I acted the scene where she hides under the hospital bed, I didn't need imagination. My body reacted. I felt terror, and it wasn't mine — it was hers."

She swallowed.

"I used to think acting was about pretending. But after this, I know... it's about honouring."

⸻

🎙️ Siddharth Nigam – Young Vyom

"I couldn't stop hugging Jannat between takes."

He laughed nervously, wiping his eyes.

"Not romantically — just... protectively. Because I kept thinking, 'What if I was her friend in real life? Would I have saved her?' And the truth is, kids don't know how to save anyone. But Vyom stayed. Even when he didn't understand."

He paused.

"That's what friendship is."

⸻

🎙️ Dahiya – Kiranjeet Kaur

"I've played queens, warriors, even gods," she said. "But this was different."

"Kiranjeet had seconds to react. She chose to die trying to save her daughter. And in that moment, I didn't feel like an actress. I felt like a mother."

She closes her eyes.

"Piya's life cost her mother her own. The world needs to remember that."

⸻

🎙️ Sathyaraj – Ranjan Kaur

"I am a father. I have daughters. I couldn't sleep for days after shooting the death scene."

His deep voice cracked.

"I didn't act. I just imagined losing my girl. That's it. That was enough."

⸻

🎙️ Rao Ramesh – Karamjeet

"In our world, men like Karamjeet are invisible. But he saved the story. I hope people see him, finally."

⸻

🎙️ Kunal Dev Raj – Director

"This isn't just cinema. This is a mirror. A monument. A reminder. And we owe it all to one woman."

He turned to face the off-camera figure.

"Piya... thank you."

⸻

Final Shot: Piya's Reaction

Piya watches the interviews from a private screening room. Alone. Silent.

As the last frame fades, she whispers:

"Now the world knows."

The screen turns black.

A title fades in:

"Daughter of Ashes – Releasing Nationwide Next Week"