I feel extremely fortunate to join TVF 6 years back in 2015 when Arunabh Kumar asked me to join and I feel very fortunate to work with him, working with TVF. I started as an associate director in a show called "Permanent Roommates" season 2 then I directed a lot of viral branded sketches. After that, I directed a mini-show called "Zeroes".
1. Tell us more about your background and your journey.
I am from a small town Raipur which has now become a big city, the capital of Chhattisgarh. I am an engineer. My graduation was in electrical and electronics engineering, and I did it because everyone was doing it. I didn't know any other option. My parents did not force me into it (like a common narrative), but I didn't know what else to do. In fact, they were always supportive of my decisions.
I was good at maths, so I started preparing for IIT in Kota but didn't get through. My AIEEE rank was pretty ok, and I got through MIT Manipal. I was a decent student. It was around 75% marks that I got while passing out from MIT Manipal. Then through campus placement, I got my first job in Infosys as a software engineer.
Naturally, I was changing my field because everyone does it in engineering college and especially B-Grade engineering college. In Infosys, the company had this 4-month training period, and once your training period is over, you have to pass an exam. If you pass the exam, you are given a Permanent job. I was happy that I'll be placed abroad and would be earning dollars as I was decent in studies till then.
But somehow, I couldn't crack what I studied in Infosys. Those 4 months were like torture for me. Not because they were bad at teaching us programming, but because I was really bad at it. I flunked. I failed the exam. Of course, I was made to quit Infosys, technically I was thrown out. It was my first job, and I was so shocked that I didn't tell my parents.
It was one of the lowest phases of my life, and I went into depression. I came to Bangalore and stayed with my friend, and got a job with his help as a business analyst in a KPO. With time I realized that this is not gonna sustain. I won't be able to live like this. I have to figure out what I have to do, but I didn't know what. That time I went to revisit my childhood and what I loved as a kid.
I used to paint a lot. I used to write stories. I used to take my dad's handy-cam and shoot movies and trust me, those movies used to be crazy. I have done bomb explosions with petrol bottles to take that slow-motion walk for the hero's entry. It used to be those crazy moments. I still didn't know that I wanted to become a filmmaker, but yeah, I wanted to be somewhere close to it. My cousin helped me out here and told me about post-grad courses in NID Ahmedabad and Indian School of Design, IDC at IIT Bombay.
I got to know what actual design schools are, and I got excited and started preparing for them. I cleared IIT's design department's very tough entrance exam "CEED" in my first attempt and joined IDC, IIT Bombay as a design student. For the first time, I started enjoying my studies. I started spending time in the library for the first time in my life. I used to do my assignments, and I started enjoying giving exams. I was discovering this new type of education and such interesting teachers. I realized this is what it feels like when you study the areas of your interests.
In my final year projects, I made 2 animated short films that were loved by the jury and students alike. It got me placed in Lowe Lintas, which is a giant advertising agency. I became a creative copywriter and worked on various big-branded TVCs. In the process, I learned the intricacies of writing. But I realized one more thing, too, that I don't see myself becoming a writer. I wanted to be a guy who is on the set and behind the camera.
I left my job at Lowe Lintas and joined a project at IDC, IIT Bombay, where I was supposed to roam all around the country and make documentary short films on Indian arts and crafts. There I wrote, shot, directed, edited my films. I even did the music for my films. (BTW, I also found the love of my life, to whom I am married while working in IDC). Thereby I realized I loved doing everything in a film, and to somehow make a career out of doing everything is becoming a film director. After working for more than 4 years in IDC, I left the job and started working on my own. I directed a few TV commercials and 2 short films, which won in acclaimed festivals. It gave me confidence that I am good at it.
I knew Arunabh (Founder, TVF) from back in 2009, when he was directing corporate commercials for a few thousand rupees. He was so clear on why he wanted to bring change in the entertainment industry, and his reasons stuck to me. Later, he founded the revolutionary TVF, The Viral Fever. I met him again in 2015, and impressed with my filmography, Arunabh offered me a job at TVF. I happily agreed to be a part of this digital revolution and since then my journey has been nothing short of magic.
2. Where does your inspiration lie?
When I was a kid, I was a big movie buff. I used to watch anything and everything. From thousands of VHS tapes of Hollywood films that my father got me to almost every Hindi film. I must have watched Amitabh Bacchan's Mard for I think hundreds of times. Indian films were my love but then I discovered films of Ray, Sai Paranjape, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, and then later Mani Ratnam, Ram Gopal Verma, Viddhu Vinod Chopda, and all these pioneers. They were so unique in their storytelling, so leagues ahead, and I as an audience used to get surprised every time I saw their films.
In my engineering college, I was introduced to the world of English shows - Friends, Seinfeld, Lost, 24, Orange County, Prison Break and so many of them. I realized that these creators are miles ahead of what their contemporaries are doing in India.
The reason why the people I am talking about were so ahead was - they were true to their stories. So my inspiration lies in the truth of the story that I am telling. I try to be honest with the core emotion of my show or a film. The biggest compliment for my recent show "Gullak Season 2" is - it reminds people of Malgudi Days and the other shows made during the golden era of television.
3. How rigorously did you stick to the script while shooting?
I stick to the essence of the script while shooting. I stick to the emotion of that particular scene that I am shooting on that particular day. I don't exactly copy the script because I believe the script has to evolve at every stage of filmmaking.
It has to grow and it has to be nurtured through the director's vision, through actors, through technicians, it has to evolve through spaces that the script is interacting with. It is a very organic process and the organic process can't be defined with hard boundaries. Of course, I should also know where to stop and where it is deviating from its core structure, but don't exactly follow what is written. I try to be wise and rely on improvisations.
4. How do you realize your potential for becoming a director?
Everyone has their own journeys and their own landmark points when they realize what they want to become in life. For me, I realized that I wanted to become a director at a very later stage of my life. Even after completing my post-graduation as a Master's in Design in Animation and Films, I didn't know what particular field in films I have to make a career in. I was doing anything and everything as I told you above.
After working aimlessly for almost 6 years, I realized that I love every aspect of filmmaking and thankfully I have some experience working in every department. I decided to take a plunge and to prove to myself that I am a decent director, I directed a short film called "Bloody Khuli Khidki". It was for a competition organized by Humara Movie. The film was made in a single night with no budget but still, we won an award for it. It was also praised by biggies like Anurag Basu, Sudhir Mishra and so I got this confidence that I am a decent director.
Then I made another short film which got selected into PVR's and Humara Movie's anthology series film called "Shuruaat ka Interval". It was one of the 8 short films which were part of an anthology film and it got released in theatres. My film was amongst the top short films which got good response from the audience and the critics. It made me feel confident as a new director and I wanted to work on my craft more. It made me sure that -this is what I love and this is what I can see myself doing for my entire life.
5. What has been the biggest learning from your job?
There is no substitute for hard work. My mantra is - "always be over-prepared". Trust me, if you are over-prepared and if you have really worked hard on your project then the result will only make you smile. You will see the magic.
6. What projects you have worked on and what more are there?
I feel extremely fortunate to have joined TVF 6 years back in 2015 when Arunabh Kumar asked me to be part of his company and I feel very fortunate to be working with him, working with TVF. I started as an associate director in a show called "Permanent Roommates Season 2" then I directed a lot of viral branded sketches and a few music videos. After that, I directed a mini-show called "Zeroes".
Then I directed a very popular web show called "Awkward Conversation With Parents". Then I directed India's first show on pets called "Cheesecake" which starred Jitendra Kumar also known as Jeetu Bhaiya and Akanksha Thakur. Recently I directed "Gullak Season 2" which became a huge hit and is loved by critics and audiences alike. There are 3-4 more shows in the pipeline. Trust me, they are very interesting, they are very unique subjects. I can't tell you much more about the projects but I assure you that it's gonna be something fun to watch.
Interviewed By: Vanshikha Bagga
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