Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; July 6, 2020)

With their films hitting a roadblock due to the lockdown, production house Viacom18 Motion Pictures has sped up work in its digital wing, Tipping Point. The studio has signed on directors Suparn Verma, Kanishka Verma, Anand Tiwari, Vijay Lalwani of Karthik Calling Karthik fame and Milind Dhaimade to create five web series. "Some stories lend themselves better as series," says CEO Ajit Andhare, citing the example of Third Eye, which was pitched as a feature film to the studio, two years ago. "It is an intriguing series around hypnosis and repressed anger, developed by Vijay."

The line-up includes a political thriller inspired by the Radia Tapes controversy. For the unversed, the Indian income tax office had tapped political lobbyist Niira Radia's telephone conversations with politicians, senior journalists and corporate houses between 2008 and 2009. It was alleged that some of the conversations outlined Radia's attempts to broker deals in relation to the 2G spectrum sale. "Suparn Verma is writing and directing The Tapes, an adaptation of Neelima Kota's book, The Honest Season," informs Andhare.

A retelling of the Burari case, where 11 members of the Chundawat family were discovered dead in 2018, is also on the cards. He adds, "Kanishka Verma is developing it as an investigative series with paranormal undertones. Dhaimade of Tu Hai Mera Sunday fame is writing a situational comedy, and Tiwari is working on the adaptation of the book, Boots, Belts and Berets."


Former telecom minister A Raja; Radia

Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; October 14, 2017)

Besides Saif Ali Khan’s Chef, last week witnessed the release of Tu Hai Mera Sunday. While Khan’s desi adaptation of the Jon Favreau film by the same name failed to please mass audiences, the Shahana Goswami and Barun Sobti-starrer, on the other hand, was appreciated for its interesting storyline and deft direction. The positive reviews notwithstanding, director Milind Dhaimade is struggling for his slice-of-life film to find appropriate show timings.

“We have unanimously received good reviews; people want to watch our film. But, it has been given poor show timings — as a result, my film is unable to reach the masses,” he tells mid-day.

Dhaimade is appalled to see exhibitors continuing to screen Chef, despite it running to empty theatres. “I met the distributors and exhibitors a few days ago, to discuss the situation. The exhibitors refused to give us better screen timings — this, when the other film hasn’t been faring too well. Their concern is that if they allot the evening shows to my film, the audience won’t turn up. I am sure they will, given the excellent word of mouth.”

For all its talk about content being king, the director believes that this episode proves how the industry is unabashedly biased towards stars. “It’s sad that films with good content aren’t pushed adequately. If we are not allotted proper screens, how do we draw the audience? And then people complain that good films are not made. Are we providing a conducive environment for such content to thrive?”

Actors Shahana Goswami and Barun Sobti, co-actors in a film that discusses Mumbai's lack of public space, say they are not Bollywood material (and it hardly matters)
Aastha Atray Banan (MID-DAY; October 16, 2016)

"I don't want to do Bollywood," Rock On actress Shahana Goswami says emphatically. Her smile reflects the happiness behind her decision. "Once you make up your mind about what kind of movies you want to do, what work interests you, you are going to find it hard to bag work you like anyway," pipes in actor Barun Sobti, 30, who got famous as Arnav Raizada in the romantic television show, Iss Pyar Ko Kya Naam Doon.

We meet at a Bandra café right before the two take off to London. Goswami is in Mumbai to shoot a bit role in Rock On!! 2, before watching how the audience receives their indie film Tu Hai Mera Sunday at the BFI London Film Festival. In it, Sobti plays a football lover struggling to find space to kick ball every weekend. Goswami's character is the daughter of an old man who becomes a part of this bunch inadvertently.

After London, Mumbai will get to watch it at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. Over coffee, the talk centres around why it's significant to take on a tiny indie film that discusses the lack of public spaces in Mumbai over a mega- commercial movie. "It's not about people, this movie; it's about Mumbai. There is this amazing scene where two kids play badminton using a parked car as net. Milind (Dhaimade, the director) has portrayed the city's everyday life so beautifully. That we can discuss this through our movie makes it great."

For the actress, who now lives in Paris as "life is better there", the charm of independent cinema lies in that an actor can be himself, and not change anything. "When we started prepping [for Tu Hai…], we thought, let's go to the gym, let's groom ourselves. But Milind said, 'don't you dare! I have cast you for who you are, the personalities you are'. So, in the movie, I talk exactly the way I, Shahana does. I talk in Hindi, I talk in English," she shares, gesturing to Sobti, "I was surprised when he cast this one, though! Popular TV star! Kyun, bhai?" Sobti is unperturbed. "Of course, they must have thought I can't act. I haven't done any work in a while. So, this movie is important for me. I'm certain people will read this and think, oh! Isko kaam nahin mila…" he laughs, hinting at the way indie cinema actors are perceived.

Goswami says she is trying to build a career in Paris. "If I need to do that, I can't keep coming back. I need to be there, available for work. So unless a movie like this crops up, I am pretty much out of the mainstream."

Sobti, on the other hand, is prepping for another TV show, one that he insists isn't "that mainstream". But it is a romantic one. "Of course, he will always be the romantic hero," Goswami takes a jibe. Curious about the web format, he hopes he can cultivate a standing there because it may allow him space to be more than the typical romantic. "I don't want to limit myself. I can do web, movies and TV. We, as makers, have to find a way to deliver smart stuff to the audience. If they get used to quality content, they will crave it. That's our responsibility, isn't it?"