Hindustan Times (Gurugram) - Hindustan Times (Gurugram) - City
‘Porus is the story of India’s first defender’
Siddharth Kumar Tewary is known for creating larger-than-life mythological and historical shows on TV. And now, Tewary is all set to showcase the history of ancient India with Porus on Sony Entertainment Television. Today, on the occasion of the teaser launch on Sony Entertainment Television at 8pm, HT City caught up with Tewary, to hear about all that went into creating this magnum opus.
Today is the teaser launch of your upcoming magnum opus Porus. Tell us about this project.
This story is set around 350 BC, a time in history when we were the richest nation in the world. Alexander, the biggest conquerer in the world, set his eyes on us and it was Porus who stopped him from entering India. With his small army, he fought on the banks of Jhelum. He lost the battle but won the war. This is a story of India’s first defender.
We’ve heard that Porus has a budget of `500 crore...
I can’t really comment on the numbers, but it is definitely a premium series and perhaps the biggest show on Indian television.
So viewers will also get a chance to witness the story of Alexander the Great through this series?
We call him Alexander the Great — he was arguably the biggest conquerer ever. He might be an antagonist from our point of view, as he wanted to invade our country, but for me, it was equally important that the viewers see his story as well, what made him who he was, why he called was ‘the great’.
This led to us creating the whole Macedonian empire. Expansive sets have been erected, depicting every detail of their world. We have cast an original Greek family for the series. From his mother Olympia to father Phillip, to his friends and his personal life, every aspect of Alexander’s life will be shown in the series.
We are told that for the first time in India, your production house will own the Intellectual Property rights of this series. How does that help in creating better content?
Yes we do own 100% IPR and I believe it’s the best way to improve the quality of content as it leads to direct accountability. We have invested heavily in the series, Sony is the anchor broadcaster and they have underwritten part of the cost. They will have the first right of television broadcast in India and wherever the footprint of the channel goes, the rest of the rights stay with us. Yes it’s a big risk, but we are creating a world class series, which can travel to any digital platform in the world and be showcased in any language across the globe. That’s the way we optimise our business. It’s the first time in India and its definitely a great leap for content as it will ensure that the viewer comes first, and we don’t make shows for the sake of it. We only create what we believe in and more importantly, we put our money where our mouth is. I thank the channel for backing us in taking this bold big step.
You are known to make ‘characters out of actors’. What training did the actors undergo before kick-starting the first shoot schedule in Thailand?
Great actors create characters. It’s really important that an actor is excited to portray the character and we just support them in all aspects to help them visualise the life and time that the series is based on. A lot of time is spent in pre-production. It has been a year since we started training them in every aspect, be it rowing classes — as we are depicting trade through water — to horse riding and diction training. We also have Persians, Greeks and Chinese in the series, and they need to speak Hindi. However, they have their own style of speaking and language plays an important role in a series of this magnitude. We sent our actors to become certified divers, much ahead of the Thailand shoot schedule, so that we could shoot some underwater sequences.
You have written and directed this series. What different things can the audience expect from this show?
The show has been a great challenge. From the day I started writing to finally shooting the show, it has been really exciting. Writing all these characters and recreating their worlds was a big high. Of all the things, I am most excited about depicting trade through water. For the real touch, we have constructed ports and ships exclusively for the show, which are first on Indian television. Special detailing has gone to show the life and times of that era — from what people wore, what they ate, how they moved around. It was a challenge writing two visually different worlds, with distinctly different characters, who are emotionally the same at the core. It’s a visual extravaganza with riveting conflicts. Overall, a must watch for everyone. Tune into Sony Entertainment Television tonight at 8pm to catch a glimpse of the first teaser of Porus.