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Parag Vijra on why he prefers short films over Bollywood
Filmmaking is an art that a few utilise to the fullest, and many people choose to get into filmmaking because Bollywood is their last stop. However, Parag Vijra dared to go the unconventional way.
Parag has been more interested in making short films and documentaries on the unexplored places in India. His latest work is Sikkim — More Than What One Knows. He has made films on other places too. He says, “We have been making a lot of documentaries for Himachal and other unexplored places in India. My idea was to go towards the Northeastern States of India and do something for Sikkim or Assam. That’s how we started.” Parag has also won numerous awards for his films in the past. This short film on Sikkim has won three prestigious awards already, and is in the running for a fourth one — the highest and the most prestigious award that is given in the field of cinema — Dadasaheb Phalke Award.
“I have covered the entire North-East, West, South of Sikkim. Our concept involves a young girl [played by actor Ankita Sood, whom Parag will be launching in a Hindi feature film], who has travelled all the way to Sikkim, and when she reaches there, realises that the fun lies in the spontaneity of life,” adds Parag. Asked why he didn’t choose to enter Bollywood, Parag, whose other short film, Ab Rab Havale was his fifth film to win the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, reveals, “I am passionate about covering different countries. When I initially wanted to do the commercial thing on TV or films, nobody wanted to cover these places. They [distribution companies] don’t usually depend on ideas. They only ask ‘actor kisko le rahe ho, director kaun hai, production house kaun hai’. Saare ideas vahin pe khatam ho jaate hain (All ideas become futile when people are only concerned about the actor, director and the production house backing your project). They just look for commercial value.”