I feel safer shooting in the hills: Brijendra Kala

Actor Brijendra Kala had a packed shooting schedule when the lockdown happened. Yet his films like ‘Gulabo Sitabo’ starring Amitabh Bachchan and Ayushmann Khurrana and ‘Ghoomketu’ with Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the lead released on over-the-top (OTT) platforms.

During the unlock phase Kala has shot for an Ad film, a film ‘The Last Resort’ in Vadodara and is currently shooting for ‘Samosa & Sons’ at Mukteshwar, Uttarakhand.

“It’s a love story and a touching subject on gender issues and traditional rituals. It has Sanjay Mishra and Jeetu Shastri besides others. The film is being directed by Shalini Shah who too hails from the hills comes with Rajesh Shah as DOP,” he said.

“I feel it’s much safer to shoot in mountains. The film came as a good outdoor shoot amidst clean air. I am feeling healthy in these serene surroundings though we are shooting with a small crew and taking full precautions due to coronavirus,” the versatile actor said.

He has another reason to feel happy about. “One of the main reasons to say yes to the film was that I come from Nauriyal Gaon in Pauri Garhwal. So my roots are in the mountains even though I had grown up in Mathura where my father worked at the veterinary hospital. I make no distinction between UP and Uttarakhand,” he said over phone. Prior to this he shot for film ‘The Last Resort’ in Varodra for 10 days. “We shot it in a resort in isolation and full safety. Before that I shot an advertisement.”

The OTT platform, he said, has come as a boon for smallbudget filmmakers. “Earlier, filmmakers used to think that a film should be released on the big screen. But it was a problem for small films. But, the success on OTT has given low-budget filmmakers confidence and hopefully it will reduce the mad rush for getting a film released on theatres,” he said.

He will be shooting for a big OTT-series in October besides shooting for the fourth season of ‘Aaam Aadmi Family’. Last year, he shot for ‘Ram Prasad Ki Tehari’, ‘Gulabo Sitabo’ and ‘Love Hackers’ in Lucknow.

“I was shooting for ‘Sherni’ starring Vidya Balan in Bhopal where lockdown happened. I have also shot for ‘Mere Desh Ki Dharti’ with Devyenndu Sharma, Anand Vidhaat and Anupriya Goenka. In Badaun, I have shot for ‘Sonam Gupta Bewafa Hai’ which has Atul Srivastava and another film that I am doing with him is ‘Mard Ko Dard Hota Hai’.”

“In lockdown I have made my family happy by being with them but now my dates are being readjusted for different shoots. The readjustment is a big task. I feel blessed that I am getting enough work despite the pandemic. But I feel bad because due to small units, many crew members have been unemployed,” he said.

Nikita Deb

Even though the insider vs outsider debate is heating up with each passing day, singer Nikhita Gandhi — who began her career in 2013 with a Tamil film — feels that with the advent of social media and streaming platforms, it’s not really tough for a newcomer to make a mark in the industry.

“It’s not impossible to establish yourself nowadays, especially because things are a lot more transparent in terms of putting yourself out there. You can just make your own YouTube account, and there’s no protocol to be followed. Even releasing music through distributors is just online. Nobody is meeting in person or brokering you into the industry, and I feel that’s what makes it amazing. Everybody is self-empowered today,” says the singer who has delivered hits such as Raabta title track (Raabta; 2017), Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe (Stree; 2018), Qafirana (Kedarnath; 2018) and Poster Lagwa Do (Luka Chuppi; 2019).

A rank outsider herself, Gandhi believes that the system is far fairer than it was before the introduction of streaming platforms. “If you are really up for it, all you have to do is put your music out there and engage with the audience directly on whatever platform you choose, for instance Instagram, and I think that does level the playing field a lot,” she adds.

Given the pandemic, the film shoots and production came to a halt in March, and Gandhi feels that, in a way, gave a chance to independent music to shine due to the lack of fresh Bollywood songs. She says, “People are more in a

kind of a situation since they now have to mostly listen to non-film music, but I am also glad it has happened. Indie music creates a far more intimate relationship between the musician and listeners.”

Nikhita Gandhi