Ajay
Gupta
Director
Multivision Multimedia India
By:
Chikita Kukreja
 His
life has come full circle. He started his
career with his family business of film
distribution, left it to try his hand at
various other trades right from garments
to even handling shipments to production.
But he is back at it again, this time with
Indonesian entertainment baron Raam Punjabi's
company PT Parkit Films' Indian distribution
arm, Multivision Multimedia India. Just
a couple of years ago, he was spearheading
Indian media czar Subhash Chandra's forays
into the cinema business.
With
reason. Gupta believes in giving it all
that he has got. He narrates an incident
when he was in the shipment business when
he chose to stay in the factory till 2
am just because he felt maybe his mere presence
would help others work faster and prevent
casualness from creeping in.
However,
it's a tad difficult to believe that a man
who looks all of 40 has a daughter who will
turn 24 in October!
A
Delhiite by birth he came to Mumbai in 1998
and joined a production house. This was
followed by the Essel Group's E-City, where
he spread the mutliplex chain in four cities
across India before helping Punjabi set
up his Indian arm.
We
get him to talk about his journey so far,
and get to know a lot many hidden secrets
about him.
Sporty to the core in school and college…
As
long as one is in school or college everything
is great but once you are out, the strive
begins. I used to be very active in sports.
I've played hockey at the national level
and table tennis at the state level. Later
my passion for sports led me to play games
like golf and pool. But now who has the
time for all that? It's very rare that I
play a frame of pool when I'm out on a trip
with friends.
What's
cooking today???
I won't call myself a foodie but yes, I
do like eating and make it a point to try
out different cuisine whenever I am out.
I love the exquisite food in Bukhara and
the barbecued dishes in Delhi and that's
something you can't get anywhere. Very recently,
I tried pizzas in La Pizza at the
Cannes film festival. They were baked on
earthen ovens and had a totally different
taste just like the roties made on
earthen stoves in villages. Also there is
an Algerian restaurant where they serve
you starters like kababs and a wholesome
full course. I am extremely fond of Chinese
cuisine and therefore land up normally at
Mainland China, the Chinese restaurant
in the Mumbai suburbs.
Normally,
I prefer having anything vegetarian. I even
like having continental dishes and as a
matter of fact I even love cooking, but
then everything has to be done by me. On
Sundays the lunch menu is fixed comprising
Curry chawal (Punjabi Curry).
No
Yoga-shoga for me
I try to be regular with my gym routine
or go for a walk at times. I wake up at
7.30 am and my day winds up at around 8
pm. I've also tried, what you call, the
new life or the alternate healing - Art
of Living and Reiki. I don't really believe
in Yoga as such. I agree everything has
a benefit but it's not often possible to
practice everything because it all depends
on your conviction.
 I
don't believe in giving prasad or donations...
I believe there is someone up there who
has control over all of us. I am religious
but I don't believe in rituals as such.
I believe in a private conversation with
God even if it's for 10 minutes a day. On
Sundays the first three hours are totally
devoted to God. I don't believe in giving
prasad and donations; instead I would
go and help some NGO like CRY or something
else on those lines. And I believe that
God is with me all the time... I don't search
for him. I am not an extreme person, so
when one is walking on a moderate line it
is very easy to choose which way to go.
Therefore I haven't felt his absence till
date.
Books
lag behind, TV reigns supreme
Very frankly, with the advent of so many
channels, the reading habit has taken a
back seat. In the past three years I have
started reading many books but haven't managed
to finish even one. By the time you get
back home, seeing something visually is
more appealing than a fat book of 400 pages.
I read fiction and religious books at times.
I usually like reading those books that
do not require long attention spans. There
are certain stories, which are just 40 pages
long but have a great moral. As far as religious
books are concerned, I would say, I don't
really read mythological books but mostly
books on their analysis is what I prefer.
Historical
destinations beckon
Though traveling happens quite often but
holidays are a far fetched dream now. There
are a lot many places left to be visited.
My wife is very interested in history so
I want to take her to her dream destinations
like Egypt, Greece, Cambodia and places,
which offer historical background. Apart
from that there are so many places in India
too where you get a variety of things. Our
dream destination in the monsoons used to
be this place called Chail, which is 45
kilometers from Shimla. There is a Chail
Palace that used to be the summer palace
of the Maharaja of Patiala and has now been
converted into a hotel. It has four - five
cottages and the whole place had hardly
25 shops, a bus stop and a post office.
We used to plan a week long trip so that
we could utilise the fire place in the evenings
and enjoy the cold breeze.
 I
believe…
Since adulthood I've believed in just one
thing - whatever you do, every single thing
comes back to you in this one life only.
Ghulam
Ali fan
I love listening to yesteryears' music.
I have my own collection of Boney M and
the likes. I don't mind listening to Indian
classical, instrumental and other music
of the same era. There was a time when I
was hooked on to Ghulam Ali.
As
far as movies are concerned I would say,
every genre has its own charm. Mackenna's
Gold is one such movie. It was made
so differently that even today it is fresh
in my mind. If I am switching channels in
the night and happen to see Sholay,
I till date stop and watch it. Lord of
The Rings and My Fair Lady are
some of my favorites.
A
nose only for Davidoff Cool Water
Shopping has become so very easy now with
the advent of malls. My personal favourite
is InOrbit. A lot of mix and match brands
do for me. In perfumes, I prefer only Davidoff
Cool Water. I am not very particular about
the brand of clothes I wear as long as they
are comfortable. As I have been associated
with the fashion garment industry, I go
in for the cut and fit and not much for
the brand.
My
priorities have changed
In the last three years, there has been
a total shift in my lifestyle. Earlier I
was a party animal and had less time for
my family but now it has become vice versa.
It was more of a conscious choice because
with time priorities change and so did mine.
Since my profession demands it, I try to
catch up more on films now and films have
always interested me. Moreover it also becomes
a family outing when we go for movies, film
festivals and screenings together.
Beautiful
Dreams
Ten years from now I wish to be in the Bahamas,
holidaying (chuckles). Actually a
lot depends on my luck and circumstances.
But I do want to own a wooden cottage on
a hill where I can hear the sound of running
water.
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