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An
Interview with Aditya
Singh
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"I
see great scope for news based programming "
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Posted
on 2 April 2002
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Till
recently, Aditya and Abhimanyu Singh were known more as siblings
of film actor Chandrachur Singh. No more. Today, they have carved
a niche for themselves as successful TV producers, with a successful
suspense series Shhh
Koi Hai…
in their kitty. Their latest offering Krishna
Sharma, C.A, also
on Star Plus, is a comedy tackling real life issues. The producer
duo is also creating two film based shows - Jubilee
Plus
and Rahe
Na Rahe Hum,
the latter being anchored by Javed Akhtar.
In a candid interview with indiantelevision.com correspondent
Amar,
Aditya Singh speaks of his company's plans and holds forth on
several issues confronting TV producers today. Excerpts:
How
did you start your innings as producer?
I was always fascinated by the medium. It was in 1994-95 that
I made my debut as executive producer on a serial called Albeli
on DD Metro, which was produced by my aunt. She was the one
who actually gave me the idea that I could be a producer as
well. Soon thereafter, I teamed up with my brother to produce
our first serial called Aakhen on DD Metro.
Which
subjects do like to tackle as a producer?
I am open to programmes of any genre. In fact, as a producer
I enjoy the challenge of understanding the emergence of a new
genre and being a trend-setter. We're really happy with the
way Sssshh Koi Hai… has shaped up over the last few months.
But rather than churning out something similar we have gone
for a comedy- Krishna Sharma, C.A. We plan to follow
this up with a love story, which we plan to shoot abroad extensively.
Your
last two ventures have been co-productions with Cinevistaas.
Do you have any special association with Cinevistaas?
One
of the partners in Cinevistaas, Uday Singh, is well known to
us and that's how the idea of a co-production came about. We
look after the creatives, pre-production, casting and the production
design. Cinevistaas helps us in post-production, the special
effects in particular. Consequently, both stand to gain immensely
from this arrangement. Earlier, we had some wonderful concepts,
but because of a lack of proper post-production facilities,
our costs were shooting up. Of course, we will be setting up
our own post-production unit; but as of now, Cinevistaas helps
us in this area.
How
do you choose a channel for your show?
Essentially, I look at three factors - the channel's involvement
with the product right from the stage the concept is conceived,
the target audience reached by the channel and our rapport and
experience with the channel.
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'As
a producer, I enjoy the challenge of understanding the
emergence of a new genre and being a trend-setter.'
______
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A
still from Shhh...koi hai |
Would
you consider a completely new channel to air your show?
We did receive a couple of proposals from MAK TV but I don't
see the need or the inducement to go ahead with it - one, because
we have our hands full at the moment and two, because even the
other concepts that we are working on are being worked on with
the involvement of reputed channels. I don't want to take on
more work than we can do justice to, but having said that there
are no apprehensions as far as a new channel is concerned.
Who
would you rate among your favourite directors?
Suraj Rao, Pawan Kaul and Sourabh Narang are some of my favourite
directors on television. All of them have been personally involved
with the scripting of the episodes of Shhh Koi Hai… which
they have directed for us. I also admire a director from Hyderabad,
Manikya, who has recently joined us as the creative director
of our company, Contiloe Films.
Who
are your favourite writers?
Atul Tiwari, Sameer Modi, Brijesh Jairaman and the writer duo,
Arshad and Imtiyaz. They have done most of the writing for us.
Have
you ever felt hassled by channel executive producers?
No, not at all. Most of the work we have done has been with
Star and the executive producers, apart from being involved
right from the time a concept is born, have been very co-operative
and understanding. I can't think of a situation where they have
been unreasonable.
What
are your sources of funding?
We rotate our profits from on-going projects into new projects
and also avail of credit options. We haven't yet availed of
institutional finance but do plan to in the future.
With
your existing infrastructure, how many projects can you take
up simultaneously?
The
number of projects is not a problem. We already have four programmes
on air. There are eight other concepts we are working on right
now, including a couple for small budget movies. Given the unpredictability
involved in the medium, you never know which of these projects
might suddenly take off. So, we are prepared to have many more
projects on air but ideally we would like to a go a wee bit
slow because when too many projects take off simultaneously,
it becomes difficult to maintain quality.
A
scene from the newly started Krishna Sharma, CA |
'Doesn't
a channel have the right to trust people who have delivered
as far as quality is concerned?'
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India
is probably the only country where producers are not entitled
to a share of the channel revenue even after forfeiting their
rights over the programme. What do you feel about the issue?
I
feel that's okay, because here the cable operator does not give
the broadcaster the kind of revenues he does in other countries.
But gradually, the cable operator's pie in the channel's revenues
will increase and that would probably improve the situation.
Why
are women producers more successful on Indian TV - Ektaa Kapoor,
Aruna Irani, Neena Gupta, to name a few?
Well,
this is a recent trend and has to do with the dominance of women
centric soaps in the last few years. But I wouldn't read much
into it. Cinevistaas, UTV and Creative Eye are hugely successful
production houses without a woman heading them.
How
do you divide professional responsibilities with your brother
Abhimanyu?
I am more involved with conceiving and developing concepts and
marketing them to the channels. Abhimanyu takes over the production
and the actual execution of these projects. Of late, however,
Abhimanyu is getting more involved with the creatives while
I focus on evolving the company's future plans for growth including
recruitments, because getting the right people is a pivotal
issue as far as our growth plans are concerned.
What
is your production set-up like?
We have a CEO heading the company, two creative directors, at
least one executive producer on a show (could be two depending
on the show) and a full-fledged production unit of our own.
We are hiring competent professionals for budgeting and finance
because this would be a key area for us. Post- production is
one area where we have to depend on others currently but in
the next month or so, we will have our own editing studio as
well.
Do
you find the current television industry situation positive
or disappointing?
I would say it's very positive. I know people complain of the
formation of lobbies of certain production houses that are getting
all the work from the TV channels. But then, doesn't the channel
have the right to trust people who have delivered as far as
quality is concerned? Producers who have delivered on quality
and not maximised profits by cutting costs are not the ones
who have suffered.
What is your vision for Contiloe Films?
As of now, our thrust has not been so much on soaps because
practically everyone is into them. We've concentrated instead
on alternative programming like film based shows and these have
done quite well. In the future, I foresee a great scope for
news-based programming, which we plan to get into in a big way.
But at the same time, we would take up soaps in a limited and
well-planned way. We are also lining up a couple of small budget
films, as these have a good profit potential. Five years down
the line, I see Contiloe Films developing into a reliable and
esteemed content providing house well diversified into TV, films
and music.
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