28 May 2015
HyderabaD

Blame or Fame, it is the director who gets it. It is definitely a difficult task to be a female director in the male dominated movie industry. But not impossible. Says director of the movie “Saheba Subramanyam” - Sasikiran Narayana.

Background
I was born and raised in Bhimavaram. My father, MS Narayana, was a Telugu lecturer in KGRL college. I did my schooling and college in Bhimavaram. We had a very blessed childhood. I was the pet of my father. I had the experience of seeing people floating into our house. Fine arts were part of our household and I had attended many plays directed by my father. My mother was also into movies. She used to take me to theaters to watch movies. I watched pretty much every movie that was released in our town. Let it be dubbed or remake or a new one. If it is there, we all would go to watch it. After I finished my bachelors, we moved to Hyderabad for my father. We lived in a single room house until my father established himself in the film industry.

My career
My father made me opt for science, and I was dead against it. I was always into arts. As a child in a family that loved theaters, I was a keen observer of my surroundings and wondered how this field would be. I dreamed of getting into the movies but never knew how as my family always kept me away from movie industry. I learned multimedia and thought of moving into that field. But somehow it did not appeal to me. After both my daughters were born, I started working in Gemini channel. But never really liked my work as it didn't appeal to me a challenging a task. My father asked me to manage his dates. I tried doing for a year but still wanted something else and did not know what. Then I approached Vissa TV. They offered me an assistant producer job. I learned the nuances of producing programs. I was offered 5 programs within 15 days and I scaled up to being a producer by myself. But the travel from my home to the work place was taking a toll on me and my kids. Eventually I had to drop the idea of going to the work place every day and started freelancing. But it did not work quite well as I had to invest money by myself. So eventually I gave up that idea as well. After a short break, I joined ABN news channel. I worked as a program producer and moved on to MAA TV. It is at this place, where I learned the production and direction of programs. I did Mee Star and couple of other programs where I learned the intricacies of production. I worked for 3 years and that’s when I was offered the movie chance.

Movies
My friend Venu recommended my name to a producer, who was looking to make a film. When they approached me, I directed them to my father and asked to have a discussion with him. My father was very hesitant as he never knew; I had interest in movies. He even told me that I don’t even know how to clap for a movie. I laughed and told him, maybe I don’t know how to clap but surely I knew how to direct a movie. After my father gave a nod, the producers and I had a discussion and we went on to do the movie. But before I rolled the project, I made sure; I learned everything about movie making. I pooled in my friends and used to have long hours of discussions and developed script. After 3 months of deliberations, we started the project and finished the movie in just 37 days. That’s “Saheba Subramanyam” for you all.

Woman director
I was the only woman in the set consisting of 100 men. I never faced any difficulty being with them. They treated me with respect and were always friendly. Yes, there were moments when I used to have clashes. But you see, after the movie is released, we all are one. Sometimes, I had to put my foot down several times. Sometime, we got to be stubborn because the director would have a visual idea of how the movie should be. Leading a team of men is not that easy. It is also quite difficult to bring the emotions that we want from many actors. Especially, the new comers will have difficulty in doing the emotional scenes. But it is the job of the director to make use of them to their advantage. I never compromised with the quality. I played a major role even in the post production. I made sure the dubbing and the post production was good and the output had the quality. Because blame or fame, the director has to bear it. So, I did my best. I was also quite emotional when the movie was released. We had to go through so many labor pains to release the movie. The promotion of the movie is equally difficult as movie making. Since I am a newcomer by myself, I never understood the difficulties involved in releasing the movie. But, at the end we did it. I had the same emotions after I saw Saheba Subramanyam as when I delivered my daughters.

Woman in the industry
Many people told me that it would be a difficult task to be a woman in the industry. I kind of both agree and disagree to it. I was always surrounded by 100 men. But, I felt very safe and was treated with respect. I never saw any kind of harassment. But definitely, they underestimate us. They never realize our potential. We need to prove ourselves and come out. It is always a challenging task. But, I need to tell you that, after I finished the movie, I went for a second chance. Yes, there were men who made advances. But, it is up to me. I always walked out with élan and maintained a dignified life. I think this happens with both the genders and it is everywhere and not just film industry. So, we shouldn’t be judgmental.

My family
After my father passed away, it is now my mother and my two teenage daughters, around whom my whole life revolves. My brother Vikram also lives in Hyderabad and I enjoy my time with my nephews. My father was a wall to me. He protected me like a precious bird. Now, it’s my turn to do the same to my mother and daughters. I am looking to make another movie. I am ready with the script. Let’s see when it happens.

By
Swathi Sriram