| An
Interview with Dinesh Bansal |
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"I like subjects based on emotions and relationships"
Posted on 30 November 2001
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He came to
Mumbai in 1980 to promote the family steel business
and stayed on to become one of the most consistent and
successful producers on Indian television.
Over
the years, Dinesh Bansal's Meteor Films has produced
quality programs in different genres. His successful
serials include Kurukshetra, Basera,Ghar Jamai,Alvida
Darling and Gharana. His latest offering Santaan has
just premiered on Sahara TV. In the pipeline are two
serials- very different from what he has done till now-
one inspired by the biography of a prince (whose name
is being kept under wraps) and a fantasy serial titled
Aladdin 36th.
Bansal
strikes one as a person driven by passion and love for
the television medium. Unlike those who criticize the
limited scope for creativity on TV, Bansal feels it
is the medium where most innovations take place. A rare
virtue Bansal nurtures is that of speaking outright,
even on contentious issues.
He
holds forth in a no-holds barred interview with indiantelevision.com's
correspondent, Amar. |
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What
brought you into TV production? |
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Well,
even though we were into the business of manufacturing
steel tubes, my father was active in theatre and directed
plays like Jatan and Chitralekha, which became popular
even at the national level. I guess my interest in the
medium emanated from there. I came to Mumbai in 1980
to promote the family business here. Gradually, I started
getting involved with the medium. I produced a film-
Gunaah, directed by Mahesh Bhatt in 1993. My foray into
TV production started with the launch of Zee. My first
serial was Kurukshetra. As far as my creative abilities
are concerned, I feel there are two qualities that really
propelled me into the medium- my interest and my aptitude
for the right script sense and the right music. |
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What
kind of a subject appeals to you? |
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Basically,
I like subjects based on emotions and relationships.
I am a very sentimental person, and I tend to absorb
things I see and hear very easily. So in all my serials,
the drama tends to be very real. It has traces of real
life characters and real life situations that we come
across in our lives. Raj Kapoor, who I consider my idol
had told me that a good product is that which can evoke
the same emotions among the audience as is shown on
screen, and that is what I strive to achieve. In fact,
I have been told that some of the scenes of Basera did
make people cry, so real were the emotions shown. |
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On
what basis do you choose a channel? |
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I
have been associated with Zee from its beginning and
it's like family to me. That explains why most of my
programs have been on Zee. But at this stage I'm open
to new options-I opted for Sahara for Santaan. One of
my forthcoming serials-Afsana will be aired on Mak TV. |
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What
made you opt for Mak TV, which is not yet on air, given
the uncertainties in the industry? |
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I
had some apprehensions initially but later decided to
go ahead with it after I got specific assurances that
payments will be made on time. Besides, some element
of risk-taking is the essence of any successful business.
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On
what basis do you choose a director for your projects?
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II
go purely by my instinct. At this stage, I don't keep
too many options open. I have a close group of directors
I am very comfortable with and based on my gut feel
I decide which of them is going to do justice to a given
story. For instance, I know that if it's a comedy, my
first choice has to be Anant Mahadevan and if its drama
it has to be Chander Behl. |
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Do
you prefer to produce weeklies or dailies?
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Weeklies,
certainly, because it becomes difficult to consistently
maintain a high quality in the case of dailies. |
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Which
are the areas you are personally involved with in the
making of your serials? |
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I
am involved with each and every aspect of my products.
All my stories are conceived by me even though I may
not personally write them. All details of the scripts
have to be approved by me before the shoot. I take a
personal interest in casting also. I even sit with my
directors and discuss how important scenes have to be
shot. I have invested heavily in having our own cameras,
sets and editing studios in order to maintain high production
values. I personally believe TV is a producer's medium
and it is the producer who has to take the onus for
everything and personally supervise each and every aspect
of the shoot instead of just being the financier. |
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Who
are your favourite writers on TV? |
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S.J.
Talukdar, Dr. Achla Nagar and Subhash Kabra. They do most
of the writing for my serials. |
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Do
you feel corporate giants like Balaji or UTV have a
monopoly over the best time slots? |
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I
am not sure about this. But even if that is the case
one should not complain. Balaji and UTV have built up
a reputation and credibility based on consistent performances
and if the channels feel more secure about getting higher
TRPs from their serials as compared to other producers'
serials, they are justified in feeling that way. |
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Do
you feel hassled by executive producers in channels? |
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Yes. In fact, of late I find executive
producers interfering in everything not because they
have a valid point but because they have to. In fact,
when we opted for Sahara, we had put a condition-we
did not want an executive producer on our show and they
agreed to this. This is probably the first such instance
in the history of satellite TV.
See,
we are mature people and we don't need policing. In
fact, I am willing to propose a contract to the channels
that I shall ensure my serial gets a given TRP level
at the end of say the 10th, 20th or the 30th episode.
If I fail, they have a right to withdraw my serial forthwith.
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Have
you had to re-shoot a episode? Who has borne the cost
of this? |
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Well,
not the entire episode but we've had to re-shoot portions
of it in the case of Gharana. The cost of course was
borne by us. |
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How
often has a pilot shot by you been rejected? |
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Never.
Never in the last 8 years. |
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Why
has Meteor Films not grown into a business empire like
Balaji or UTV? |
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Because
I am not interested in a false business. I don't understand
how you can raise money through a public issue showing
x number of programming hours as your asset. We don't
have a right over this software as this goes to the
channel and becomes their property. I personally don't
feel it is right to get money from the public in this
way. |
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What
are your sources of funding? |
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It's
my own capital. I don't borrow from outside sources. |
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How
many serials do you feel comfortable producing simultaneously? |
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I
don't exceed three serials at a time. Beyond that it
is not possible to maintain the same quality. Besides,
producing more than three serials will also require
me to raise money from sources I don't like. |
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With
so much passion for the medium, did the thought of being
an actor or director never come into your mind? |
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No,
acting somehow never fascinated me. I was interested
in direction but somehow always shied away from making
a full-fledged effort. One reason for this could be
the fear that I am not as good as I think I am. Because,
I have seen that scenes which I have suggested and personally
discussed with Chander Behl have come out much better
under his direction compared to what I could have ever
visualized or created. So I guess somewhere there is
a fear that I am not so good. |
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Which
has been the happiest moment of your career? |
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The
telecast of the 1st episode of Kurukshetra, which launched
us into the medium of TV. |
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