Coupling @ Mausams

Welcome back to Mausams! As promised at the end of last year, we’re happy to give you a sneak peek into the lives and minds of our leading couple, Naren and Poorna.

Naren and Poorna are both very different individuals in real life vs. the characters they’ve played in Mausams. Naren plays a young man striving to make it big in a non conventional career path (in reality, he is reasonably happy with his conventional career choices).

Poorna, on the other hand, plays a young girl who is fairly eager to be married. In reality she is already married and insists that not being so would not have made her the desperate bundle of nerves that her character turns into. There’s much more to life, she insists. (I already like her!). Read on to hear what they have to say about their debut project - Mausams.

Me: As we start, I’m going to ask you the 1^st question I usually ask the Mausams cast during interviews. Have you acted before?

Naren: Not really. Not at this scale anyway. I’ve done plays in school and more recently in NUS (National University of Singapore). But never something with so much screen time, and never in an actual movie!

Poorna: Ditto. I’ve done stuff in school that doesn’t quite qualify as something to feature on my acting resume. I’m amazed that Shilpa actually had the faith that I’d be able to do justice to her vision for this character.

Me: So how did you both stumble upon the project that is Mausams? How do you know Shilpa?

Naren: Shilpa and I go back almost a decade actually. We met in Bhavan's Thrissur where she was my senior and later in NUS as well. I didn’t really know her until she started her 1^st production (a musical named Bollywood Beats) in which I played a cameo role and danced a little. More recently I acted in a short film ‘It’s Magic’ that Shilpa directed (and won a lot of accolades for, incidentally J) and I guess that’s how she thought of me when she finally decided to make her 1^st proper movie.

Poorna: My story is less impressive compared to the saga of Naren and Shilpa’s association. J My husband works with Shilpa and when I moved to Singapore post my wedding, I was out of a job and dreading the empty days of job hunting. To ensure I didn’t bite his head off from the boredom of it all, he coaxed and cajoled me to go audition for this friend of his who was making her 1^st movie. I almost refused, but changed my mind at the last minute given I didn’t have much else to do back then. I’m so glad I did because this movie is how learned so much and met some fabulous people, Shilpa, Naren and Shweta included.

Me: Everyone I’ve interviewed for this movie (includes the editor and Shweta Sharma who plays the protagonist) has said the exact same thing so far. This movie was founded over a series of coincidences followed by some steep learning curves!

Naren: It’s true not only of our performances, but also of our relationships on set. Barely 2 or 3 of us knew each other when we started, but all the time we spent together getting better at this acting thing has made us considerably close. Shweta plays my sister in the movie and I remember this scene where she and I confront each other and things get pretty emotional.

I recall feeling distinctly brotherly towards her and realizing that somehow over the 6 months of working together, our very equation had transformed to a much more solid one. The same thing happened with Poorna (and he proceeds to clarify that this equation developed at a much more platonic level considering they’re both in committed relationships with other people)

Poorna: (Laughing) That’s true. I must say though, that while Naren and I play the so called ‘couple’ in the movie, the most openly affectionate scenes are still with Shweta who plays his sister. I’ll tell you later about the spoofs we’ve created by turning some of their scenes into romantic ones! RamC, the cinematographer, and I had a LOT of fun doing this with every character! You can put this up as a ‘coming soon’ on the website! :D

Me: Err ok! Onto another classic question. Any memorable scenes from the movie?

Naren: I think my favorites were the emotionally charged ones towards the end where we finally began to feel confident about our acting abilities. Intense scenes would get wrapped in 1 or 2 takes and Shilpa would just look at us with her jaw hanging open in surprise. She never said it, but we knew the look. It basically said, “When did these amateurs get SO good!” Those were my personal favorites :-)

Poorna: My most memorable one is this one where Naren does an almost gushy expression of “you’re gorgeous” and I’m supposed to respond in surprise with a look of utter happiness. “We want a twinkle to show in your eye!!!” was how Shilpa tried to inspire me. It failed miserably.

At this point young RamC, our cinematographer came over to me and said “Move aside. Let me show you how this is done”. Naren was flabbergasted at this turn of events and it showed in his sudden muteness. RamC then proceeded to encourage him by emphatically demanding, “Tell me I’m GORGEOUS! TELL ME!”

I’ve never seen Naren look so stumped, not even in his toughest and most emotional scenes. I laughed so much I almost cried! And I can tell you I wasn’t alone.

Me: And my very last question – tell us something we don’t know about you guys, and wouldn’t guess based on what we see in the movie.

Naren: I'm have a healthy obsession for fitness and technology - something my character doesn't possess. Other than this I’m a pretty nice fella like the character! :D

Poorna: In the movie, I’m usually impeccably dressed and it’s easy to assume I’m like that in real life. But I’m the most un-girly girl I know and even the clothes and make up were a stretch for my real personality to take. This is why asking me to enact ‘twinkly eyes’ was requiring of talent I simply don’t possess!! And none of the clothes in the movie were mine. All the other girls just loaned me theirs (and some begged me to keep them at the end because they make me look nicer than my usual clothes). Hmpf!

And on that note, we wrap up the sneak peek into the life of the lead couple of Mausams. I hope to bring you more news from the team over the next few months. Highlights amongst these will include a music preview, a trailer, and if Poorna is to be believed, a couple of spoofs the cinematographer has hidden up his sleeve. Adios!

Editor in Chief@ Mausams

Our last Mausams sound byte before our readers head out on holidays is an interview with the editor, Jenif.

Of interest is the fact that no one on the cast of Mausams had ever met Jenif until a couple of days ago. Of even more interest is that the director, Shilpa, herself only “properly” met him 2 weeks ago (we’re discounting the breezy 3-hour meeting in Mumbai months ago when Jenif handed her the first draft of the Mausams edit) despite having worked with him on Mausams’ editing for about 4 months now.

Read on to find out more about how a UAE based Jenif has played editor in chief of Mausams that was conceptualized and shot completely in Singapore!

Note: My interview with Jenif happened under the strangest circumstances. Shilpa messaged me 2 weeks ago to say that I could interview him because he was in Singapore for about 12 days to help close out the final edits in person. I was given a number on which to call him and no more information.

I called Jenif on a Sunday morning wondering what it would be like to interview someone I have never seen or spoken to before. Jenif picked up the phone as if expecting my call and went on chat with me as if he’d known me for years.

Me: Err. Hello. Is this Jenif?

Jenif: SUDHA! Is that Sudha? Shilpa said you’d call.

Me: Indeed it is Sudha. Can you talk now? Are you in the middle of something important? (Wondering to self – ‘what do super important editor types do on a Sunday morning?’)

Jenif: Not at all! I’m just roaming around the Jurong Bird Park because I haven’t had time to see anything in Singapore for the 10 days I’ve been here. We’ve worked on the editing practically non-stop and wrapped up at 4.30 am this morning. I’m roaming around here with a friend who is far more interested in the birds than I am, so I’m MORE than happy to talk.

And THAT is how our interview began

Me: So how do you know Shilpa? Through school, college or theatre?

Jenif: I don’t really know Shilpa through any of those. In fact before this weekend in Singapore, Shilpa and I had met only briefly for a few hours in Mumbai a couple of months ago.

Me: Wait a second. Haven’t you been editing Mausams with her for the last 4 months? How could you do that without really knowing her or meeting her properly? Please do tell us how it all started.

Jenif: (Laughing) I get this precious reaction from every one who hears the story. So this is how it goes.

In 2009, Shilpa made a short movie ‘It’s Magic’ which was circulated online through Vimeo. A friend of mine saw it on Vimeo and called me to tell me about it and subsequently I visited the website and watched the movie. I was very impressed and left Shilpa a comment on the site telling her it was fantastic work and that she should never stop making movies. And she replied to that. And I replied some more. And she finally said ‘let’s stop the infinite comment thread on Vimeo and stay in touch over email'. And that, my friend, is how I got to know Shilpa.

Me: That is one hell of a story! But how did you end up on the Mausams team?

Jenif: Like I said before, Shilpa and I stayed in touch over email. She kept me updated on her upcoming project (i.e. Mausams) and I kept telling her not to worry about the setbacks and that she’d do a great job. Meanwhile I told her about my aspirations to be an editor and work in the movie industry…

Me: Wait a minute. Let’s back up here. Aspirations to be an editor? What’s YOUR story? What DO you do?

Jenif: You’re going to laugh again. I work for my family business in UAE that makes office supplies. Yes, you heard me right. Office Supplies. It’s as far from showbiz as can be. But my cousins and I have always been interested in the art of making movies and I’m sure my dad’s love for photography has a genetic role to play somewhere there. A few years back we set up our own little company called MET (Mediastation, Energy and Twism – it’s a long story. Don’t ask what or how) and started making short movies.

Our strength wasn’t really in the scripting and we knew it. What we were most fascinated by was translating ordinary scripts into extraordinary movies. We’ve participated in smaller scale contests and recently some bigger ones including Talentia – a church led contest on short movies based on the Bible. We won, by the way! Ever since, I’ve been more seriously trying to get into the Indian film industry. And that’s my story so far.

Me: Fascinating. And how does this all link back to Shilpa and Mausams?

Jenif: In course of our online exchange, Shilpa told me about this movie she was working on. It sounded exciting and I told her I’d be happy to help with editing pieces or anything else for that matter, whenever she needed it.

She agreed and started getting my help on Mausams – mainly with feedback on the script, shot breakdowns etc. It was a pretty ad hoc arrangement until 4 months ago when all the time she was spending in front of the computer doing office work and Mausams work started to take a toll on her eyes. Shilpa’s doctor was vehement about her cutting down on computer time if her eyes had to go back to normal. And this is when she basically asked me if I could take over as editor for Mausams. And I said yes!

Me: But you’re based in UAE, and she’s here in Singapore. How did you get over the sheer logistics involved?

Jenif: We piggy backed on to family members and friends travelling across countries. Shilpa sent me the initial footage tapes (35 hours worth - not little, mind you!) through my cousin who was visiting UAE and he brought them to me. I kept her updated over email and over the phone for the last 4 months as I worked through the reel trying to bring this movie to life as she intended it. The biggest challenge was how to ensure everyone gets their fair share of screen time vs. chopping off the smaller bits with the guest appearances etc. Like you, for example. You have all of 5 minutes in the movie and I was determined to keep those in.

And then a couple of months ago, it so happened that both Shilpa and I were in Mumbai at the same time. So we had a short meeting when I gave her the first cut edit. From there on it was really fine tuning of the edit, which turned out to be a nightmare when the two of us were not located in the same place. The long emails and reference edits we were sending each other were not the most efficient way to get it done. So I decided to plan a trip to Singapore to close out the final edits with her in person. And that’s why I’m here.

Me: For someone who barely even knows the director or the cast, that is an INSANE amount of effort you’ve put into this movie!

Jenif: I guess you could see it that way. Or you could see it as me treating this movie as a platform to finally showcase my work as well. I trust Shilpa and her movie making skills and I figure there’s no better project to be associated with for someone interested in serious filmmaking.

Me: And I hope this movie brings both of you the recognition you deserve. Where does the movie stand as of now?

Jenif: We’ve edited 35 hours of footage down to 2 hours. We think we have a very strong end product and this is even before sound design and music are overlaid. Mausams is well on track to premiere in April 2011, and I hope I can make it in person, no matter where in the world I am then!

And that, folks, is the amazing story of our editor Jenif. This is the Mausams pubicity team signing off until 2011. We hope to welcome you back with the story of our lead pair – Naren and Poorna. Until then, Adios!

Shweta "Spunky" Sharma @ Mausams

Hello folks!

We’re back again with more updates on Mausams. And what better way to kick off telling you more about the movie, than by telling you more about the people behind the movie, eh?

So here’s the very 1^st interview with a member of cast, Shweta Sharma (better known as Spunky), who plays Shalini in the upcoming Mausams.

I’ve known Shweta for about 6 years now and yet when I tell her I need an interview with her, she shifts ever so uncomfortably in her seat. Fidgety and nervous is something I’ve never seen Shweta look, not even before the most stressful of meetings at work. I’m amused but determined to not get in the way of her natural conversational abilities (usually read as: non stop chatterboxism)

She finally relaxes when I agree to put the pen and paper aside and treat this more as a chat, less an interview. I start organizing the questions in my mind, agonizing over how exactly I am to remember her words without any notes.

But all is well. Once Shweta opens up, the words flow automatically, and she barely registers when I pick up the pen once again and start furiously jotting notes.

Here, ladies and gentlemen, is presenting to you, Shalini from Mausams.

Me: You’re a marketer by day and a regular 20 something year old by evening. How did you end up on a movie set?

Shweta: I know right! Life has its ways of taking you where it wants you to be. In June 2008, I was at the screening of Shilpa’s production, Kathaah, a series of short plays she had directed then. I thought what the group had done with a bunch of enthusiastic people and ZERO sponsorship was pretty darned incredible. And so I walked up to her, introduced myself and said I’d love to work with her some day.

I walked away and forgot all about our chat. Yet, wonder of wonders, Shilpa remembered me when she started emailing folks for the Mausam auditions. And the rest, as the cliché goes, is history.

Me: Auditions? Did you rock the stage with your performance? I remember receiving Shilpa's audition script and thinking “Whoa! This sounds tough to memorize!”

Shweta: Hardly! I almost didn’t go to auditions. My husband was down with the chicken pox right before auditions and I hadn’t found a spare minute to read through the audition script, much less memorize it.

Now, if Shilpa’s past production was anything to go by, she seemed like a consummate professional, and I figured she deserved a well prepared audition, and nothing short of that. So I called her to apologize and say I wouldn’t make it because there was no way I could memorize the material with everything that was happening around me at home.

But she was surprisingly cool about it and asked me to come over anyway. My audition was eventually 10 minutes of memorizing followed by the best I thought I could do at that point.

A week later, Shilpa called to tell me I was in. And thus began the rollercoaster ride that was Mausams. :-)

Me: So tell us more about this roller coaster ride.

Shweta: Well, we were not all rank amateurs, having all done some form of college theater or another in the past. Yet, Shilpa wanted to ensure that when we did start shooting, we were all prepared enough to wrap up in optimal time.

You have to understand that this was a truly zero budget movie, so the money to rent locations over long periods of time was simply not there. The last few scenes were shot in a rented location that she just funded personally. Most other times we shot at someone’s house. Outdoor scenes had to be done at public locations like Vivocity. And with none of these, esp. the paid locations, did we have the luxury of infinite time or space to shoot. Even with unpaid locations, we had to wrap up in less than 10 takes for most part else there’d be a crowd of people who gathered to watch, OR a guard who tried to get us to leave.

And to get to such a level of performance, practice was necessary. So we spent Jan and Feb 2010 just practicing, getting the dialogues done assuming it would be an easy ride thereon.

Me: I sense a “but” around the corner here. Were things not as easy as you guys expected?

Shweta: I think we overestimated how much the practice would help. It did help make the dialogues smoother and some emotions more refined. But what I wasn’t prepared for was the sheer amount of detail that goes into getting the angles right while the actual shoot happens.

When you’re working with one camera (not 4, like in most big productions), everyone in the scene needs to find a way to not have their back to the camera, yet not look at it – all this while emoting as sincerely as possible. And the continuity was my biggest personal AHA!

Me: Continuity? Meaning?

Shweta: Meaning when you do one scene, but use several different shots to complete it, you have to ensure they seamlessly blend into each other. It sounds simple and intuitive. But the amount of effort that goes into making it happen! Oh My God!!! I remember this one scene where we did about 15 retakes because my bangs kept settling down in the wrong place on my forehead vs. the previous scene. That was when it really hit me how much hard work it is to make a movie just seem consistent from scene to scene!!! And the funniest part is that I now notice this on TV ALL the time. I’m constantly yelling “continuity issues” as I watch dramas on television.

And, as if it’s not bad enough that I’ve ruined TV for myself, my sis in law has now taken to yelling this with me after spending 3 days at shoots with me. They say I’m infecting the whole family one by one :D

Me: Now to the most clichéd question of them all. What were your best moments on set?

Shweta: I have to say the most special high during the making of this movie was each time Shilpa looked pleasantly surprised by how well we performed and wrapped up a take. She’s an utter perfectionist and getting a WOW out of her would just make my day.

There’s this one scene I remember quite distinctly. It was with Naren who plays my brother in the movie. In this scene, we have a huge argument and there’s a lot of anger going around. We wrapped up what was a fairly emotional scene in less than 3 takes and at that point Shilpa just looked at us and went “Guys, that was SO good!” and Naren and I looked like kids who’d been handed candy. J

We were once shooting this fairly serious scene where I break down and cry and when we wrapped up the take, I noticed that young RamC, our cinematographer was crying too. That has to be one of my personal favorites. Never thought I could have done that!

Me: Wow. Sounds like a lot of this was easy peasy. Were there bits that weren’t?

Shweta: Of course there were. The one that stands out in memory is a lot of the scenes where the affection between me and my on screen husband (Shilpa’s real life husband) has to be palpable for the audience. Although Shivaanu and I bonded off screen and got along brilliantly well, these scenes would make us both pretty uncomfortable. And when Shivanu looked at Shilpa with a beseeching look of “Come on! YOU’re my wife. I cannot do this!”, she’d just give us this unforgiving look of “Be professionals!”. I have to say though, that usually got us thinking of inventive ways to look affectionate without having to get too cozy and we did manage to appease her eventually.

If delighting Shilpa is a huge reward in itself, disappointing her always felt like a personal failure!

Me: Any more movie plans for the future?

Shweta: Maybe a few months later? I've had a weak back for about 2 years now and a combination of being extremely busy both in and out of the office recently took their toll with a slip disc. I've been recommended to take things slow and that's exactly what I plan to do (until the next offer comes along, that is :-))

And that’s it from the Mausams team for now. We’ll bring you more tidbits from the cast as the months go by, so stay tuned ...

Mausams Wausams - A "Poem"

Post the wrap-up of the film's shoot and a chunk of dubbing, a member of the Mausams team decided to put his thoughts about his experience with the film in the form of nothing less than...well, poetry. The team believes that this pretty much captures all that has transpired in the last few months on the sets of Mausams and decided that it would be a good idea to share it with the world.

But before that, a word about the poet. He is none other than Shivanu Shukla, the Co-Producer cum Production Assistant cum Cast Member cum Husband-to-the-Director of Mausams. And when he is not immersed in such creative activities, he pretends to be a consultant.

So here we go. Presenting to you, "Mausams Wausams". (The poem is in Hindi, so apologies to those who don't understand the language!)

Mausams Wausams

Alag alag rah se aaye the sab

Ki milkar banaenge picture hum

Mahine nikal gaye pata nahin kab

Bante bante ban gayee Mausam(s)

Bechte Shampoo, Cream ya Consulting

Weekend par sab milkar karte shooting

Na tha camera Na thi lighting

Budget tha zero lekin awesome thi setting

Kaju Badam jitne bhi dabaye

Dialogue lekin phir bhi yaad na ho paye

Sab retake par retake lete jayein

Director ka phir bhi mann na behlayein

Ek samay ki baat thi

Aaana tha subah lekin hone lagi raat thi

Sab actors ke bahane itne sahi

Ki ghadi ne bhi mano maan li haar thi

Na kahin se mota Na kahin se takla

Galti se bhi camera par na aa jayein

Salman Priyanka aur Katrina

Sab inke aage sar jhukayein

Duniya ke kai saare chhor

Chennai, Abu Dhabi, Mumbai aur Singapore

Har jagah se milkar lagaein zor

Mausams ke cast & crew ab machaye tod phod

Maza zyada aur kaam kum

Bakwaas zyada aur dialogue kum

Jab jab dekhenge ab picture hum

Yaad aayenge yeh Mausam

Mausams updates: We're alive! We're beyond alive!

Hello again. It’s the end of a glorious short week. To celebrate, lets get some updates on what’s going on with our home-made-full-length-movie.

So here are some of the crayon colored episodes from the lives and loves of the Mausams team that (I promise) will adorn these web pages in the coming months.

1. Our character artists- Navneet Jagannatan (for those who don’t know him, you have no idea how lucky we are to get him to talk) and K.Bala, on what it’s like to be talented and underappreciated.
2. Stalking our leading lady - a peek into Shweta Sharma’s vanity case
3. The romantic pair-Naren Kolary and Poorna Prasad on their new found international heart throb status
4. Shivanu Shukla (who’s multi tasking on this project as producer, guest artist and husband of director) on waking up one morning post shoot, to find all the framed photographs in his bedroom featuring another woman
5. The supporting cast Vineeth Kumar and Uthra Parameswaran talk about work-movie-life balance (or lack thereof)
6. Dead boring technical stuff by Shilpa for the movie making geeks.
7. And then some more.

Yes, it’s as trivial and entertaining as all that- this is a commercial venture after all. However, at the end of it all, perhaps you shall find that behind its shiny, plastic veneer, Mausams might actually be reflective of a deep seated urge within the squashed heart of our generation to tell their story.

Which is?

 A few years ago, the world waxed into a gigantic village, with globalization spreading like an infectious rash that turned everything into a shade of offensive steel-gray. Everybody found themselves doing the same thing, wearing the same clothes, feeling the same way and doing nothing about it. Since then however, things have improved- everyone now has a means to color their lives with a little bit of creativity and determination. So in effect, this is the story of Mausams and the story in it.

So anyway, feel free to totally disregard the last paragraph and just focus on the fun to come over the next few months- with two teasers, website launch, official music launch and trailer release, all leading up to the grand finale of the official movie premier in early 2011. So while the real movie makers put in those grimy, backbreaking hours in the film factory, we’ll continue keep you entertained with this idle chatter.

I’ll see you back here in a couple of weeks!

Five Life Lessons from the Mausams set - The Cinematographer's Note

Now that this madly ambitious project has wrapped up shoot, our cinematographer RamC, who is now doing his 4th year at the NUS School of Computing, shares his Mausams experience (voluntarily, no pressure from anyone to churn this one out!). At 21, RamC is the youngest of the team, yet he is the most indispensable, bringing his skills with his camera and his cultivated eye for detail to the table. Here's RamC, offering every film maker hopeful, a little bit of the gyan he has garnered at Mausams.

Looking through the Lens

By Ramchander Krishna



Mausams is no ordinary film. For the first time in the history of world cinema, a film has people from Singapore, India, Switzerland and UAE working together on the project for well over 6 months, that too within pretty much no budget.

As the cinematographer for a film of such magnitude, I must say it was pretty challenging. I say “challenging” mainly because it’s a Shilpa Krishnan film.I tell you, it’s not easy getting a “Nice!” or “Hmmm… I like that…” from her. There were several moments during the shoot, when at the end of a shot, I would exclaim, “Wow! Excellent acting!” but the director would calmly request, “Umm... Once more?”

And the actors would go ahead, praying inwardly that they hit the right expressions the next time around. I must say, I was overwhelmed by the dedication of the artists. I mean, the kind of ideas they came up with, for the spoof of Mausams, were completely ingenious. (For those of you interested, the spoof was shot simultaneously and is scheduled to be released as a separate film in competition with the original Mausams) But, shooting the spoof had to be done stealthily, like while the director’s back is turned away, we sneak in a couple of shots here and there. And I must say, the actors were really co-operative with that.

Usually, there are some responsibilities that come along with the job of a cinematographer – ensuring continuity, checking lighting, white balancing, adjusting the damn tripod etc. In Mausams, however, my foremost responsibility was to ensure that bulging tummies and fat faces do not appear anywhere in the film. Not that any of the actors had such tummies, just that the camera can sometimes twist the reality, you know. So someone needs to keep a check. In fact, I vividly remember holding up the tripod several feet above the ground in order to overcome the prominence of a particular actor’s posterior.

Such incidents teach you lessons in your craft that would be handy for the future. And honestly speaking, the shooting of Mausams has made me look at things in a completely different light. I’ve learnt several valuable life lessons.

Lesson One – it’s always good to be the youngest in a group. Why? You get pampered all the way and no one takes you seriously on anything.

Lesson Two – Do what the director says. If the director says, “Let’s have a close-up”, set the frame for the close-up, step back and put your finger on your lips. If the director says, “Go give him the camera”, give him only the camera and not the tripod.

Lesson Three – People stare at the camera and you can do absolutely nothing about it. I think this was the single biggest problem Mausams faced other than budget constraints, of course. In fact, there are certain passers-by, whom I suspect to have had more screen time than some of the main characters of Mausams.

Lesson Four – It’s good for women to have husbands. Seriously, some of the married men associated with this project, have phenomenal amounts of patience stored inside them. Hats off!

Lesson Five – the most important lesson – If camerawork does not help in the long run, turn to acting. In fact, the director was so pleased with the cameraman’s acting prowess that he’s the only one playing a dual role in the film. (Now that should get the fans to start their guessing-game on the plotline!)

Anyways, the shooting of Mausams is officially wrapped up now. And it can be said with confidence that there are portions of Mausams that would blow your breath away. Be it the charisma of the stars, their phenomenal acting in emotionally-charged scenes, the beauty of the landscape or the brilliance of the cameraman in bringing it all out on celluloid - Mausams would be an engaging, visual treat!

The Making of Mausams: And Action!

Its Saturday again and we're back at Shilpa's house. Its a meal-time scene, Shweta and Naren are already at take number I-dunno-what, when I walk in. Ikea lamps are glowing benignly all over the dining table and Shilpa is framing the shot from a corner of her kitchen.

The inner room has kind of become a makeshift trailer and the make up artist Shahana is busy at work. Shivanu's mom is on her annual visit and is enjoying the whole fuss in a corner. Mascara wands, brushes and tiny plastic pots full of glittery colorful stuff lie littered on the bed, while Shahana nimbly works her magic on Poorna's face. This interests me, so I ignore the actual shoot for a while and focus on the beautification.

The make up department is not to be taken lightly. Cameras are not kind. They do not care about your darling, effusive personality or your strong spirit or the beauty of your heart. If you are in the germinating stages of sprouting a double chin, then camera will obligingly reveal this to you and also to the rest of the world.

'I love making people up. I could do this all day,' Says Shahana as she sketches a sharp black line under Poorna's eye. ' There, that'll make your eyes really pop.'

'Shahana are you sure this eye shadow isnt too much?' Poorna looks lovely but she's obviously quite alarmed at her transformation, 'God I don't know anything about make up, I feel so gawar! God, how am I going to manage to do this for every shoot? '

After some more backbreaking work Shahana looks back at her work of art with satisfaction. She has successfully feigned a look of fresh, natural, non-chalant beauty, under a few layers of make up. Its truly marvellous.

Shooting is tedious business. Naren's whipping up dinner in this one and hundreds of takes later, all the vegetables aunty needs for lunch have been diced to perfection. Shilpa, perfectionist as usual, takes and retakes shots until every single line, tone and frame comes together in one shot and satisfies her. I get exhausted just watching.

Meanwhile, Shivanu in his capacity as co-producer seems to have decided against hiring a spot boy, choosing instead to double up as one himself. By the end of the day, all the girls agree that in the universal husband contest (or co-producer contest, if you will), Shivanu wouldn't rate so badly.

Thanks to aunty and Naren's cut vegetables, everyone has a hearty lunch. Once the morning shoot is successfully wrapped, everybody loosens up a little. Naren gets all trigger happy with his DSLR upsetting Shweta at one point,

'Delete that. DELETE! I look fat in that photo.'

Allow me to stress here that it would be in fact quite a challenge to make Shwetha look fat, even if someone wanted to.

'Ha!' goes Shahana,' See she's a real actress now. Actresses, they always think they are fat. Put that on your blog!'

I guess Shilpa Inc. are really making a movie now and everyone seems to be growing into their new found careers :D

The Making of Mausams: A Weekend Rehearsal

Its 9.30am on a Saturday morning. An unusual scene is unfolding in Shilpa’s living room. 6 or 7 young adults have willingly dredged themselves out of bed, awaking at the crack of dawn at 7.45 am, to catch a quick cab, or a not so quick train ride, to Bishan Loft. Family duties and weekend indulgences are exchanged voluntarily for pulpy orange juice served so hospitably by Shivanu. It is all for the sake of Art. There is a moderate amount of chatter but in their heart of hearts, everyone’s just asking one question.

Where the hell is Vineet Kumar?

‘Seriously, I’m gonna slap this guy, once this whole shoot is done,’ our director quietly fumes, ‘for all the pain he’s caused me, over the years.’

At 9.45, a telephone call confirms that the man in question is indeed, on his way over and in fact, he has been approaching Bishan Loft for the longest time. However, he complains that it was the insipid cab driver who was just lolloping around the area, unable to zero in on the front lobby for some strange reason.

About 20 minutes later, Vineet bursts through and blusters a more detailed version of the same explanation involving the cabbie, who had graduated from being merely an idiot, to entirely evil and vindictive. The whole drama is, however, original enough to melt away any resentment the rest of the cast might have felt, drumming their fingers for an interminably long hour waiting Vineet, alias Suresh to show up.

‘Isse koi gussa bhi nahi ho sakta,’ Uthra complains as Vineet beams like a happy little boy.

All at once, everyone’s occupied themselves with frantically mugging up their lines.

Shweta carries her script around and chants the lines over and over, as if studying for a Sanksrit exam. Uthra seems to absorb her lines straight off the page by staring at it. Shivanu potters around looking at everything with interest. Though Poorna is confident enough, she seems to be meditating on her lines. Naren is obviously the good kid who has studied his pages many times over the past few weeks, so he just watches everyone else, possibly practicing the dreamboat look his role demands with considerable success.

Shilpa meanwhile, sits calmly on a table facing the pandemonium, legs crossed and back straight. Much like the Buddha himself, she delivers little jewels of wisdom, twisting the screws of the character over the actors a little tighter with each comment. Once again, Vineet demands some attention, although his problem is rather contrary.

‘Why are you acting? You’re supposed to just be yourself for this role. What happens to your voice when you’re in character? Stop being weird Vineet. Stop trying to act!’

When it’s time to rehearse, an interesting transformation occurs. At first, everyone’s a little stiff and self conscious. People forget what to do with their hands. Confused accents waltz in and out. Then gradually after a few tries, the right expression settles in and diction gets more natural.. Everyone gets it perfect for about 80% of the time, but the remaining 20% is precious idiocy.

One person, who needs no direction whatsoever ever, is the brilliant Navneet, who in all appearances is slouched like a flaccid leek over the couch, neck down, conversing with his chest hair. But when it is his turn to speak, the character arrives with all the ease and confidence of a master.

Okay, I’ve seen enough of this fun morning to know that if rehearsals are this eventful, then the actual shoot will prove to be a real phenomenon.

The Making of Mausams: The People

If you know Shilpa Krishnan, then you’ll know that she’s making a movie. No, I don’t mean one of those Handy cam shot, iPhoto edited short home videos, but a real 90-120 min feature film, with a real production schedule, pretty people, background score, outdoor shoots, indoor shoots, dubbing, editing, trailers and teasers. Yup, it's the real deal. And all this to be achieved with a close-to-zero budget.

I was curious of how this project, which is beyond mammoth considering everyone involved in it have full time jobs/husbands/wives/social lives/other-things-to-do/all-of-the-above, was turning out. So I strolled over to Shilpa’s place one morning to check it out. Having publicly announced embarking on this entirely crazy and wildly exciting idea of ‘making a film, proper’ half a year ago, Shilpa Inc. definitely seem to be on the way to pulling this off.

Here's a quick look at the people behind Mausams:

1. Shilpa- the One and Only. Writer, cinematographer, editor, producer and director extraordinaire. Mrs. Shivanu Shukla.
2. Shivanu - Co-producer and anti-hero. Mr. Shilpa Krishnan
3. Shweta-. Protagonist.
4. Naren- Planted to gain tween fan base.
5. Poorna- Love interest.
6. Navneet- character artist #1
7. Bala- character artist #2
8. Vineet- comic relief, mainly off-screen. Hero of the next post
9. Uthra- best actress in a supporting role
10. Nitya- Production manager. The Shepherd.
11. Shahana- the beautifier.
12. Adarsh/Sid- Camera men.
13. RamC- Remote cinematographer, currently based in Zurich. Conference calls his shot ideas. Still under 21 (bah)
14. Prasanna- Beethoven. As in tempestuous composer.
15. Me- Fly on the wall. Scribe and official drum-beater.
16. Yash and Sudha- fellow drum beaters.
17. Kurian - Still Photographer
18. Rachit - Website Designer
19. Jeni, Anto, Kokhwee, Jayesh - Other supporting actors
20. Jenif (M.E.T Films, Dubai) - Consultant and overall moral support
21. Supriya Shukla (Shivanu's mom) and Sudha Krishnan (Shilpa' mom) - Official chefs to cater for indoor shoots

Yes, at the moment, this is turning out to be an entirely expat-Indian venture. But of course, that shouldn’t deter the rest of the world from joining forces.

More from the sets of Mausams coming soon!

Mausams - First Look Teaser Poster

Mausams is a light hearted film based on a group of young Indians in Singapore, hoping to be completed and premiered by end this year. Below is the first look teaser poster.

Call for Production Crew

Now that the cast for the film is almost close to being finalized, here are the production crew roles up for grabs! I am putting the titles and the job descriptions (mostly courtesy of Wiki) so that the expectations from each role are absolutely clear! Of course, they are all no-pay-but-all-fun roles! :)

Time commitments: Varies by role. But all weekends and public holidays from Jul-Sep (+/- 2 weeks) can be expected. Also a few weekends in earlier months.

a) Production Manager/Co-ordinator
- Assist in the charting of the schedule and making sure that it is stuck to, leads budget tracking, assists in sourcing of locations, getting required permits, if any and other logistics.

b) First Assistant Director (Must have experience in directing before)
- Day-to-day management of the cast and crew scheduling, equipment, script, and set. Also be responsible for directing background action for major shots or the entirety of relatively minor shots, at the director's discretion.

c) Costume Designer/Standby
- Responsible for all the clothing and costumes worn by all the actors that appear on screen. Also responsible for designing, planning, and organizing the costumes down to the fabric, colors, and sizes. Monitors the quality and continuity of the actors and actresses costumes before and during takes.

d) Make-up Artist/Hairdresser
- Assist in make up and hair dressing of the cast. The film does not require anything fancy and needs only simple everyday make-up in most parts but the cast would need assistance to get it done.

e) Production Sound Mixer/Sound Designer (Must have experience)
- Responsible for recording all sound during filming. This involves the choice and deployment of microphones, operation of a sound recording device, and sometimes the mixing of audio signals in real time. Also in charge of the post-production sound.

The roles will be assigned on a first come first serve basis, after a short interview. If you are interested, please let us know at makingofthefilm@gmail.com . And please help spread the word! Thanks!

Videos for Auditions

I have been getting a couple of questions repeatedly regarding the auditions and hence decided to put up a post that hopefully answers them.

a) If you are not going to be around in Jan or are not sure of the dates of your availability for the auditions, you have the option of taping the monologues in your own time and sending me the videos for the first round. Even if you are in town but would prefer this method vs. a face-to-face auditions directly, you can do it. The deadline for the videos would be Jan 5th , 2010. Please send the files or links to makingofthefilm@gmail.com.

b) You need to prepare all three monologues given (irrespective of whether it is video or face-to-face). They cover different emotions and am trying to get a good gauge of your range in order to cast appropriately.

If you have any further questions, please contact makingofthefilm@gmail.com.

Audition Pre-work for Girls!

Below are the three monologues that need to be prepared for the auditions (to be held in January 2010) for the ladies. I have added a short note to explain the mood as well. If you have any further questions, you can contact makingofthefilm@gmail.com for more details. All the best! :)

a) Reminisicing, light, calm, laid back.
My dream? You'd never guess, to look at me. But when I was a little kid? I spent summers on a farm. My Dad's grandparents'. Till I was six. When I was seven my parents divorced, and the summers stopped. My Great-Grands passed away not very long after. I don't remember much about it, really. Except that I was happy. I fed the chickens and rode a pony. And I remember smells: the country air. Sometimes, now, a fresh rain on grass in the park? Takes me right back. Anyway, that's my dream: to own a farm. A small one, where I can grow my own food, and ride a horse. Maybe grow some fancy stuff for gourmet restaurants? Asparagus and herbs and free range chickens. A couple of big old brown-eyed milk cows. I want an old fashioned wood barn-- I love that smell: a wood barn filled with hay and animals. I want plenty of trees, a brook with a pond, some mountains in the distance. I dream about it day and night. I calm myself looking at seed catalogs. Or I sketch out designs for my farm house. I search through the real estate photos, looking for just the right place: far, far away from the city noise, and from the stink. Be best if my nearest neighbor is out of sight. Thing is, I've had enough of people. And I wouldn't be surprised if they've had enough of me.

b) Animated, bubbly
Let me tell you something about Janis Ian. We were best friends in middle school. (makes a face) I know right, it's soooo embarrassing. I don't even...whatever. So then in eighth grade I started going out with my first boyfriend Kyle, who was totally gorgeous but then he moved to Indiana--and Janis was like, weirdly jealous of him. Like if I would blow her off to hang out with Kyle, she'd be like "Why didn't you call me back?!" and I'd be like, "Uh, why are you so obsessed with me?" So then for my birthday party, which was an all girls pool party, I was like, "Janyce I can't invite you because I think you're a lesbian" I mean, I couldn't have a lesbian at my party! There were going to be girls there in their bathing suits! I mean right, she was a lesbian! So then her mom called my mom and started yelling at her and it was so retarded and then she dropped out of school 'cause no one would talk to her and she came back in the fall for high school and her hair was all cut off and she was totally weird and now I guess she's on crack. Oh my God! I love your skirt, where did you get it?

c) Tired, beaten, suppressed emotions
My home life? It's okay. I guess most people would think my family's a happy little family. And well I guess... they are. I act like a part of this happy little family. But on the inside I'm screaming trying to get out. My parents just don't get it. All they do is scream and shout at me yell and yell even louder. It's like their anger comes out on me...(beat) ...this is hard. I've never told anyone about this before. I'm like any other girl. Afraid she's not skinny or pretty enough. So I eat a healthy breakfast, lunch, dinner... but, it's not like it stays in me for very long. My parents don't get it because they don't know. They don't know that after every single meal I eat... my head ends up in the toilet and my finger down my throat. They don't see it because they don't care. Sometimes I think they would have been better off with another son. At least then he wouldn't have some dumb ass eating disorder.

The above monologues are courtesy of:
http://www.stageagent.com/Shows/Monologues/
http://www.actorpoint.com/monologue.html


Shilpa Krishnan
Writer/Director

Audition Pre-work for Guys

Below are the three monologues that need to be prepared for the auditions (to be held in January 2010) for guys. I have added a short note to explain the mood as well. If you have any further questions, you can contact makingofthefilm@gmail.com for more details. All the best! :)

a) Reminisicing, light, calm, laid back.
My dream? You'd never guess, to look at me. But when I was a little kid? I spent summers on a farm. My Dad's grandparents'. Till I was six. When I was seven my parents divorced, and the summers stopped. My Great-Grands passed away not very long after. I don't remember much about it, really. Except that I was happy. I fed the chickens and rode a pony. And I remember smells: the country air. Sometimes, now, a fresh rain on grass in the park? Takes me right back. Anyway, that's my dream: to own a farm. A small one, where I can grow my own food, and ride a horse. Maybe grow some fancy stuff for gourmet restaurants? Asparagus and herbs and free range chickens. A couple of big old brown-eyed milk cows. I want an old fashioned wood barn-- I love that smell: a wood barn filled with hay and animals. I want plenty of trees, a brook with a pond, some mountains in the distance. I dream about it day and night. I calm myself looking at seed catalogs. Or I sketch out designs for my farm house. I search through the real estate photos, looking for just the right place: far, far away from the city noise, and from the stink. Be best if my nearest neighbor is out of sight. Thing is, I've had enough of people. And I wouldn't be surprised if they've had enough of me.

b) Reminisicing but passionate, excited.
Business is definitely business, but just listen for a minute You don't understand this. When I was a boy-eighteen, nineteen---I was already on the road. And there was a question in my mind as to whether selling had a future for me. Because in those days I had a yearning to go to Alaska. And I was almost decided to go, when I met a salesman in the Parker House. His name was Dave Singleman. And he was eighty-four years old, and he'd drummed merchandise in thirty-one states. And old Dave, he'd go up to his room, y'understand, put on his green velvet slippers---I'll never forget---and pick up his phone and call the buyers, and without ever leaving his room, at the age of eighty-four, he made his living. And when I say that, I realized that selling was the greatest career a man could want. 'Cause what could be more satisfying than to be able to go, at the age of eight-four, into twenty of thirty different cities, and pick up a phone, and be remembered and loved and helped by so many different people? Do you know? When he died--- when he died, Hundreds of salesman and buyers were at his funeral. See In those days there was personality in it, Howard. There was respect, and comradeship, and gratitude in it. Today, it's all cut and dried and there's no chance for bringing friendship to bear---or personality. You see what I mean? They just don't know me any more!

c) Strong, angry, passionate and later embarrassed and hesitant.
"Don't 'but - Albert' me, Rose! You are merely woman. I am man! Woman's job is to obey and keep the house clean! And speak only when she is spoke to! And my first command, woman, is for you to get our bags and be down at the station by six-thirty tomorrow morning...when I intend to be there with Conrad! And I further command you to bring whatever legal documents are necessary because I intend on making you Mrs. Albert Peterson by 2400 hours tomorrow! Roger, over, and out!...Rose, did I..did I mention that I love you?"

The above monologues are courtesy of:
http://www.stageagent.com/Shows/Monologues/
http://www.actorpoint.com/monologue.html

Shilpa Krishnan
Writer/Director

Call for cast and crew

Calling for actors, actresses and production crew members. Those interested, contact me before Dec 10th 2009. Requirements as below:

a) Interested parties need to be in Singapore for almost the whole of 2010.
b) No prior experience required but strong commitment and genuine passion are MUSTs.
c) All races welcome but the lead roles are Indian.
d) Indians who are interested in lead roles should be able to converse in Hindi fairly well.
e) No money to be expected. This is an independant no-budget production. However, tons of fun promised!
f) Auditions scheduled for January 2010, Pre-production including rehearsals from Feb - Jun, Shoot from Jul - Sep, Post production for the rest of the year (well, that's the ideal schedule at least).
g) 80% roles are for people in their late 20's or look as if they are in late 20's (but there are a few roles for older people as well).
h) We need an Indian baby for a couple of scenes. So anyone who is a new mom or about to be mom soon can contact us as well.

Separately, sponsors are highly welcome.

Please help spread the word! Thanks! :)

- Shilpa Krishnan, Writer/Director

Making of the blog

I have written a script. For a feature film. OK, for a 1 hour film. Which is a big leap from the 1-6 minute films I have written and made previously. And I want to make it. I have no money nor any contacts with bigwigs but I believe I will get a passionate team and together we will make it happen somehow.

To begin with, I thought a blog would be perfect place to put up updates. And the biggest barrier was I couldn't think of a suitable name, since there is no title for the film yet. Yes, I can write a feature film script but when it comes to giving it a suitable title, am stumped. After a bit of brainstroming, the blog has been christened "makingofthefilm". Not the biggest of eye openers but will serve the purpose of temporarily maintaining the spot until the title of the film is fixed.

Hopefully as the film takes off, I can get the cast and crew members to put up their thoughts here as well. But for the time being, it's just me.

- Shilpa Krishnan, Writer/Director.