Sakshi Post Exclusive Interview With Film Director Chintan Sarda

New-age film director Chintan Sarda shares his journey into filmmaking after quitting a secure banking career in London, coming to Mumbai, and assisting Bollywood directors...to his latest short film The Broken Table, in an exclusive interview with P Charitha on Sakshi Post.

The Broken Table featuring veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah and Rasika Dugal is based on Alzheimer’s disease and was released on February 15 this year.

SP: From investment banking in London to content acquisition and short films, how did you foray into filmmaking?

Chintan Sarda: I have been interested in performing arts from an early age. I used to act, write and direct plays for my school but I never considered it as a career option back then. I did not know anyone in the industry so had absolutely no idea how I could make a living out of it or even enter the industry. I started doing well in Finance subjects in college. I was even the Finance HOD for our college festival ‘Drishti’ at Narsee Monjee College. So it seemed like the right thing to do to work in a field of my aptitude. So post-college I worked with companies like Edelweiss and JP Morgan. My last job was in London with UBS. I eventually understood that aptitude and interest can be two different things. You could be good at something but may not like it. I had no idea how I would be in filmmaking but I knew I would definitely enjoy sculpting my own world and characters over crunching numbers and making financial models. So I came back from London and started working as an Assistant Director on films.

During the pandemic, I worked as head of content acquisition for the Indian entity of a UK-based platform, and post that I worked as a creative producer with a boutique production house backed by Motilal Oswal. Now, I am focussing on writing and directing. I am primarily a director, who has taught himself to write.   

SP: You have worked with several acclaimed directors in Bollywood, how was the experience working with them and the learnings?

Chintan Sarda: I got to assist filmmakers like Farhan Akhtar, Abhishek Sharma, and Mohit Suri on several films and learnt a lot through this experience. A few of the films that I worked on are ‘Don 2’, ‘Tere Bin Laden: Dead or alive’ and ‘The Shaukeens’. Each director had his own style and conviction. I wish it was easy to articulate what exactly the learnings were from those years of assisting them but it has added a lot of value to me and I am really grateful for that training in my formative years.

SP: After a film about a gangster, your new short film The Broken Table is all about senior citizens and Alzheimer's…, how do you pick your stories? Tell us more about The Broken Table...

Chintan Sarda: I have to personally connect to the story, character, and their conflict. This is extremely important. For anything to be universal, it has to be personal first. I don’t think there is a specific genre that I am trying to focus on. I never liked horror but a web show was offered to me and I started watching horror and now I really enjoy it. So I am going to keep trying to find my voice in everything I explore.

The film ‘The Broken Table’ unfolds over one turbulent day, where a caregiver Deepti (played by Rasika Dugal), deals with the eccentricity of an Alzheimer’s patient Giri (played by Naseeruddin Shah), along with her own life’s dilemma. The day is made bizarre by the fact that Giri keeps calling for his wife, who Deepti finds out died a year back.
 
Alzheimer’s is affecting several people today and it becomes extremely challenging for family members to see their loved one go through a gradual decline daily. With our research and a senior psychology consultant like Havovi Hyderabadwalla on board, we have tried to portray the condition realistically and are hoping to create some awareness through it. 

SP: What was it like directing a National Award-winning senior actor like Naseeruddin Shah?

Chintan Sarda: It was an absolute pleasure working with a legend like Naseer saab. He was one of the reasons behind my wanting to be a filmmaker when I was growing up. To get to direct him was a bucket list item. He plays the part of Giri, who suffers from Alzheimer’s. Even at 70, Giri is madly in love with his wife. He keeps forgetting that he has had to stop his legal practice because of his condition. He keeps attempting to leave the house multiple times a day to go to his imaginary court hearings and meetings.
 
We actually worked on it together for an extended period as the shoot kept getting pushed due to various reasons. We met over more than a year and prepped for it like a play. Just like how Naseer saab wanted. We had a lot of disagreements too. Once even a stalemate but eventually we reached a place where everyone was convinced about the way forward. 

SP: What about Rasika Dugal?

Chintan Sarda: Rasika plays the part of Deepti, who is pursuing a correspondence course in Psychology and is married to a man who she describes as good, but a bit too practical and controlling at times. Deepti spends a day with Giri as his caregiver. This interplay ends up being a roller coaster ride that fundamentally questions Deepti’s beliefs. 
 
Rasika is a really accomplished actor and it was really fulfilling to collaborate with her. I had met her initially during a film festival where we shared a table to quickly finish lunch and catch the next film and then we met again when we were both promoting our previous short films together at a panel discussion with Anupama Chopra for NDTV a few years back. I really liked her work in films like ‘Qissa’ and we discussed the possibility of working together at some point. When I was developing ‘The Broken table’, I approached her and she was onboard immediately. In fact, she helped me get through Naseer saab to pitch the script of the short film. 

SP: Your take on short films, OTT, full-length feature films

Chintan Sarda: I think the different formats have different grammar, which is constantly evolving based on the audience’s taste. I have been fortunate enough to work on all 3 formats. What I love about directing short films is complete autonomy in the creative voice. Since the stakes are lower, you can make what you really want to make. I have worked in the writer's room for web shows and it is amazing to be part of a writing team that creates a really long format story – almost as long as four feature films across a period of months and years sometimes. I have worked as a Second unit director on web shows too but the commitment there is lesser depending on the number of shooting days. Feature films, especially getting a theatrical release is an aspiration most filmmakers start with and so did I. I have worked as an Assistant Director on feature films so far and I hope to direct one someday.   

SP: Do you watch South Indian movies, any favorites?

Chintan Sarda: I love South Indian movies. I am a huge fan of Fahadh Faasil and Vijay Sethupathi. I also really admire the work of Mani Ratnam, Thiagarajan Kumararaja, Vetrimaaran, and Anjali Menon.

SP: It’s all about Pan India movies now, anybody that you would like to work with from down South?

Chintan Sarda: There are so many actors I would love to collaborate with from down South. Fahadh Faasil and Vijay Sethupathi definitely top the list. I would love to work with Dhanush, Anna Ben, Dulquer Salmaan, and Parvathy Thiruvothu.  

SP: What are your upcoming projects?

Chintan Sarda: I have written three different web shows for some of the biggest OTT platforms and well-known production houses. One is a supernatural sci-fi thriller. Another is a crime heist and a recent one is a comic satire in the space of fantasy. All of these are under production so I am not at liberty to talk about them till the platform/producer officially announces it. I also work as a Second unit director on web shows and have recently worked on a web show featuring Randeep Hooda.

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