'An artist can never be satisfied' - Prasoon Joshi

The ad guru of India, Prasoon Joshi is the man behind those uplifting words of Rang De Basanti and the romantic shers of Fanaa. He is the latest sensation in bollywood industry and every director prefers to have him as the lyricist for their songs. The magic of his pen has reached the masses and has got him this immense popularity. Trying something different from the role of a writer, Prasoon is now judging a reality show in NDTV Imagine, “Idea Dhoom Macha De”. We caught up with him to know more on his new venture and his future plans.

How has your journey been till now in the show?
The experience in the show has been quite refreshing. We have all had a good time being a part of this show. This is a show where we aren’t looking for any talent, we have the best of every genre here, who’ve had their share of fame and achievements, and who are here for pure entertainment.

What are the criteria you look at, while judging the contestants?
For me, I see how these singers perform in genres different from theirs. It’s not like other shows where the added pressure of making or breaking someone’s career comes in, it’s a show were we choose the best performer, not a singer, not a musician, but a person who can perform the best in front of a live audience. See, there are people who can be the best singers, when they’re alone or in front of just one or two people. But when put in front of a larger crowd, everyone tends to get cautious. So here the test is to go see how one can face up to these challenges.

Your favorite contestant?

It’s going to be unfair to comment on these contestants because they are already established. Here, I’m not looking at choosing the best contestant, I go by each performance that they do.

Being a writer, what do you exactly look for in a performance?

I am a writer, Shankar is a signer and a composer, and Sharmilaji has been a renowned actress for decades, but end of the day we are artists. We all fall in the same line of being artists. So as an artist, the singer who strikes the right chords, is a good performer.

What was your take on the show when you were first offered the judges' chair?

I was a little reluctant at first. But then, when I was told that I only had to shoot on Saturday and Sundays, I opted for it.

After being a victorious artist making your mark in various lives, do you believe you’re creatively satisfied?

An artist can never be satisfied. Rather, I should add in that a  human can never be satisfied. You want something, you get it, but you still want more. Whenever a person is creative, he is termed as an artist, and whatever an artist does, he falls into a category where nothing’s high, and nothing’s low, but it’s the human nature that judges the levels of creativity.

Are there some areas that you would yet like to cover?

Yes, absolutely. I feel that there is lot more out there that I need to go out and get. I feel like writing another book, and want to explore a lot more elements of life, some that I know of, and some that are still unknown to me.

Reporter: Hiral Anju Bhatt
Author: Anu.Rad