First judge yourself! Are you fit to be a part of this industry? - Casting Director, Raj Pandey

It is very difficult to find someone who is not only honest, aggressive and forthright concerning to his work ethics but also has the want to contribute more for the benefit of the industry. Raj Pandey is one of those men who started his journey from Lucknow and has now stabilized himself well in the city of dreams, as a Casting Director.

In conversation with the young man, let us find out a little more about his world!

No. I started my career as an Associate Director in Mumbai but soon I had to visit my hometown due to some priorities. I worked in Lucknow as a Director for a lot of crime based and other fiction shows produced on ETV. When I came back to Mumbai in 2013, I looked for growth but the hierarchy had moved on. This is when my friend shifted my focus to casting.   

I joined as an Associate Casting Director with Rashmi Sharma Productions and locked actors for popular serials like Swaragini and Sasural Simar Ka and I am currently associated with SOL Productions where I am handling the casting for Thapki...Pyaar Ki. I would like to mention here that I am very blessed to have found people who have guided, supported me and showed me the path to success specially, Ved Raj Shrivastava, Ankur Seth and my close friends Dheeraj and Sapna!

Casting the right faces is the most crucial part of my job. This job might seem fun, interesting and easy but creativity plays a major role here.

(Laughs) There are no work timings. We work with passion and personal life needs to be kept on a back seat in this profession.

Well, that comes handy with some actors. But this is when we inform them about what all we can offer frankly. We try our best to convince them!

I am in process of launching an application which will give an easy access to all our industry cameramen, Directors, producers, actors etc...to switch jobs and fulfil requirements by helping each other. The application will incorporate contact details and other data of all the people involved in this field.

Yes. I believe that for the industry to progress this could be a contributing factor. I am hopeful it will work for the benefit of all when it launches.

First judge yourself if you are fit to be a part of this industry. Once you are positive, make sure you put in your heart and soul in your work and stay convinced that you are going to succeed the hard way. I see a lot of aspirants who get fed up in 6 months and search for career alternatives. 

Shachi Tapiawala Rathod