Lalit Mohan in Conversation with spamdomain on IPK

'..yes its been long, but the tremendous response we got for Part-1, we thought why not bring in Part-2 on New Year to make the year more special'..So as promised here is Part 2 of Lalit Mohan in conversation with spamdomain on IPK and more!!!

17) IPK was considered as epic even when it was on air and something of that stature started loosing its magic'what happened there?

I really don't want to talk about it. Bohat kuch hua tha jo ab bata ke koi faida nahi'.so no comments.

18) After directing IPK during its initial months a phase popularly termed as "The Golden Period of IPK", you took a break, and then came back after a period of 6 months. Why the break and what brought you back to the series again.

After the initial few months I sensed that something was wrong with IPK's storyline, it was different from what was told to me. After November I was not at all happy with the way the story was moving and I also felt that I was not using my caliber properly, so I left. I got some good offers and the opportunity to do something different. (Suvreen Guggal, Humse Hai Life, Arjun and Phir Subah Hogi)'.Then one day Gul called me and asked "Why don't you join us? RC (Rakesh Chadda) and Nissar too called up and asked me to come back to the show. They told me "Whatever you want we'll provide you don't worry. Please come back". That got me thinking about joining back, then bohat saare logo ne like the actors, my creatives, production team everybody requested me to join IPK , and I too missed being a part of the show, so mujhe laga; Why Not?

Even my mother was like "Why you are not directing that show (Read IPK)?" Aisa lag raha tha ki some higher power'.some cosmic power was playing to get me back, to be a part of my most favorite show. I quit all 4 shows I was doing and joined IPK again. It was a wonderful feeling to get back.

19) Television is said to be very demanding. How do you cope with the pressure of meeting endless deadlines?

I work a lot, be it on my scripts or my characters. I tell my technicians how I want to go about a scene and what things are to be taken care of. Same goes for my actors too; I tell them that this is what I want in a particular reaction; this is how the performance should go etc. In short I do my homework so that there is no confusion on the set.

Other than that I am into books, and also an avid world cinema lover. These things help me execute scenes crisply, gauge various emotions and bring them before the audience etc. It's like a learning process, all these factors help me a lot in pursuing my vision as a director. When I am on the sets with my unit all ready to roll, I know exactly what I want and what I don't. I don't change the performances; I don't change the set-up or the shot unless there is a problem. Like if the channel is very particular that they want the sequence in a certain way then I am required to do accordingly and I do. But apart from that I get the liberty to do a scene as per my vision. Meeting deadlines are difficult and at times it ruins your work too. Plus unavailability of actors at times, sending the telecast way before time etc makes it all the more difficult, aapka vision destroy ho jaata hai, but you are left with no other option because you have to do it anyway and have to give it your best every time.

20) As a director, when directing a particular sequence/track what are the factors you keep in mind and never compromise in while shooting ?

Nahi yaar, it does not work that way. Sometimes you feel that compromise is the only thing that is constant here. I have been working as an independent director for the past 5 years and the biggest drawback I experience is that I get to use only 20% of my caliber. This goes for all my shows including IPKKND. What I think, the idea that I envision was never there in the end product. It was just 20%-25% of my actual vision, my caliber as a director. But if the audience, my producers, the writers, the channel are happy with that 20-25% its a good thing, but as a director for me it is frustrating to acknowledge that I couldn't execute what I actually wanted. I always wish that at least once the audience should see 100% of Lalit Mohan.

'.so be precise you are asked to compromise alot?

See I can't ask for a set up like Devdas, for accessories/jewellary like that in Devdas'I cannot ask for an Aishwarya Rai or a Madhuri Dixit'..I have to work and make things work with the set-up I am given, with the actors that have been casted, within the deadlines. I have to match my intelligence with their intelligence'. with their caliber. If I am to make a movie of the stature of "The Prestige" into a TV Series it is practically impossible thing to do because yahan pe aisi set-up nahi hai and so I can never execute it the way they did, haan maybe 20% of it but not more.

'so you are saying that you are asked to limit yourself a lot?

I feel claustrophobic in Tellywood.

21) Well that line did say a lot'..so getting back to our session'.Do you adhere to the script or do you try to go beyond it?

No! I don't adhere solely to the script. Till date any scene/sequence which bears the signature of Lalit Mohan, is only because it's done beyond the script. If I am doing a sequence and I really like that particular sequence then I give my 100% to it and I don't think twice before executing it. Those are the sequences that are easily identified by the audience as LM's. They can differentiate my work from that of another director. Plus sometimes it becomes very essential to take things beyond the script nahi toh people will start losing interest in the show and before you know the show will cease to exist.

22) Today when you look back do you feel that things could have been better?

Absolutely! There were a lot of things that could and should have been avoided, lot of things that could have been showcased in a better fashion. So yes things could have been done in a much better way.

23) From a Viewers point of view IPK was all about Arnav and Khushi portrayed by Barun and Sanaya and nobody was ready to accept Khushi with another person/character. Your Comments?

Hmmm''See True Love does not happen just once, many a times people are blessed to find true love again, no matter what the circumstances are/were they learn to fall in love again.

Barun is not the first person to leave a show Mihir ka role in Kyunki Saas'was initially done by Amar Upadhay and then it went to Ronit Roy. Pehle sab iske khilaaf the but the show went on for another 5-6 years and is still considered to be one of the best series on Indian Television. These things happen quite often in this industry and that's the reason why we decided to go ahead with the show even after Barun's exit. We shot for Arnav's climax sequence where Arnav decides to give up his life in order to save Khushi (Inspired from Hollywood Movie "If Only") and the track henceforth but unfortunately things did not go as per plan. I think the audience became a bit too biased. Had they given the show another chance things would have been different today and you never know probably they may have liked it too.

24) You directed Barun Sobti and Sanaya Irani in IPK who have gone onto become two of the biggest names on TV. Do you think that somewhere down the line the actors became superior than the show, which then paved way for the show to it's shutdown?

That's a very dicey question (Laughs)'. Dekho Barun ki koi galathi nahi hai. Barun had made it very clear from day one ki he would be working only for 1 Year. His contract ended on June 2012, then he willingly extended it upto September because the show was doing well. He was planning to leave since then but then we asked him to stay back for some more time and that's how he stayed back till November.

Barun used to come to me and tell "Sir is mein meri kya ghalati hai, maine toh pehle hi bata diya tha" and the truth is he did. Everybody wants to move ahead in life, Barun too wanted the same and he had informed us about it long back, toh uski ghalati kaise hui? See, hypothetically speaking agar main Barun ki jagah hota doing IPK and I got a Yash Raj Offer obviously I would go for it, because everybody wants to expand, to grow in this profession. Barun was honest about what he wants since day one, to himself and to us.

Having said that yeh bhi sach hai ki agar Barun jaane ka decision nahi leta toh the show would still be on. But even when Barun decided to quit the show and informed us about it we respected his decision and decided to continue with the show'We were sad that Barun was leaving but we decided to make this work. Is mein sabse bada haath Sanaya ka tha, she was always "Nahi hum aur mehnat karenge, we will make the show work'." aur usne kiya bhi. She shot for the track we were planning to air post Barun's exit. She was always positive about IPK even in testing times and used to motivate everybody else. I salute that spirit of hers but ab yeh sab bolke kya faida??

25) What was your reaction when you heard that IPK was going to get axed?

I don't think that I can ever express this in words. The news of the show being axed came as a huge shocker for me as well as my team. We just went numb. The last few days on the sets were a very hard time for all of us. Everybody was trying hard to hold back their tears, to be all brave and not giving in, but andhar hi andhar sab ro rahe the. It was a very hard time.

26) Many a times popular shows tend to make a come back with a season 2, will IPK fall into that category?

Yes, there are many shows that come back with a season 2 but here it is not practical. It's not impossible but it sure is difficult. Emotionally we all want to get back together, come up with a new show or a season 2 but these things take time. There are a lot of things that needs to be looked into with the making of a TV Series. We need to come up with a theme, write a story, develop the characters, channel approval and many other things. Sirf story develop karne mein 4-5 mahine lagte hai and by then everybody would have moved on, committed to newer projects. Agar karna hai toh aaj hi (Read: Immediately) announce karna padega, to the entire team ki we are planning on making a new show/season 2 so that nobody commits to another project. But jaisa ki maine kaha these things take time plus you never know who if all are interested in being a part of the same team/project.

27) Lastly are you satisfied with the way the show has shaped up and wrapped up?

Nahi Yaar'I am satisfied with the way the show took off, but as I mentioned earlier, things could have gone much better. So I guess the answer would be a NO.

'.But if there is a season 2 you'd be a part of it?

Definitely!!! I don't see a reason to not be a part of it. If IPK season two is up I would love to direct it and would like to try and do things in a better way.

Well that completes PART 2 of the Interview but stay tuned as we bring you an exclusive one shot on hat the ace director has to say about how he got Barun and Sanaya to play Arnav Singn Raizada and Khushi Kumari Gupta two of the most Iconic characters on TV.

Yes there is more!!! Look out for this space'..

Author: Vijitha Rajan
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