TOI Article on Sushant

Sushant Singh Rajput, who shot to fame as Manav of Pavitra Rishta on the small screen, has decided to quit acting.

But unlike other TV actors, he isn't looking at a career in Bollywood. "Pavitra Rishta will be my last TV show. I want to be a director and have decided to direct my three short films simultaneously." And these films, says Sushant, are "all for national and international film festivals.

While many small-screen stars dream of entering Bollywood to give their acting careers a boost, Sushant has planned it differently. "Getting into Bollywood was never my dream. I want both my acting and directing careers to run parallel to each other ' one day I want to make films for myself," laughs Sushant.

But why is he turning to direction? "I want to understand and explore the concept of direction. While doing theatre with Nadira Babbar and Barry John, I also assisted Mohit Suri for Raaz: The Mystery Continues. I was fascinated and realised I enjoy direction more than acting," says Sushant.

However, he won't get behind the camera without learning the ropes first. "I plan to go to the US sometime next year to pursue a course in film-making at UCLA and at the New York Film Academy. In fact, I got a call from the New York Film Academy last year, but I was approached for Pavitra Rishta at the time. There was no way I could have said no (to the show) then, but now I have made up my mind to go ahead," shares Sushant. And on his return, Sushant will take up assignments for direction and not acting.

The subjects of Sushant's short films are varied, he reveals. "The first one is a dark love story titled Subway, and the second one is adapted from a novel by Stephen King and is still untitled. The third film titled Ignored Decibels is based on schizophrenia. It's a delicate subject and has been explored in many Bollywood films. But all of them send out the message that such patients are mentally retarded, which is not true. I'm researching the subject and meeting doctors to project the illness correctly.

Sushant will not only direct the three films, but also act in them. He has also written the stories and screenplays of Subway and Ignored Decibels. "All the films are in the pre-production stage and will go on the floors sometime next month. I intend to wind them all up within two months," says a confident Sushant. And will he approach Ekta Kapoor to support his projects in future? "I share a good rapport with Ektaji. I might meet her with my scripts once I come back from the US," Sushant signs off.