Life on a filmmaker – part 1.

Meeting and observing interesting folks sometimes makes one want to do a story on them. One observes there subjects for a while, chats and hangs out with them for a few days to get a perspective and routine into their life.

Slowly a story starts to appear, (I would suggest this is the time when one should suggest to there subject that they are considering there subject for an potential movie)

Along the way subjects can and will fall sic or have engagements, all of a sudden the subject might be flying to far off places for treatment, meeting, throwing all thought and preparation into a mess, time to make an herculean effort to get focus back to work on hand, deal with disappointment of the interruption and if opportunity presents follow the subject to where they have disappeared to, to get some B roll and get another look at the subject.

Or to start on a parallel project while keeping this project in mind, (it also makes one realize how attached were they to there subject )   always an good idea to carry a small camera and keep shooting reference pictures and videos, ( sometimes could make it to the final cut as B roll too) 

Hope and looking at the bright things in life keeps one going, developing project after projects.

Headed to shoot the maharaja of Saraikela, Raja PRAPAT SINGH DEO

We started out in the morning, not too early after all our contact was the Raja of saraikella, and he was also one of our principal participants at our shoot.

icking up my assistant, we were on our way, we stopped to do some B-roll along the way meeting and making friends with a bunch of country folks, who I promised to get Pictures too at some point in life.  (We are pretty good with this and have a lot of good will with the locals in many part of the country)

Saraikella is a pretty country side, with wonderful people, who are so innocent and willing to share themselves it is hard to say no, we did end up making some new friends in the form of kids at a village, called – Mani, more pictures to be shared

Well the lovely sites of the country kept us going and we were at the palace by 9, which was our scheduled time.

AN brilliant interview followed and we got an dancer to take us along, show us places of interests around the small town of SAraikella, and we ended up by going to an village where there lived 3 dancers and 2 drummers, we did an impromptu session with the dancer and the drummer, all in all good pitch material for another documentary, would love to share with all in 3 weeks time, after the pitch is complete, right now, the edit is done and we are waiting for the VO to get down ;)

spam from Vodaphone - india

FLOWERS FOR PEACE AND TO CONTROL ANGER TOWARDS ALL SPAMMERS


These are a list of numbes that I got spammed by today

408969162 - vph- 1032 HRS

408969098 - v ph 0914 HRS

408969160 - v ph 1250 HRS

408966000 - v ph 1331 HRS

408969125 - v ph 1336 HRS

408969149 - v ph 1348 HRS

408969149 - v ph 1402 HRS

408969169 - v ph 1520 HRS

408969036 - v ph 1620 HRS

at an average there are 4 calls a day from Vodaphone selling me services .

these are over and above 6 sms's that come everyday , SELLING ME MORE OFFERS AND YOU WONDER WHY TRAI is trying to penalise them .


these  numbers  from 3rd july

408969008 - 0916 - vodaph

408969178 - 0951 - vodaph

408969065 1533 -voda

408969065 1616 -voda

Oh ya , and these numbers are from :  30th JUne

408969004 - june 30th  1139 am 408969176- 6/30- 1327 408969057 -630-1452 408969018 630- 1416

any idea how to get them to shut up ?

Reaching for the Moon

29th JUne, at karandi , there was the head of tribal welfare center, Urmila Ekka who was quiet keen to get a copy of all images that I might have created at the HUL divas celebration, while claiming she was worried about the rights of the artists and was keen that the artist should be given a royalty for any use of the image.   Interesting fact - It makes me Presume that the TATA’S are paying royalty for every image they use in there publication.

That could be a fact that I would be hard pressed to believe, based on my personal interactions, but then maybe they do pay, just that the people who are featured did not know that.  Time for all the Localities and any one associated with that Tatas to look and check if there image has been used, According to the Head of TRSDS they pay for use of your image.  So there is a check waiting for you.

Tata Docomo -  I have received 2 sms as bill reminder today ,( 4 total )     2 reminder sms yesterday that bill is due on 14th .

Large Moon

The Moon they said will be closest to the earth , and we did photograph the moon ,    the birds too were there to check it out with us

    while making his house 

There are only Poor People by choice, and whats Poor really

This man looks forward to FREE 40 KG of rice a month, of which he plans to sell 20, and keep the rest for his consumption, He will get it as long as he is alive.
He earns Rs 400 a day working as a labor, he works 3 days in a week and then is happy to drink till he runs out of money, and will come back to work again.   He does not care that his contractor is inconvenienced when he just disappears from work.

Another man is a  driver and drives a commercial 3 wheeler rickshaw, earns Rs 100 / trip, makes on a average, 14 trips a day, That’s Rs 1400 a day, His employer says he works 2- 3 days at a time and then refuses to come to work for a week. Spends his day drinking till he runs out of money, in fact (according to his employer)

This guy gloatingly tells his friends his Boss comes home to beg him to come to work.       

This is the story all over India; in the coming years it is only going to get worse. Giving out free handouts will come back to bite the hand that gives callously.     BUT   what a great way to live by these simple folks.   which lifestyle do u prefer ?

the Failing Tata's, and the incorrect projections about the private sector

The failed private sector Corporates:

No matter how big you are, once you have unlimited money, it will be downhill as power goes to help.

Take the cars of Tata Docomo, the Tata name use to generate trust and one presumed they would do the right thing, one would get good customer service. After all they are in private sector where customer is the king.

But then like all companies, in an attempt to make a few bucks more outsourcing was or low quality hire is the name of the game.

The TATA gallery says, in spite of having my pan number, which is unique only to me?

In spite of having my driving license number, which is unique to me?

They claim if I do not have my phone number they cant locate my record.  And thus can't accept payment.

 Does that sound like an excuse to not work, or worse, OUTDATED software, which has minimum capability to locate data of a customer?

Shame on you TATA GROUP.  Sorry Mr Ratan Tata, with your departure the company is on fast track to who knows where?