Well, I am I confess a Corporate Film Maker by profession and passion. And I excel at getting great expressions, good performances and crisp enough bytes from my clients. As a rule I dislike using models to portray professional roles…sexy girls dressed up like nurses, studs in factory helmets and so on…are not my kind of work. I prefer taking the real and getting them to act. It makes my films more authentic and more compelling.

But when I need to make ad films I have to change my perspective. Of course it helps that I’ve worked on some of the finest campaigns in the country, some of the finest audio visuals…worked with absolutely the top models. The top crew. And learnt to look for and find that extra spark that makes a film stand out.

A few docu-dramas I have had to produce also led me to understand that while the look of the model was important, my rapport with her…or even with him…was much more important. Perhaps this is because I have always believed that my film making has to be fun, fun, more fun and perhaps some money (in that order). And my communication has to be effective…because that’s what I sell myself as…an effective communicator.

My shoots have to be fun. For everyone involved. After all, we tend to spend at least a week together on shoot and many days thereafter on post. So from Anna Bredmeyer to Nandini Sen to Radha Sheth to a few models and actresses in Madras and Bangalore to actresses like Sonali Bhendre, Anu Kottur, Anupama Verma, Sherie Mehroomji, Dia Mirza and a host of others I’ve been friends first, film maker second and am proud that most of the girls and boys who have worked with me over the years have remained friends or at least fond acquaintances. Not to say that I haven’t had the odd misunderstanding or two, but they were almost always client based conflicts and a function of immaturity…mine, or the models.

Very early in my professional life, because I was almost always the script writer and the film maker, my scripts would often take shape around a character. My early days work with Alisha Chenai always reminds me of what a cheerful and smiley girl she was as a friend and how that helped me mould her into a toothy model for Forhan’s. Chabi Dhariwal was another such. I have believed that I managed her to smile more warmly than others simply because there was a connect.

A few months ago I met this girl  who impressed me so much with her yoga skills online that I created a character exclusively for her in a play that we put up recently.

So yes. The name of my company spells out my approach to my profession. Heartworks.

I work from the heart. My teams are of long standing. My models, co workers and vendors have more often than not become personal friends. And family.

Now I am at that wonderful stage again. Looking around for a girl who can be my muse. A girl with spark, spunk and a unique blend of sauce and sensuousness. I have a film or two in mind. And I am sure I will meet this girl soon.

In the meanwhile I keep writing half way scripts. And using imaginary casts to fill in the blank that I mistakenly call my mind.