RASHMI REKHA DAS
Young filmmaker T Ganesh prefers to experiment with offbeat themes and try out new ideas
Oriya films are no longer just about dancing around trees, with new age films focusing on out-of-the-box themes and directors experimenting with new ideas. The audience is warming up to new age films. Ganeswar Sahoo, popular as T Ganesh, is a down-to-earth director who has not allowed the success of his films, ‘Krishna Govinda’ and ‘The End’, to get on his head. Just like his films, he is a practical and realistic director brimming with innovative ideas.
Hailing from Badamba, T Ganesh moved to the state capital in 2006 after graduation with the dream of becoming an actor. He approached many directors for a role that would suit him, but had to finally settle for the role of a director.
Asked how his journey in tinseltown started, T Ganesh replied: “I used to watch movies since childhood. It was my favourite hobby. But I never thought about it as a profession. After Class X, I decided to make a career in the film industry. I came to Bhubaneswar 11 years ago to prove my mettle in tinseltown against my parents’ wishes. I approached the biggies of silver screen to cast me, but my requests yielded no results, because neither was I a star kid nor was there a godfather in the industry who would guide me. I kept approaching film directors and, in the process, slowly developed a passion for filmmaking. But I had to run from pillar to post to get producers to fund those films in order to showcase my acumen as a filmmaker. I have not done any formal course in acting or filmmaking and initially nobody wanted to take the risk of producing a film I had directed. But I did not give up trying.”
“There are ups and downs in every field and when I started making films nobody had the confidence in me to support me in my endeavour. However, I never felt bad,” he said, adding that “Gajanan Tripathy first asked me to
direct his CD album” after which things started falling in place.
“I have directed around 1000 albums and two of the movies I have made, ‘Krishna Govinda’ and ‘The End’, have really worked well and made me popular,” the director said.
The young director was overjoyed when his parents came to watch the first show of his first movie ‘Krishna Govinda’. “My parents’, especially my father’s, happiness knew no bounds when he watched my first movie. He was crying when he saw me among noted artistes, directors and producers of the film industry. It was a moment I have captured in my heart’s camera forever,” the director said.
On work front, T Ganesh is coming up with his third movie ‘Raj’ featuring Adyasha and Arpan which will hit theatres July 3. Besides, his next project is ‘Love Is Life’, which casts veterans Manoj Mishra, Illu Banerjee, Pradyumna Lenka and Saroj Das, apart from Adyasha and Vicky in the lead roles. The shooting of the movie will start mid-July. The movie ‘Mana Rahila To Pakhare’ starring noted actress Mahasweta Ray is ready for post-production and its editing too is underway.
Asked if he deliberately chose only newcomers for his films, T Ganesh said: “There are many budding and talented actors in the industry who do not get the chance to showcase their mettle, mainly because they don’t have a godfather in the industry. I faced a similar situation when I was trying my luck in the industry. That’s why I decided to help budding actors gain recognition and I have tried to motivate youths to make films and try out new ideas,” he said.