Interview Shlok Sharma
Bombay Mirror, a short film made four years ago by Shlok Sharma, has gone viral on social-media. The film tells the story of a Hindu barber and a Muslim customer and takes a dig at fanaticism. Rohit Parmar gets talking to Shlok to talk about his short film
What was the inspiration behind Bombay Mirror?
The same thing that inspires any other film. My main concern was to make sure that I did not end up hurting the sentiments of any belief system. I wanted to tell a simple story in three minutes, something that my audience would remember in spite of the short duration of the film.
It was made four years ago, but was never released — what was the reason for this? Also, what has the response been like so far?
It was made almost four years ago under a campaign by UTV and Aircel. I have no idea why it was never released. The response has been overwhelming. I have received messages from across the globe, with people even requesting for a subtitled version of the film. People have also sent me several incidents and episodes that they have experienced personally. As a filmmaker, I think this is a huge compliment.
Your next film is titled Haramkhor. How did you come up with the title?
The movie is essentially a love story and stars Nawazuddin Siddiqui. It’s about wretched souls who are trapped in their circumstances, and end up paying the price for their self-inflicted choices. At this stage, this is as much as I can disclose, since it is in the final stages of post-production. As far as the choice of the title goes, when you watch the film, you will understand.
You have also assisted Anurag Kashyap on several films. What’s one important thing you learnt from him?
I learnt that if you want to become a good film maker, you have to let go of your insecurities, because filmmaking is all about teamwork.
What’s next for you? Are you working on something new?
I have a couple of scripts that are currently in the pipeline. I will zero in on one soon.