MUMBAI: The Day 2 of The Content Hub 2020 had an interesting session on producing for television by Nivedita Basu. The audiences witnessed the independent producer and creative director speak on her journey in Balaji Telefilms to becoming an independent producer and creative director.
Basu joined Balaji Telefilms in 2000 as a deputy creative director and worked on many TV serials with Ekta Kapoor and worn many hats under her mentorship. Basu quit Balaji Telefilms in 2009 and she started her own production house 'House of Originals'.
Basu says, "After 15 years, it's natural to go independent. I was very excited about making Meri Awaaz Hi Pehchaan Hai and we wanted to make a show that stands out."
She further adds, "There are lots of obstacles in becoming an independent producer and creator. I always wear a creative hat more than the producer's. Even though I didn't make profit out of my first show but I am still proud of it. Luckily, after Meri Awaaz… I got the second show and that did commercially well and gave me the confidence as a producer."
Basu also shared her experience of working with Balaji Telefilms. She says, “The advantage of Balaji Telefilms is that we have Ektaa Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor there. In Balaji I was handling nine shows at a time and it was not that difficult as I had Ekta as guru.”
Basu believes today's writers are struggling between writing and producing. She says, “Right now, television is not the only thing for writers or creative people. Thanks to digital and OTT, people are making what they want to make. Going ahead, I will be producing content for OTT platform.”
