By N. Lothungbeni Humtsoe
New Delhi, Dec 20 (IANSlife): Salil Jamdar who recently made his OTT debut with his series 'Saala Salil' speaks to IANSlife about the new mini-series. The 4 episode series, on Disney Plus Hotstar, has been written and directed by Salil. It revolves around the concept of a guy dealing with a 'Multiple Personality Order' who's known for being unrelatable while being challenged by his roommate to find a suitable date.
Read Excerpts:
Tell us about 'Saala Salil'? How did you come up with the name and concept?
Salil Jamdar: The idea of making a show with me playing a fictional version of myself had been mulling in my brain for some time. The thing that attracted me the most to this idea was the fact that I could put forth my thoughts and ideas about life and absolutely anything in general through this character as he is me i.e Salil, and at the same time get away with many things that I do on screen as it would after all be a fictional version of myself, which means he is not really me!
The idea of not being judged for what one does on screen is a very liberating feeling for an actor. This contradiction of being Salil but still not being Salil felt like a fascinating space to be in. I couldn't help but wonder what this guy would be like in front of women and that is how came the idea of an abnormal loner going on multiple first dates. The name ‘Saala Salil' came up in a random conversation with a director friend of mine Arbaaz Shroff, with whom I was discussing the possibility of a show about myself. It just sounded right!
What kind of challenges did you face while making this series?
Salil Jamdar: The biggest challenge in front of me was to pull off entire episodes with just two people having a conversation sitting in one place. I did not have the liberty to change locations to make things interesting. Nor did I have the freedom of having a variety of fancy shots. It was all about the script and the performances of the actors. To make my task more difficult, I decided against the use of typical gimmicky sound effects that are common in today's funny videos. There isn't even any background score playing at any point to support a particular emotion. Except when Saala Salil randomly breaks into a song. That is when music takes over completely.
You have written and directed it as well, how was your experience? What did you enjoy more acting or directing?
Salil Jamdar: Acting being my primary craft, I will always be biased towards it! Followed by singing, followed by writing/direction. I was fortunate enough to learn all the aspects of film making at film school. It is indeed tough to act and direct simultaneously because as an actor, I have to completely focus on myself whereas as a director, I have focus not just on myself, not just on the other actor's performance, but also the framing, lighting, emotion, story flow etc. The funny thing is as an actor you always look at the director to check if it went okay. But here after a take, I would be confused as to whom to seek validation from. Though I must say that I am fortunate enough to have a talented crew. So I always have trusted people to fall back on for feedback when it comes to my own performance.
The series has been receiving a great response from the audience, how do you feel about it?
Salil Jamdar: I was a bit wary about how the audience would receive a series like this coming from me, being very different from everything that I have done up until now. The slow, simple, silent treatment with no extravagant background music or sfx meant that things had to be top notch. So when I read the super positive comments it genuinely feels great, not just because they accepted something new from me, but also because this is the direction in which I want to take my art now. The next thing that I do will be on an even bigger scale and far more ambitious I promise.
Do you think content creators making acting debuts will be a big trend in 2022?
Salil Jamdar: I am actually an actor-filmmaker who happened to choose content creation to showcase his art since he was an outsider and had no direct entry into the industry. By chance it caught on, and became known as a content creator. But the truth is that this was always a means to do what I always wanted to do, and ‘Saala Salil' is a step in that direction. In one of my earlier videos I had said very emphatically ‘Bollywood nahi Internet se Khudki launch rachaunga'. Sounds funny now but you get what I mean! As far as the question goes though, yes that too is going to start happening. Many of my female co-actors are content creators foraying into acting. Now who can actually make that jump and who can't, is purely a question of talent.
Some memorable anecdotes from the time you were shooting 'Saala Salil'?
Salil Jamdar: The most memorable is undoubtedly the costume I wore in Saala Salil Episode 1. We were taking a stroll down the Lokhandwala lane in Andheri, something that I hadn't done for a while. We happened to pass by this store with this outrageously audacious golden star studded suit on a mannequin. We literally stopped and gawked at it for a bit, until it struck us that this could be a great costume for a guy who wants to turn off the girl he is going on a date with! Even on set, the costume was making all sorts of sounds as I moved, causing concern that may will hamper with the dialogues being recorded. But the sounds it made every time I moved were so awkwardly funny that we kept them in the final cut.
Another very exciting thing about this series has been the music: The Saala Salil Album. Every episode has these short musical performances by 'Saala Salil', each very different from the other. The first episode has Jazz, the second Rock n Roll, the third Hip-hop, the fourth Reggae and so on, depending on the kind of personality Saala Salil decides to bring on that particular date. Yes, 'Saala Salil' has multiple personalities depending on his mood and all of them co-exist in harmony and peace: Multiple Personality Order.
Future plans? Will there be a season 2 of the series as well?
Salil Jamdar: Making more music is on the cards. A bigger show is on the cards. Will there be a season 2 to ‘Saala Salil'? I don't know. I am still figuring out the ending to season 1! Once that is figured, will take it from there. The temptation to foray further into the life of ‘Saala Salil' is super strong though. There's your hint!