Shyam Benegal is generally considered the father of parallel cinema. The 90-year-old filmmaker recently celebrated his birthday. Then, suddenly, on Monday evening, the film industry was shocked by the sad demise of Shyam Benegal. An 8-time National Film Award winner, Benegal created many spectacular films throughout his career. One of these was Welcome to Sajjanpur, a successful comedy film released in 2008. In the latest episode of the Lehren podcast, let's see what Shyam Benegal had to say about the success of this comedy film and his favorite directors of today's cinema. #shyambenegal #piyabenegal #welcometosajjanpur
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00:00I wanted to do comedy for a long time, but I couldn't find a subject.
00:05Because comedy is not easy to do.
00:09Every film has to be a commercial.
00:12Because it takes a lot of money to make a film.
00:16What do the young people of the city have to do?
00:20They have to go out.
00:22They want to have a much better lifestyle.
00:24They must earn more.
00:26All these are part of our cinema today.
00:30The things that have gone on television, will remain there.
00:35There is no need to repeat it in the film.
00:38Because you need a fresh experience.
00:46The director who has always been away from the league, Shyam Benegal,
00:51is with us today, whose film, Welcome to Sajjanpur,
00:54will be released in a few days.
00:58Let's talk to him.
01:00Welcome to Lehren.
01:03Your film, Welcome to Sajjanpur, is being praised by the audience.
01:11What do you have to say?
01:12I am very happy.
01:14The critics and the audience like the film.
01:20Obviously, I will be happy.
01:24If we talk about Sajjanpur,
01:28where is this place, Sajjanpur?
01:33Is it real or not?
01:35It is fictional.
01:37But I have heard,
01:39that there is a village called Sajjanpur.
01:45It is real.
01:47And it is close to Satna.
01:51But we did not think,
01:53because any name in India,
01:57will be the name of a village.
02:00When our writer wrote it,
02:03we did not think,
02:05that there will be a village called Sajjanpur.
02:08But in that area,
02:10where our subject is,
02:17the location is of that area.
02:20Bundelkhand, Bagalkhand area.
02:22Bandhavgarh, Satna, Panna, that area.
02:27Your film, Welcome to Sajjanpur,
02:29has been selected for the London Film Festival.
02:32What do you have to say?
02:33It is a good thing.
02:35London Film Festival is a festival of festivals.
02:42Because this festival comes towards the end of the year.
02:46So the world's most famous festivals,
02:49their best pictures,
02:51you will get to see in London Film Festival.
02:54Because the cream of other festivals,
02:57people see here.
03:00So in the world cinema section,
03:02this film has been selected.
03:06So it means,
03:08they have liked the film.
03:10So I am very happy again.
03:13Sir, if we talk about this film,
03:16as soon as your name comes to mind,
03:18we think of mainstream cinemas,
03:20some serious films.
03:21But you entered comedy.
03:23Why? What was it like?
03:26I always wanted to do comedy.
03:29But I was not getting the subject.
03:31Because comedy is not easy to do.
03:35More difficult.
03:37Serious films are easier to do.
03:40Melodrama, tragedy,
03:43such things are easy to make.
03:46There is nothing difficult about it.
03:48Because emotional strength,
03:52bringing it to the film is not a big deal.
03:55But comedy,
03:59making people laugh,
04:01and through that,
04:04showing something,
04:06explaining,
04:07those are very difficult things.
04:09But the partner,
04:11or any other comedy film,
04:14and now Welcome to Sajjanpur,
04:16through this you are getting some message.
04:18Do you think there is a difference in these two films?
04:21There can be many types of comedy.
04:24One type is slapstick comedy.
04:28Slapstick comedy and circus type comedy.
04:33That is buffoon comedy.
04:37That is one type of comedy.
04:39Second type of comedy is situational comedy.
04:44Coincidences comedy.
04:48Comedy of manners.
04:51Social comedies.
04:54Verbal comedies.
04:57Comedy through dialogue.
05:04That is another type of comedy.
05:06These are all different kinds of comedy.
05:09You can do it all together.
05:11Or individually you can deal with them.
05:14But basically,
05:16it needs human feelings.
05:19Any type of comedy.
05:21If you can bring human feelings,
05:23people will definitely like it.
05:25Can we say that Shyam sir,
05:28has entered into commercial cinema?
05:32It's not like that.
05:33Every film has to be commercial.
05:36Because it takes a lot of money to make a film.
05:40Very expensive to make a film.
05:42If you make a film,
05:44you have to cover the expenses.
05:47You have to make some profit.
05:49You have to cover the interest.
05:51Naturally, every film has to run.
05:54If it doesn't run, it will be a loss.
05:59Naturally, every film has to cover the cost.
06:07If you do it,
06:09you can do it as if
06:11you don't have any interest in the audience.
06:15If you make a film like that,
06:17what will be the benefit?
06:19It's not good.
06:21Because you can only show it to your friends.
06:25Nothing more than that.
06:27If we talk about the mentality of Indian youth,
06:30what kind of films do you think
06:33suit their mentality?
06:36The people who watch it on television,
06:39they don't feel like watching it on a cinema screen.
06:45Because it's a different thing.
06:47So you have to re-do.
06:49Whatever is left from the film on television,
06:52it's left there.
06:54Cinema now has to think of new subjects.
06:58Not what is on television.
07:00Because why should you see what is on television?
07:02It doesn't mean anything.
07:04So naturally, new things are coming.
07:08That's why.
07:10Because whatever is on television,
07:13it will remain there.
07:15You don't have to re-do it.
07:19You need a fresh experience.
07:21Cinema needs a fresh experience.
07:24The new directors who are coming today,
07:27they are doing a good job.
07:29What would you like to say about them?
07:31Who are your favorite directors?
07:33There are a lot of good directors.
07:36Young directors.
07:38My favorite is Nagesh Kuknoor,
07:41Vishal Bhardwaj, Anurag Kashyap,
07:44then this boy Neeraj Pandey,
07:46who made this film, A Wednesday.
07:49And then Gupta, who made Aamir.
07:52I don't remember the name.
07:54Yes, Nishikant Kamat,
07:56who made Mumbai Meri Jaan.
07:58These are wonderful directors.
08:00Very good directors.
08:03Because they are very talented,
08:06sensitive, intelligent directors.
08:18Cinema in India is by and large
08:21aspirational cinema.
08:23We dream of making films
08:28about what we want to be,
08:32what we want to do.
08:35We see the shape of that in films.
08:40What do the young people of the city want to do?
08:44They want to go out.
08:46They want to have a much better lifestyle.
08:49Better lifestyle means they must earn more.
08:53All these are part of our cinema today.
08:58And it's what I call aspirational cinema.
09:03Thank you, sir.