Chapter 6
An array of awards bestowed upon Sandeep Marwah made Asian Academy of Film &
Television (AAFT) institute come out from the confines of obscurity and emerge hog the
limelight as the top film institute in north India. The wide publicity given in the media became
on par with the Doon Valley School in Dehradun which emerged from underground after Rajiv
Gandhi’s ascension to the post of Prime Minister. Quality education infused with hard work
left an indelible mark on the onlookers and media which gave due applause and support. Due
recognition came in the form of awards as it completed 15 batches in five years.
“I will never forget my first award which I received in Siri Fort. I received a letter and got a
pleasant surprise to find my name among the list of awardees for the `Sakha’ the award, given
annually by a musical organization. I became very nervous as I considered it as a very big and
expensive award. I did not know whether to speak or not on this big day of mine. I felt elated
and elevated as if I got the Padmashri when they announced my name in front of a huge
congregation of artists and veterans from various fields.”
Siri Fort can accommodate 1870 guests at one time. “I felt this new experience as beyond
excellence and comparison. The awards were given to those who’s who in different fields and
this added a tinge of glamour and dignity to my life. I realized that someone had noticed my
hard work within a short time and decided to honour me. I recalled my Dad’s advice that if one
worked hard, recognition would automatically follow from the concerned industry and
government. I followed it religiously and realized that honest work gets paid. I recalled the
saying `Bin maange mothi miley, Maange miley na bheek! I am eternally indebted
to Amarjit Singh Kohli and other dignitaries on stage on that momentous occasion.’
The first award always leaves an impression on the receiver’s mind. “I realized the
value and importance of the award. I got motivated with an award in my room as it
made me feel like the best honour given to my institution. It charged me and
challenged me to get more awards. From childhood, I have this habit to wish to
collect cars when my Dad gave me one after another. In-School, I ensured that I got
all the awards from all departments be it recitation, elocution, poetry, music, drama,
quiz, Scouts, NCC, trekking, etc. Destiny wanted me to be a winner and so I always
wanted to be on the top and never settle for the second place. I heard that the seat on
top is always vacant. I recall my Dad’s advice that if one puts his sweat and blood into
the best option and work within the constraints of available resources and time, he can
occupy the vacant seat amidst highly designated dignitaries. Awards are manifest
with one’s goal that highlights the huge efforts taken to enforce them. I got inspired by
the first award event in 2000 which gave me good recognition, I vowed not to
compromise with my work.”
Word of mouth about the award function spread like wildfire in Noida which did
wonders for Sandeep Marwah and his studio. “You get invited on stage and the news
spreads faster than the wind. Journalists gave me wide publicity which led to an
increase in activities manifold in my studio followed by many more awards. Earlier,
news reports stated that the Noida Film City had failed miserably but now along with
the negative reports, two lines are added at the end that the Marwah studio had
become the hub of all activity. By now, the other states in the neighborhood started to
applaud and honour me. This attracted the attention of many filmmakers who made
innumerable inquiries and began to book our studio for shoots. In addition, we got
many calls to book our studio from down south like Madras, Hyderabad, and
Trivandrum besides Maharashtra, Orissa, and West Bengal who too joined the
bandwagon. Our studio got booked for indoor and outdoor shoots.”
In 1997, Marwah Studio got to work for a mega project and erected huge forts for the
backdrop of the songs for the Hindi film `Dil Se’. “We had worked for months to create
five to seven mega sets for this film’s shoot. The huge unit consisted of film director
Mani Ratnam, cinematographer Santosh Sivan, actors Shah Rukh Khan
and Manisha Koirala, etc who landed in our studio. The stars were professional who
would come straight from their hotel to the studio and apply make-up in their vanity
vans before they revise their dialogues and appear before the lights and the film
director.”
On the other hand, students went berserk with the sudden entry of megastars of their
era in their studio and did not want to attend the regular classes. “The Studio became
the center of attraction as the top stars zoomed in and out of the campus and added
color to the institute. Our specialized designs were discernible in the fort which we
created along with a pond for a song in the film. A huge crowd had gathered
and Manisha Koirala refused to shoot the bath scene in front of them and the film crew.
So, all of them were dismissed inclusive of the light boys who set up the requisite lights
and the scene shot with just the cameraman, director, and the actors.”
In due course, many other films shot in the studio. “I could not save money from these
shoots as producers usually bargain a lot. But what matters and amuses me is the
name, fame, goodwill, and coverage in the media besides the optimism generated
about our studio. I offer all the facilities to be on par with the Mumbai film industry.
Other studios in the Film City are dull and struggle without personnel and management
except for a Manager who does not understand cinema and has no knowledge about
it.”
Amidst this busy schedule of classes and shoots, Sandeep Marwah takes time out to
update the media on the different circumstances which have impacted cinema and its
paradigm shift to different locations besides of course his studio’s contribution. He is
more of a mentor to the students, and professors, and the locals. “I
requested Doordarshan to conduct a class in AAFT but found that they were up to
date on TV but not cinema. I had to tell them the difference besides the use of bigger
lights and screens for cinema. This made me more popular as a veteran speaker on
`cinema.’ And I shared my knowledge of cinema, feature films, and studio with the
students and the public.”
Another huge set had to be created for the Hindi film `Abhay’. “We erected big sets for
the shoot which went on for eight days. Whenever stars are free, I make a request to
them to meet the students. Naseeruddin Shah, Amrish Puri, and Dev Anand, etc left
their shoot to interact with students in their class. With this interaction, students get an
opportunity to study them when they are on campus. We have a special gallery set up
for students to watch the stars shoot but the stars cannot see them. I get permission
from the film crew for the student spectators. Many times, students were made part of
the film by the director, cameraman, and producer. This adds value to their course and
makes them part of commercial projects. It is happy to watch their involvement which
remains etched in their memory forever in their life.”
Marwah Studios organized many other known and unknown outdoor shoots from his
premises. “One requires immense stamina to cope with the indoor shoots and then be
ready to watch the equipment return in bad shape after the outdoor shoots. It might be
used in mud, rivers, hills, or some odd or even place. Even though more than 100
films were shot, one does not make money at the end of the day as producers
negotiate and bring down the prices. Most of the time, your name does not appear on
the credit list, as it is forgotten or missed. Once the name of a person involved in an
outdoor shoot got a mention while neither my name nor studio’s name did not figure
in that list.”
The film institute conducts many case studies from time to time. “Ravi Sareen is the
case study of a librarian from Ghaziabad who joined my studio as an office boy and
got elevated as a clerk, assistant manager, manager in charge of outdoor
shoots, businessman and film producer. Noida Authority had recommended him as a
crazy film buff who needed a job. He had to close down his library with over 100 video
films after the Piracy Act came into force in India. He joined me after the inauguration
of the first batch of AAFT. He used to sit right outside my office and build a good
rapport with everyone who came to meet me. He learned filmmaking from my studio.
He worked very hard and I offered him the job of a `crowd supplier’ for film units and
take the profit. He did a fabulous job after he supplied 1000 junior artists for an entire
train shoot sequence for five days for the Hindi film `Sirf Tum’ directed by Boney
Kapoor. He earned a good commission and I continued to give him different films
which continued to give him good business and money. I used to offer him excess
equipment but he booked third-party equipment and gave it at a lesser rate to the film
crew and made money on the side.”
Over a while, he lost interest to work in the studio. “I told him that he can’t do justice
to both if he continued in this manner. By then, he had developed very good contacts
and so I told him to go ahead and establish himself. He arranged all the facilities
required for a film and expanded his vision. He began to book hotels, vehicles,
equipment, and worked as a `crowd supplier.’ He knew each need of the film unit. He
bought his first car and kept the keys below my feet and dedicated his success to me.
I blessed him as I wanted all of them to progress. I did not hold any grudge or complaint
against him even though it did affect my business in a big way. I lost huge outdoor
bookings for films.”
Sandeep had not foreseen any other form of competition but got a shocker when it
came from unexpected quarters. “Students visit the suburbs, outdoor, private,
government offices with their résumé and give our reference. They then strike a deal
and offer cheaper rates from the same business places I get work from and set up
themselves. They do not have overhead charges and just carry a catalog. In
comparison, I have a huge setup and my expenses are high, so I have to keep up the
price. I lost even the corporate and ad films to them as the offices and ministries are
the same. But I took up the challenge and increased the courses and students and
improved my infrastructure to incur losses and increase my expenses. I became
optimistic about their performance as it brought a good reputation to the film institute
and used their names as selling points.”
Marwah Studios continues to grow despite the severe setback to complete 25 batches.
“Media had given wide publicity to my awards that others felt it could be a lucrative
business and opened tiny film institutes. But without a film studio, equipment, film
personalities, and a production house they were handicapped and did not succeed.
Even after seven years, they are yet to get recognition as they have no caliber to run
it. They do not have overhead charges too and so work for three to six months and
then close down. On the other hand, we have created history in the world of films and
celebrated our silver jubilee with much fanfare. Now, we have completed 27 batches
and it is an achievement.
The end
