We have been a part of creative evolution: Sumeet Hukamchand Mittal

Sumeet Hukamchand Mittal is a man of many talents from writing, directing to producing. He along with his wife is the face behind the foundation of Shashi Sumeet Production known for producing good content that can be watched with the entire family without any awkwardness, for instance ‘Diya aur Baati Hum’.

Adgully caught up with Sumeet Hukamchand Mittal to talk about some of the highlights of his journey so far, his most successful venture ‘Diya aur Baati Hum’, evolution of content in the television space and more.

AG| We would love to know the three key marquee events of your journey?

Sumeet Hukamchand| I would say survival, survival and survival. On a serious note, I would say the decision to pursue this career. Obviously that thought is the most important thing as it made me come to this industry. Secondly, the first assignment we did for Rajshri Productions for ‘Woh Rehne Wali Mehlo Ki’. That was definitely a turning point. And then definitely the biggest one in 2009, when we started our production house Shashi Sumeet Production. These are the top three events in my ‘journey’ as you say.

AG| How did you get your first break?

SH| We got our first break due to our need for survival. We had to settle down in Mumbai anyhow, so we were meeting people. During that process Shashi once met with Aruna Irani ji and she really was graceful enough to give us the support that we needed, and then we got work with Rajshri Production. These two things happened simultaneously, so this is how we started.

AG| How do you think television craft has evolved in the last decade?

SH| I would say now issue based shows are coming up. Now there is also a market that is being created for aspirational stories about aspirational people. In the last decade these changes have been appreciated and accepted in the market. Having said that, the fact remains that we are very emotional audiences. We can’t just deviate from that completely and give the audience an altogether different kind of storytelling.

I am not saying they don’t want fresh content, they definitely do. But they prefer or are comfortable if the fresh content is within the household or family premise. In a way I would say we are a family audience and we love beautifully crafted family stories.

AG| And you have been a part of that evolution!

SH| Yeah, I would say that we are a part of that. So by creating ‘Diya aur Baati Hum’ we have brought on a difference or have made an evolution in the television space. The thought process behind ‘Diya aur Baati Hum’ was very fresh and audience accepted that very well. I would say that the story telling was in the right direction and an evolution in the television space.

AG| So stories play a pivotal role in the television space?

SH| Definitely. It plays a very important role because entertainment television space is always a writer’s medium. Just like nobody wants an older newspaper, in television too they always want fresh stories and content. Fresh Story telling is the need of the hour in every medium. Writing or storytelling is one of the most important parts of the creative process and everything else comes after that. The fact remains that engagement is generated by good storytelling.

AG| You also run a full-fledged advertising agency, tell us about some of the work that you have created there?

SH| We are still new and are just taking baby steps but I am very sure that we are definitely taking them in the right direction. We have work from HUL, Kotak Bank; from other individual brands as well. We have done different commercials for other brands and we have an activation cell as well. We are moving upwards slowly but steadily, and we are definitely going to be there.  

AG| How do you balance both the ventures?

SH| Well, it is more than two. We are getting into the non-fiction zone as well. We have made a big property called the World Holi Fest. We were in Chandigarh and Dubai last year in this context. We are again doing big events in four cities. Now we want to venture into motion pictures also, we have already made one movie called RangKarmi in Marathi.

The task to run all the horses is tough but I have a good team working with me. They are good, creative people. I try to devote maximum time in content creation so that the execution part is handled by the team.

AG| Can you tell us about one such show which changed your fortune?

SH| Again I would say ‘Diya aur Baati Hum’ because it has not only given us a good name but has changed the entire fortune for us. It has given us respect, fame, money and creative satisfaction changing the entire direction of our life.

AG| What genre excites you the most?

SH| Everything and anything creative excites me. As I said, content creation is the most important part so from comedy in which we have come up with this SAB Sony show to drama thriller all excites me. Frankly, if I have to say the whole story should be very powerful irrespective of the genre. RangKarmi was a non-commercial kind of storytelling and I loved that also. Story should be powerful and be able to touch a chord with the audiences.

AG| Are there any thoughts about getting into regional language space in television? If so, which languages will you focus on?

SH| Definitely we will focus first on Marathi. After that we need to reach to the South Market, Punjab… we will be targeting every market after that.

AG| Have you worked on reality so far? If not, why?

SH| Our next effort is definitely in reality genre. Right now we are making an in-house concept. We have a specialized team of non-fiction and fiction writers. After the in-house team comes up with good concept we are definitely going to approach channels, broadcasters with our content. I am hopeful because content at the end of the day is the hero.

AG| Are there any new projects in the mythology space?

SH| we have made some good concepts on that front. My team is in talks with the channels as of now.

AG| What is your take on content that is being created for the digital space like Sony Liv ‘Love Bytes’?

SH| Digital is a medium where you can explore yourself because you would get all type of audiences. Yes you can experiment with anything, we as a human beings love to watch all kinds of creation or content. It gives story tellers the opportunity to create and serve different kinds of content. Also, I feel that there is no good or bad content because all content is created with some kind of conviction. Let the audiences decide what is working for them and what is not.

AG| The production sector, per say, is becoming more organized. Are you looking at getting funding from outside?

SH| Yes, why not because our plans are big and definitely more and more investors are welcomed. If things shape up well, I am definitely keen on the investors to grow bigger. We know we have content creation power and we know that we are doing a good job on that front.

AG| What are your work mantra and any targets that you may have set for yourself?

SH| My work mantra is ‘one who walks, he reaches’ I just want to work, keep on working and that is what I look forward to everyday. I am interested in making our production house the best and we are working towards that. We have slowly started seeing ourselves as Shashi Sumeet Group. However I don’t intend to say these things very loudly because we have yet to achieve a lot. My target is to grow and make a mark in different genres and areas.

AG| Are there any new projects in the pipeline?

SH| Yes there are couples of projects in the pipeline but they are in a very initial stage, but things are definitely shaping up and are moving. Once you have a production house that is coming in with new ideas, there are always going to be projects in the pipeline.