Rendezvous With The Dronacharya Of Odia Cine Industry

Rendezvous With The Dronacharya Of Odia Cine Industry

Sisir Mishra is the grand old man of Odia film industry, a colossus in terms of his body of work and contributions to the visual medium. It is him who brought in the winds of modernity into Ollywood when it was finding the transformation difficult. Iconic Odia films like ‘Sindura Bindu’, ‘Suna Sansaara’, ‘Subarna Seeta’, ‘Samaya Bada Balawaan’, ‘Ei Ama Sansaara’, ‘Bastra Harana’, ‘Suna Bhauja’ and ‘Sabata Maa’ are a testimony to his pioneering work and perfectionism in the craft of filmmaking.

Known as the Dronacharya of Odia cinema, Mishra took his creative genius to Bombay where he made some classic realistic films like ‘Bheegi Palkein’, ‘Samay Ki Dhara’ while testing commercial success with the likes of ‘Billoo Baadshaah’, ‘TADA’ and ‘Aseema’. The song ‘Janam Janam ka Saath Hai Tumhara Humara’ from his film ‘Bheegi Palkein’ remains a cult classic

Not remaining confined to filmmaking alone, he took under his wings young talents like Hara Patnaik and Sudhansu Sahu, sharpened their craft and helped them turn into film makers of repute.

A native of Bomkei near Digapahandi, Brahmapur in Ganjam district, Mishra is the recipient of coveted awards like the Dada Saheb Phalke Academy Award, the Nitai Palit and the Jaydev Award. The 70-year-old veteran was also honoured with the Padma Shri this year.

Sisir Mishra stays in Mumbai with a big family which includes his grandchildren as well. But wait! The filmmaker is not retiring yet. He has plans to make a big budget film ‘Langula Narasingh Dev’ on the history of Sun Temple Konark with his wife Kadambini Mishra, who has worked with him as a writer and co-writer in many of his films.

As part of the series ‘Legends of Ollywood’, My City Links caught up with the legendary director for an exclusive chat. Here are the excerpts.

Did You Always Plan To Become A Director?

I have been a keen observer of people and the society. I began writing short stories from the age of eight or nine. My father used to give me a meagre pocket money and I would spend it all on watching Hindi and Telugu films sitting on the benches in the first row in the theatre in Ganjam. I wondered if the photos we clicked were still, how come the pictures on screen were moving and talking? The first Odia film that I watched in the theatre was ‘Maa’. I was attracted towards acting initially, not direction.

What Led You To Become A Director Then?

While many successful actors call me their Godfather today, for me, legendary filmmaker Dheera Biswal played that role. He is the Father of Odia cinema. I wonder why he never received the Padma Shri. I remember when I found out about him, I went to meet him in Cuttack, which is where I also met director Nitai Palit. Back then, Ollywood was not a promising career option, so I was advised to focus on my BSc, which I was pursuing then, and take acting as a hobby. After approaching Dheera‘bhai’ several times, I got a small role to play in the Sarat Pujari starrer ‘Dasue Ratnakar’. I was new to acting and so got a little late after director Prabhat Mukherjee gave the call for ‘action’. This angered him and he screamed at me. That was when I realised that a director is the captain of the ship and everyone is bound to follow him. So, why should I be an actor then?

How Did You Get The Opportunity To Be An Assistant Director?

After completing my BSc from Khallikote College in 1965, I went to study MSc at Ravenshaw University, Cuttack. Dheera‘bhai’ was coordinating through letters with me and as per his instructions, I went to Mumbai to meet a few directors during my MSc. There was a bilingual film named ‘Jharana’ which was being planned in two languages, Odia and Hindi, starring Uma Mishra and Asha Parekh in lead roles at Mehboob Studio.  While Mahesh Sahu directed the Odia version, Mehboob Khan directed the Hindi one and I played the villain in both. Unfortunately, after 20-25 days of shooting, the filming was stopped due to mismanagement and financial crisis, but myperformance was appreciated by the directors. After completing my MSc and quitting my job as a Physics lecturer, I went to Mumbai again to work as an AD (Assistant Director). Director Bhimeswar Rao was the one who introduced me to ‘Mother India’ fame director Jyoti Swarup, who had seen me at Mehboob Studios during the mahurat of ‘Jharana’. So, he agreed and gave me a chance to assist him for the film ‘Padosan’ starring Bollywood legends like Kishore Kumar, Sunil Dutt, Saira Banu and Mehmood. This 1968 hit was my first film as an AD in Hindi film industry.

As I was a good story writer, I was called for many story sittings by screenplay writers. Although my name was not mentioned anywhere in the credits for those films, I was happy earning some money through it as I was struggling then. I worked with many directors of Bollywood back then as an assistant director in films like ‘Pyasi Shaam’ starring Sunil Dutt, Firoz Khan and Sharmila Tagore.

Did Your Family Support You Then?

Everybody in my family was against me, because at that time no one knew what a film director’s future can be like. A true Odia is never afraid of anything! So, I was ready to take up the challenge and battled all problems. It is important not to be shy while trying to work in Mumbai as you need to meet people for work. I was giving my best. I remember my mom being very worried for me all the time. Like a typical Odia mother, she used to keep asking me if I was getting to eat rice or not.

How Did You Get Your Debut Odia Film As A Director?

Dheera ‘bhai’ often came to NFDC (National Film Development Cooperation) at Mumbai. We would meet and I used to always tell him that I was now ready to direct a movie. It was the year 1975 when I got the chance to direct my first Odia movie ‘Sindura Bindu’, thanks to his reference. The film starred Sriram Panda and Tripura Mishra in lead roles.

With ‘Sindura Bindu’, You Introduced Mahasweta To Ollywood. We Heard There Was As Interesting Story Behind It. Tell Us About It.

Yes, we were in search of a good dancer for the film. One day when producer Kedar Guru and I were travelling in a rickshaw at the Bada Danda, I saw a charming girl walking by our side with one of her friends. I asked Kedar ‘babu’ to go and talk to her. She turned out to be the daughter of renowned professor and writer Raju Ray. I call her by her real name Rashmi even today. I am glad that she is one of the most celebrated actors of Odisha to this day.

You Have Been A Mentor To Many Successful Directors Including Hara Patnaik. Any Memory You Could Share?

We used to discuss screenplay and dialogues at our house at Jhanjiri Mangala, Cuttack. Two of my assistants, Srikant Choudhury and Jyoti Nayak, once came to me with a lean, young guy. He was Hara Patnaik and they introduced him as a theatre actor. These three guys used to come to me early in the morning riding three cycles then. Some others like Sangram Biswal, Barada Tripathy, Sudhansu Sahu and Dilip Panda have also assisted me and are very talented directors. I love them all.

Kalinga Studio Is Being Reconstructed Now. We Have Heard That You Went To Former CM late Biju Patnaik Many Times To Request Him For The same. Tell Us About It.

Dheera ‘bhai’ and I went to him several times to request him to revamp the studio. As soon as we received the permission for the same, Pradyumna Kumar Mishra, who was the MD then, ensured everything required for filmmaking at the studio including a theatre and editing studio. He was one of the best we had.

Your Hindi Film ‘Bheegi Palkein’ Was Based On An Odia Story Written By Your Wife. Tell Us About That.

It was for the first time Raj Babbar played the male lead with Smita Patil as the female lead. People have shown the film great love and I even shot some parts of it in Cuttack as I was shooting for an Odia film, ‘Samaya Bada Balaban’ simultaneously. Smita wore many of my wife’s Sambalpuri sarees in the film. I even made a set resembling Jhanjiri Mangala at Filmistan studio to shoot some portions of the film.

How Interested Are Your Children In Acting Or Directing?

We have two sons. Although my elder son Sagar had starred in one Odia movie,‘Suna Palinki’ as the main lead, he quit acting for a job in West Africa and sought to make his life better when he saw his friends earning more than him. But I am planning to launch his son Aditya Sagar in the future. My younger son Sameer is involved in a few ad shoots and also helps me in my work despite having a full-time job.What Is The Next Film You Are Planning For Your Audience?

We are planning a film on Konark Temple, ‘Langula Narasingha Dev’ with a budget of 300 crore. We want to show the entire history. The story has been written by my wife. We had made an 18-minute documentary on Konark before. If possible, we are planning to cast Hrithik Roshan as the main lead with stars like Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malinii guest appearances. It will be a mega film with special effects of the sort shown in Baahubali. We will make it in both Hindi and Odia and will try to dub it in all other languages too.

As We Are Talking About Konark, What’s Your Take On Raghunath Mohapatra’s idea for a second Konark?

Yes, we should let him do it because he is a great artist and I think he can make something unique.