There are people who flatter others about their unique talents and successes — the ones who would strike as important. And there are people who are dreamy, fall into unique miseries and then make a comeback — the ones whose experience may inspire others. Sidhartha Siva, the 29-year-old actor-turned-National award-winning director, hailing from Tiruvalla in Kerala, belongs to the latter group. Inspired by his father — Sivaprasad, a Pune Film and Television Institute of India alumni and yesteryear director — he became obsessed with directing short films even before he was in high school and his teens were eventful with the awards he won. We met him on the sets of his new short film on cancer awareness, where he talked about the twists and turns in his life.
“My childhood is full of celluloid memories. My father’s friends, both professional and independent filmmakers, would often come home to share their shooting experiences. Rich discussions on (Federico) Felini or (Ingmar) Bergman was almost like a ritual. Those were my first lessons on cinema,” reminisces Sidhartha. The atmosphere at home had its impact on the child. Before graduating to longer pants in school, Sidhartha travelled through the Tiruvalla town with a camera in hand. “I did my first short film, Oru Kochu Dukham when I was in Class VII. One year later, YMCA produced my next short, Aalkoottathil Thaniye. In Plus One, I got my first break when Asianet televised one of my short films, Maria,” smiles Sidhartha.
How did the school boy find money for all this? “There is a ritual in Kerala during the festive occasion of Vishu. Elders would give small sums of money called ‘Kaineettam’ to children on this day. While others bought shirts and jeans with Kaineettam, I spent it all to rent a VHS Camera HI8 for my short films,” Sidhartha says. But the joy was short lived; at 20, he was admitted to Kochi Lake Shore hospital diagnosed with cancer. “It was a period of great trauma,” Sidhartha continues, “But I was not ready to give up. I am a living, breathing testimony that cancer is not the end of the road. However, the disease and the treatment changed my outlook. I learned to turn problems into opportunities.”
Two years later, he was discharged from the hospital after the final cycle of chemotherapy. Those two years were pretty well spent, says Sidhartha. He made short films — one of them, Amour Code, got televised in ETV. During this time, he even befriended his college principal’s daughter who later became his wife. Once out from the hospital, he went on to re-build his artistic life from square one. In 2006, he joined for an MA in English Literature at Marthoma College, Tiruvalla, and soon got elected as the Union Chairman, heading the student fraternity there.
His life made a U-turn with a curious journey he made to Thiruvananthapuram during that time. “One of my friends wanted to audition for a reality show called ‘Best Actor’ for Amritha TV. He stayed at my home the day before the audition and requested me to render him moral support,” says Sidhartha. An instant success, the show was conceived to look for aspiring actors. “When we reached the capital city, I also participated in the audition for fun and was not surprised when I didn’t make it through. Two days after, the channel called at my home and said that my name was on the waiting list. To my surprise, they said, I have been selected in the group of 20 from the thousands who appeared for auditions,” he says.
Rest, as they say is history. His TV debut was watched my millions of Keralites across the globe and his talent was appreciated. The appreciation grew louder when the word got out about his directorial passion and the story of his life. He became the runner-up in the show, winning — apart from an Alto car — the minds of common man and the directors in the industry. The show was a turn-around. Sidhartha got series of offers to work with leading directors. But there was something missing in the whole action, says Sidhartha. “I always knew acting was not my calling, while direction was it. After acting in a few films, I had to say no to acting offers and started working on my film script,” says Sidhartha.
At 27, gripped with the passion to be behind the camera and master-minding celluloid, he made his debut film, 101 Chodyangal penned by himself. It was a dream debut that any director would wish for. Apart from many laurels, his film won awards for ‘Best Film’ award for a debut director and the ‘Best Child Artist’ award in the 2013 National Awards. “For many, it’s tough to figure out how to get established in filmmaking. But I never thought about any career other than becoming a director. There were so many ups and downs and twists and turns in my story; but I was always clear about my aim. Perhaps that led my way,” Sidhartha says.
nidheesh.mk@newindianexpress.com