When Sanoj Mishra left home, he had nothing. Not even an idea about how a film is made. All he had was a wish to make a movie someday. Ten years down the line, he has his dream movie Gandhigiri, ready to roll. What kept him going this last decade was his childhood passion to direct a film. As he talks about it, one gets to know how sleeping on the footpath and bathing in toilets did not shake his determination. “Where should I begin to tell you how much I struggled to survive each day in Mayanagari (Mumbai). My day started with looking for jobs and used to end with finding a place to sleep on the footpath,” he says.
As days passed, Sanoj managed to build some contacts in the industry and that’s how he got his first gig — but only as a spot boy. But that still remains a special day as he saw a film set for the first time in his life. “I was amused by the number of re-takes, costume change and the energy of people on the set. I had no idea that a two-minute sequence on screen takes so many days of shooting. That was the day when I saw where I am headed for the first time,” he smiles.
He worked for hours and soon the movie set became his new favourite place. “As I was a shy person, I never asked anyone for payments. Sometimes, I wasn’t paid for months together. That’s when movie sets became my home where I learnt how to operate a camera,” he says. “People saw me working for hours and learning the skills with so much passion, I think that’s why they had confidence in me,” he says. So, when he narrated his script to a senior director, it was met with positive response. “I had a cast in mind and I did not want to compromise on that, no matter how much time it took.
And it did take 10 years for him to get his cast together but he didn’t care. “Only some artists like Om Puri can do justice to the idea of my dream movie. How could I not have them in the movie?” he says. With his movie soon to be released, he carried the same attitude on to film, “We have humour, satire and an important political message for the viewers and have given our best to make the movie. Now, whatever happens, happens,” he signs off.