Former corporate employee turned filmmaker Mahi V Raghav has made interesting, genre-centric films like the coming-of-age Paathshala, the horror-comedy Anando Brahma or Yatra, based on the life of the late YS Rajashekar Reddy.
In the second phase of his career as a showrunner, Mahi has created the Hotstar web series "Save The Tigers", which is followed by Shaitan, his upcoming crime drama show. Shaitan is set to stream on the same platform from June 15. Mahi chats to CE about Shaitan, his enthusiasm towards embracing the OTT platform, his upcoming film and more
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You have mentioned in an instagram post, when you were sharing the first look of Shaitan that crime is not something that crime is not a genre that you are comfortable with. Yet you chose to go down this route with your upcoming show. What made you try out this genre despite your initial discomfort?
Curiosity is what primarily drives me to pick the subjects or stories that I pick. And this curiosity comes from a place of novelty. It takes months and sometimes years for a project to travel from start to finish, so through this time I am not sustained by my skill but rather, my curiosity. So, to answer your question, even though crime is not something I am familiar with, even though it is against my DNA — the potential it gives me to explore and learn is what made me take the plunge.
Where did the genesis of Shaitan come from?
I was watching a series on Netflix called Mindhunter, where a group of experts are trying to crack a case by studying the lives and crimes of serial killers. One pattern you did get to see through the show was how all these criminals had a violent, abusive childhood filled with emotional neglect. It sort of dawned on me that most if not all criminals, are victims of the society at large. People are not born to be criminals, they take the path of crime, against better reason, for survival. This is the foundation for this human drama I wanted to make, from a perspective of both empathy and neutrality. There is a difference between crime done with motive and in cold blood versus crime done for survival. My story focuses on the latter.
It is interesting you mention empathy, while also saying you are not justifying or condoning your characters’ actions. There seems to be a thin line between both. How do you tackle that challenge as a creator?
When I write something, I am empathetic, non judgemental and I don’t rub off my views on the characters I am writing. I am here to create, not preach, period.
Apart from a show like Mindhunter, what else inspired you to create the characters and the world of Shaitan?
Just turn around the pages of the newspaper. Switch on your television. There is so much crime out there, and it is such a ubiquitous part of the society that we live in. Fact is truly stranger than fiction, and this is something I especially want people criticising against the graphic display of violence in my show to understand. What I have tried to capture in Shaitan is miniscule,
compared to the crimes that take place on a daily basis in real life.
Unlike many conventional filmmakers, you have entered OTT with a lot of enthusiasm, citing creative autonomy and executive control as reasons for your transition. How has that journey been like for you?
I have produced all my films except Anando Brahma. It was not by choice, but it just happened. I learnt filmmaking by losing money and producing them. Little did I know that this experience would come in handy a decade later when OTT presented itself as an opportunity to filmmakers. OTT, creatively and commercially, is a once in a lifetime opportunity to filmmakers. Shaitan could have never been told on film, in a conventional 2 and half hour format. Your stories can transcend spatial and linguistic boundaries. It is a format we must embrace with more enthusiasm and scale. We are a country rich with myths and diverse cultures, brimming with narrative potential. It is also less risky and more organised, so there is also a huge commercial incentive to work in this format. I am happy to make this transition and adapt with the changing times.
You have recently announced your plans to make a sequel for Yatra, which will focus on the life of YS Jagan. It is different when you make a biopic on someone who is still alive and active, whose political career is still developing, as opposed to making a film on someone who has passed away. How are you approaching this delicate dichotomy as you are gearing towards helming Yatra 2?
I would beg to differ on any sort of pre-existing notion on how biopics must be made on people who have died. Movies made on the lives of Dhoni and Mary Kom have been accepted very well by the audiences. A story is a story, whether someone is alive or have passed on. The subject of your biopic should be aspirational or inspirational. It is easier though, to make a biopic on a sportsperson, rather than a politician. There is less bias and hatred. I understand where people are coming from, but there is a difference between disagreement and disrespect. I hope I have a story that is dramatic and universal enough even for people. I am still writing it, we will take the plunge once we have a story worth telling the world.