Two and a Half Hours of Magic

50 days of madness, chaos, fun and ass ripping hardwork for a 2.5 hour cinematic experience. Am only half way through it yet. 25 days into this madness and i am loving every bit of it. The surroundings have absorbed me fully as i have let them flow in my veins along with my blood. Everything, from running around giving actors their scenes for tomorrow to holding their chai cups to giving clap and getting flaked for everything! Life is fun here..

Rotten as hell is an understatement to describe the first day of work. I was shaking... so much had been filled into my head about clap and the whole set feel that i was NERVOUS in capital letter, underlined and bold in 72 size font. There was akshay kumar, ritesh and lara right in front of me and a bunch of scrutinizing eyes in my own team who would evaluate my aptitude in that one day of work. The first clap was given by Sajid sir's mother. When my turn came, my throat dried and hands went cold. I do not know what i spoke but i was pretty sure it was all wrong. So the 3 giants who stood behind my clap knew the very instant that either i was new or totally foolish. Nonetheless, i had a job on hand and i was on a mission! Everybody on set is senior to me even if they are 19yrs old... so i got gyan from all directions. Well, for people who know me, multiple instructions confuse me to death. So my state of mind need not be further explained!

Day two and three were worse coz new situations arrived and i had to learn faster than a child. I was losing it... but finally i felt myself absorbing everything around me. I picked up pace and clap has become synonymous to me! Atleast i think so....

Film making, has aspects that i had never known as an audience. The amount of hardwork and effort that goes into making even the trashiest movie is incredible. Nobody thinks they are making trash so put in less effort. Every shot is lit up like 'this is the shot that will make the movie'! Every scene is performed like 'an oscar performance'. Not a penny less... So i know now when ever i trashed a movie saying 'kyu banayi aisi picture' i was disrespecting the efforts put in by the 100 people on the crew for whom the film was a blockbuster in the making. I will now think of the gaffers who hold lights in rain, sun and blistering cold just to make that shot look perfect. I will think of the spot boys who wake up 2 hours earlier than us just to ensure that we are comfortable at shoot and everything is in place. I will think of the actors who eveng after all the many luxuries they enjoy, come to early morning shoots and stay up late to finish a scene. I will think of all the AD's who work their asses off to ensure the back bone of the film doesn't crumble.

I have lots to share... although i miss home and miss my people... i miss blogging whenever and whatever... but this work keeps me going... everyday is a new learning for me... and yet i am only half way through this film. What we do and what you see is pure magic... and i am learning the tricks of this trade by the day.