Hemant sheth

Decors to soaps
Though interior designing is still his prime business, in a matter of just one year, he has succeeded in making it to the airwaves of satellite channels with two shows and his third serial is slated for telecast in November - Hemant Sheth

Sometimes things happen in an unexpected way and one thing leads to another. Take the case of Hemant Sheth. An interior decorator by profession for more than a decade, he had never thought of getting into television production. But his desire to act in serials forced him to become a producer. Though interior designing is still his prime business, in a matter of just one year, he has succeeded in making it to the airwaves of satellite channels with two shows and his third serial is slated for telecast in November.

What’s more, he has another two serials ready at the pilot stage which he expects to go on air in the next six months. Though he was happy designing offices of corporate houses, a few years ago Hemant developed a desire to act. But roles were not coming his way though he says he knew a lot of producers. He made a brief appearance in Parivartan, and after that he financed a stand-off episode of Saturday Suspense. His prime intention behind financing the episode was to play the lead role in it. But leave alone the lead role, he didn’t even get to play a small character role either.

As an act of defiance, Hemant decided to become a producer with X-Zone story for Zee. A total novice in production, he says his executive producer cheated him and he lost Rs. 1 lakh. His next story of X-Zone had to be shelved because his executive producer simply disappeared with Rs 2.5 lakhs. That’s when he decided to take the job in his own hands and shot two pilots,, Beta Numbari Baap Dus Numbari and Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin.

Hemant says BNBDN was approved by STAR Plus but when the channel’s programming team changed, he approached Sahara TV where it was approved immediately. The sitcom which revolves around a father who is often the victim of his over-pampered son’s pranks, according to Hemant, is the number one comedy on Sahara TV.

But more than BNBDN, Hemant is excited with Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin which premiered on Sony on September 5 because he says the channel is very happy with the product. Directed by Rajan Shahi, DHKMN is the story of a young boy’s obsession for a married woman because her face is exactly like the girl he loved and lost in an accident. Says Hemant, “It’s a different and unusual tender love story of obsession and unrequited love with totally different treatment.”

His third serial which will hit Sahara TV’s airwaves in November is Ansh starring Renuka Shahane, Pawan Malhotra and Akshay Anand in the lead. It is a story of a boy’s search for his real father after the death of his mother in an accident. Secretary Haazir Ho, his forthcoming production which is ready at the pilot stage, is a sitcom revolving around the members and secretary of a housing society in which the secretary is always at a receiving end and often becomes a laughing stock. Says Hemant, “It’s a rib-tickling comedy based on real-life situations.” And finally, Mr Patel which has popular singer Devang Patel in the lead is a silent comedy on the lines of Mr Bean which Hemant claims will be a big hit.

While presently he has two serials on air, his target is to have another two serials on air before the year-end. Presently he is targeting only satellite channels because he feels these channels are ideal for soaps and sitcoms whereas, in his opinion, Doordarshan, is an ideal channel for mythologicals. And once he has five serials on satellite channels, he will target Doordarshan with a mythological serial.

In his opinion production is not about counting money, running to the bank and arranging finance. On the contrary, he feels, it’s highly creative and keeps his mind working all the time. “Conceiving a project, interacting with the writers, directors and actors and the entire pre and post-production work gives me immense creative satisfaction,” he elaborates.

Though he has become a producer because he wanted to act, the desire to act has taken a back seat now. In fact, he is not too keen on acting and says he might do a role here and there only if his director insists.

AL Chougule