EXCLUSIVE | 'First Act' director Deepa Bhatia: No one saw the kind of success like Darsheel Safary post Taare Zameen Par

Filmmaker Deepa Bhatia’s docu-series First Act, which is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video, is a gentle yet pulsating take on kids, their dreams to be in front of the camera, and the overwhelming reactions of the families.

This series attempts to look at the lives of all the aspiring child actors that have gleam in eyes and hopes in hearts. They don’t have to act, the lines between reality and performance is blurred the moment they begin to speak; it’s the passion that’s doing all the talking. And in an exclusive interview with Firstpost, the director of the series Deepa Bhatia spoke about the idea behind making it, reuniting with Darsheel Safary after Taare Zameen Par, and lots more.

Edited excerpts from the interview

Since you’re also an editor, what goes behind the editing process of films?

For me, it all starts by the script and interacting with the director. The conversations and our involvements start quite early, and as they shoot, I’m constantly giving feedbacks and it’s a continuous dialogue with your director. It’s all about maximum result with minimum length. Each project has its own challenge and requires its own approach. If I’m doing a My Name Is Khan, I should be able to bring out the issue Karan Johar is trying to reflect, if it’s Student Of The Year, you want it to be fun. If it’s Kai Po Che, it should be a mix of these three lovely new actors and the politics of the film.

What inspired you to direct First Act?

I have always loved documentaries, and they have always been my first love. I did something in 2009 called Nero’s Guests with Magsaysay Award winning journalist Sainath where we traveled for 5-6 years through the countryside. We made the film on farmers’ suicide. Coming back from that film to this took me a little time because editing kept me busy, Amol’s films kept me very busy, our son was growing up. And as I said, I love documentaries and this was a subject that I was wanting to explore for sometime, and I was lucky that Amazon came on board. I lucked out somehow.

What’s the joy and also the challenge of directing children?

The joy is that they are so honest and transparent, that they are so un polluted and pure. The challenge is to make sure that you don’t put your impurity into them and you don’t corrupt them. They should be the way they are, who they are. And since this is a documentary, I was not exactly directing directing, but only capturing what was happening in their lives. I had to make sure they trusted me. I had to make sure that whatever I understood about their lives, I had to portray that equally effectively.

What does the title signify for you?

This is the first act of children’s lives. This is the stage opening on them, not in terms of profession but life, how you want that experience to be.

Darsheel Safary also features here. Was it nostalgic for you and the team to work with him again after Taare Zameen Par?

It was. His interview was over six hours long because we reminisced so many memories of the last. He was so wise and honestly spoken about him. Nobody has seen the kind of success in India Darsheel has, no one was prepared for it. He’s now at a turning point in his life, coming back as an adult actor.