Creative Producer of Arjun (4 Lions Films) on Star Plus, Gorky is the one who, by way of his creative acumen, makes every scene look real. He is the one behind the spice of the thrill in the show. In fact, Gorky stimulates creativity on screen in order to make the show look large and real and his impeccable direction makes the serial a must watch. Tellychakkar.com travels to the sets of Arjun where Gorky is in the midst of discussion. On spotting us, he joins us for a snappy interview for our Behind The Lens segment. Excerpts: Tell us something about yourself? I hail from Lucknow (UP) where I finished my schooling. However, I finished my college from the Hindu College (Delhi University). Side-by-side I also did theatre there. Soon after I finished my graduation, I came to Mumbai in 1998 to cherish my dreams to become a director. I started my career assisting Kundan Shah and Subhash Ghai, Later, worked with Red Chillies Entertainment as well. Later, I diverted my activities into television and the first show that I directed was Krishna Arjun. In 2003, I left for Indonesia and stayed there for 5 years. There I did numerous television shows like Hidayah, Taubat and Gatotkaca. In 2008, myself and my wife Gul (Khan) formed a production house named 4 Lions Films. And presently, I am the Creative Producer of Arjun. How has your journey been so far? My journey has been a very enjoyable ride though with a lot of ups and downs. It has been extremely fulfilling. I got to do everything what I wished for. I am the kind of guy who tries exploring different avenues and like to face challenges. What is your take on creativity on screen? Creativity is the backbone of any content whether it is films or television. You have to convey everything whatever you write or conceive properly on screen. Without creativity, the message of any show goes empty. The script might be very strong enough with a great concept but execution comes up with many constraints like budget, timeline and logistics. This is where creativity plays a pivotal role. If I may say so, you will find creative people throughout the television industry using the skill till the last minute; it helps keeping a particular show intact. Is there a dent in a concept when it travels from the scripting stage to the editing table? Television is not a one man’s job. There are lots of stuff which need to be taken into account. If you take the overall view of any show into consideration, it appears like the start is very good but while we proceed further, the end is left with so many loose ends that it becomes difficult to get them together. But, being a part of television, we know what every single person is doing and what effort he/she is trying to put in the show to make it successful. The whole journey of the concept of the script is a little dicey because every single person in production department takes it in his own way and tries to make his own version; but as far as the execution is done effectively, I don’t think any script loses its essence. What is more important: concept or execution? Both are important. In several cases it has been found that even though the concept wasn’t good, but with the right kind of execution, the show has turned out good and vice versa. I would just say one thing that if the execution is strong, as are the characters, then the audience just let go certain issues. Execution is the soul of any content. How did 4 Lions Films happen? Both I and my wife were directors for several shows. Since we wanted our own space and freedom, production was something which could give us what we wanted. We are not a business-oriented production house, that along with one show, does a couple of other shows in order to rope in more revenue. Both direction and production have their independent importance and both are very important for any show. What do you prefer non-fiction or fiction shows? As far as television is concerned, I have not yet done any non-fiction show, but both have their equal importance and pleasure. Fiction shows are unstructured and unformatted and for every single day of shoot; there is continuous change in the execution process. And I feel very sad that all the shows on television start with a bang but end very badly. All this is just because television is a victim of timeline. We have to work with certain boundaries which are set for us in advance. Are you scared before producing any show? Yes I am, because there is always a fear that the way I conceive a show, will it reach every single person the way I wanted. I treat every show of mine like my first show and do my best as it is my last day at work. What are your hobbies? I like photography. And one thing I am passionate about is music. I am a musician and can play two instruments. What in the world would you like to create? I would like to make an action thriller, may it be a film or a show. And, I would also love to make short stories showing goodness which is still alive somewhere in this world full of corruption and crime. What would be your advice to aspiring directors? I would like to say that today’s youngsters come up with lot of attitude. Try and create your identity first and work with the one you feel like. Your future plans? I would love to bring a bigger and better television show because as of now television is becoming very exciting.