Shahin Swadhin Director

Shahin Swadhin, 31, is an upcoming young director. In 2008, he started making documentaries and gradually moved to TV dramas. In a short span of time, he has made over 19 TV dramas and 6 documentaries. Right now, he is preparing himself for his first film, named ‘One Man, One Island’. Y&I talked to him about his work, inspiration and future plan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sheikh Iraj

How did you get into directing? What inspired you?

I never thought I would become a director. While I was doing my graduation, I used to play cricket and dreamed of becoming a cricketer. Then an accident took place and I had to bury my dream of being a cricketer. Then I decided to do an IT course, there I learned video editing. One of my relatives is associated with making documentaries and he was the first one who inspired me by letting me edit his work. After that, I did a course on scriptwriting and direction. After working on some documentaries, I paired up with my friend Robin to work on our first TV drama, ‘Niyoti’. Within a few days, our first drama was aired on a private TV channel.  

Did you get any institutional training in this field?

I did participate in a six-month course in scriptwriting from Bishwa Sahitya Kendra and a one year course on filmmaking from Bangladesh Film Institute. Through the courses, I learned about different aspects of filmmaking such as camera work, lighting, scriptwriting, editing.

How would you define the actual role that a director is supposed to fill?

A director obviously should have a connection with the characters. During the shoot, you have to play the role of a leader and look after everything. At the same time, you have to make sure the people who are working with you feel comfortable, so you can get the best work out of them. I also feel a director should know how to take the audience on a journey through his story.

What do you think about the present state of drama-making in our country?

Nowadays, our TV industry is going through a critical state. We normally don’t get big budgets, and every time you open the TV there are just too many advertisements on the screen. Production houses are only focussing on profits, not many new faces are introduced and some TV channels only show certain directors’ works on special occasions. I think we should change our mindset on some of these issues.

Please tell us about your biggest achievements.

Every work I complete, whether it’s a TV drama or a documentary, is an achievement for me. Among all my works, some of my favourite TV dramas are ‘Niyoti’, ‘Asomapto Ophkkhan’, ‘Aparajita’, ‘Bhalobashar Padmaphul’, ‘Colour Phul’ and ‘Path Jana Nei’.

What’s your future plan?

I am preparing myself to start making my first film, ‘One Man, One Island’.

 

 

Shahin Swadhin Director

Shahin Swadhin, 31, is an upcoming young director. In 2008, he started making documentaries and gradually moved to TV dramas. In a short span of time, he has made over 19 TV dramas and 6 documentaries. Right now, he is preparing himself for his first film, named One Man, One Island. YI talked to him about his work, inspiration and future plan. Sheikh Iraj How did you get into directing? What inspired you? I never thought I would become a director. While I was doing my graduation, I used to play cricket and dreamed of becoming a cricketer. Then an accident took place and I had to bury my dream of being a cricketer. Then I decided to do an IT course, there I learned video editing. One of my relatives is associated with making documentaries and he was the first one who inspired me by letting me edit his work. After that, I did a course on scriptwriting and direction. After working on some documentaries, I paired up with my friend Robin to work on our first TV drama, Niyoti. Within a few days, our first drama was aired on a private TV channel. Did you get any institutional training in this field? I did participate in a six-month course in scriptwriting from Bishwa Sahitya Kendra and a one year course on filmmaking from Bangladesh Film Institute. Through the courses, I learned about different aspects of filmmaking such as camera work, lighting, scriptwriting, editing. How would you define the actual role that a director is supposed to fill? A director obviously should have a connection with the characters. During the shoot, you have to play the role of a leader and look after everything. At the same time, you have to make sure the people who are working with you feel comfortable, so you can get the best work out of them. I also feel a director should know how to take the audience on a journey through his story. What do you think about the present state of drama-making in our country? Nowadays, our TV industry is going through a critical state. We normally dont get big budgets, and every time you open the TV there are just too many advertisements on the screen. Production houses are only focussing on profits, not many new faces are introduced and some TV channels only show certain directors works on special occasions. I think we should change our mindset on some of these issues. Please tell us about your biggest achievements. Every work I complete, whether its a TV drama or a documentary, is an achievement for me. Among all my works, some of my favourite TV dramas are Niyoti, Asomapto Ophkkhan, Aparajita, Bhalobashar Padmaphul, Colour Phul and Path Jana Nei. Whats your future plan? I am preparing myself to start making my first film, One Man, One Island.