In this interview, The Hunt For Veerappan producer Monisha Thyagarajan discusses the show, documentaries and the art of producing them, the BAFTA opportunity, and much more!
If there’s a genre of cinema that truly has the power to open our eyes, it's documentaries. These films provide non fictional accounts of real-world truths, blending factual storytelling with cinematic artistry. However, creating a documentary requires immense dedication and time—some projects even take years to research, shoot, and edit. For instance, Anand Patwardhan'sJai Bhim Comrade took 14 years to complete! Given the time and effort involved, how does one approach the logistical and financial challenges of documentary filmmaking without compromising on the creative process? This is where the producer plays a crucial role, acting as a manager who ensures all the necessary resources are in place, allowing the filmmaker to focus on crafting the story.
To shine more light on what the job of a documentary producer entails, we had a chat with Monisha Thyagarajan, the producer who helped bring one the most chilling documentaries of all time from India, The Hunt For Veerappan! This interview was in collaboration with the BAFTA Breakthrough India 2024, a programme initiated by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)designed to select and uplift a few Indian talents who will be provided with an opportunity to connect with and learn from the best British and Indian creatives, as well as share their expertise with peers from around the world.Here, Thyagarajan talks about what the opportunity means to her, discusses the state of documents in India, and talks about the challenges she faced during Hunt For Veerappan!
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Your filmography includes a varied line-up of projects; how did it all begin for you?
My career’s formative years went from engineering to journalism to creating ad films, travel programs and documentaries for broadcast networks. So, I grew up working with lean teams, problem-solving and taking end-to-end responsibility for delivering the best within the means provided. Curiosity and the temptation of variety kept me looking for newer stories and formats to work on. In 2017, my partner at Awedacious, Apoorva, reached out with two projects she was producing then. One was ‘WOMB’, derived from a brave on-foot journey through the length of my country to understand gender-based violence on the ground. And the other was ‘What are The Odds?’, a sweetheart independently mounted coming-of-age feature with magic woven into every aspect of its filmmaking. I couldn’t resist either of them, and then, right after, I led the execution of season 1 of Delhi Crimeon the ground, which was life-changing. So, I was created with a truly independent and collaborative spirit. These experiences that I collectively gathered, significantly the “what not to do” and the ability to adapt to ever-changing scenarios, particularly helped me while producing The Hunt for Veerappan.
Can you walk us through the process of producing documentaries? In the practical sense of filmmaking, what's the difference between the different roles of producing, like associate, executive, and producer?
This deserves a separate workshop altogether! But for me, the beauty of documentaries lies in its unpredictability and ever-evolving nature. To begin with, it’s imperative to really be passionate about the subject since documentaries can take years to complete and require another level of perseverance. Fundraising is, of course, the first step. What follows is research, the bedrock of good documentaries. The more time given and the deeper one goes, the better. Some docs follow people through their lives, unlike working with multiple talking heads. Even in that case, the development phase is most critical to help understand the building blocks of their story and decode the people within the story better. Uninhibited access to storytellers is what can make a documentary richer and more exclusive in its offering. It’s usually advisable not to rush into photography but at the same time, it’s crucial always to be mindful that we’re dealing with real people and their lives here. One circumstance may change at their end, which can have a ripple effect on our film. So the sooner one can secure them, with trust and honesty, the better.
Since the timeline of documentaries can be forever extended, budget management and creatively innovating within the means becomes imperative. Eventually, documentaries are made on the edit table. From paper edits to offline assemblies, ample trial and error goes into arriving at the best possible way of stitching the narrative. Documentaries can also require a lot of permissions and clearances unless they’re investigative exposes, so it’s necessary to have a support system to obtain these as well. Now, for all these pieces of the puzzle to fit right in, the accountability rests with producing teams at all levels. But above all, executive producers and primary producers will be responsible for final deliveries while also taking into account the risks that come with them.
The Hunt for Veerappan has gotten cult status as one of the best documentaries made so far in India. What made you go for it, given its subject and topic? What are the challenges you faced with this show?
I come from Bengaluru in Karnataka and had grown up hearing stories about Veerappan. When I met Selvamani, our director, who is from Tamil Nadu, the neighbouring state, which is also the epicentre of the story, I realized how different the perception of the man was on either side of the state borders. That piqued my initial curiosity to piece the story together, fill the gaps, and have one cohesive narrative that looked at this story from all angles. Now, Selvamani’s approach to research was mind-blowing. His passion and dedication to finding the many truths within was a huge driving factor, too. So, I was ready to move mountains to get everything we needed to tell this story. And each of us did that in our own way!
The challenges we faced in this film ranged from gaining the trust of our storytellers to gathering archives. Everything was scattered, and so much of it was missing, but we had a brilliant team that just never gave up and had to go to the centre of the earth to find exclusive, golden material. Additionally, filming in real forests was not only a logistical challenge but also required a lot of preparation, paperwork, and, eventually, flexibility regarding the surprises that came our way. A herd of bison, leeches, fresh carcasses, thunderstorms, there was nothing that we didn’t face! But I’d do it all over again if I could! Still, the hardest part was shaping the story editorially, with the abundance of material we returned with, and telling it in the most engaging form for a broad audience.
Why is there a shortage of documentaries in India according to you? Why is it so tough to bring out documentary films in India, considering their importance in society?
I feel we’re still in a better place now, with more and more docs coming out of India and making wins and waves on the global stage. But it still strangely feels like just the beginning. I think it’s not that docs aren’t being made; it’s more about their distribution. That is where the ultimate challenge lies! We can spend years following a subject and making the most evocative and essential film ever, but where will anyone get to watch it? The last couple of years, specifically, have been incredible for documentaries from India. What a run we had with All That Breathes, Against the Tide, To Kill A Tiger, While We Watched, Writing with Fire, and coming much closer to us - WOMB and Bhangaar/ Obsolete. Regardless of how well these films are made and how vital their subject matters may be, distribution is where it eventually gets bottlenecked. And that has a considerable impact on doc financing.
On the contrary, when we look at docs which are housed on popular streaming apps, their reach is instantly wider, half the battle is already won because they’ll get the necessary visibility. So I think it’s about cultivating a culture for doc viewing above all! To create curiosity in the audience and to change the perception around documentaries by making them aware of the cinematic experiences that they can bring while learning something new and in-depth. We should reach a point where docs are playing in the cinemas and pulling crowds, but for that to happen, the onus can’t lie on the filmmaker alone. We have to work as a community towards changing this.
Out of everything you've worked on, which one has been your favourite or most memorable project? Why?
Hands down, The Hunt for Veerappan! Of the four years on this story, I spent 2 years on the road, meeting people who changed my outlook towards life. I was humbled in so many ways. I had the fortune of being in the forests for months, making some of the most remarkable friendships with my crew and cast. And I know these relationships are for life. It was also the hardest piece, physically, mentally and emotionally that I had worked on, so at every moment, I was thoroughly challenged to put my best foot forward.
What does this opportunity by BAFTA mean to you? Do you think that it will bring about change?
It is an honour to be selected by BAFTA in the Breakthrough program. As a storyteller, gaining access to the world's best talent in cinema and getting insight into different cultures of filmmaking, art and, more particularly, creative producing is an absolutely incredible opportunity. This recognition gives a notable boost to all my upcoming endeavours. I’m particularly excited and hungry for all the knowledge I can gather on this journey and share further in my future collaborations. I’m hopeful and, somewhere, confident that this program will bring about change for all of us!
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