He started his career as a theatre artist and then got an opportunity to work with Sridevi in his debut film. Sumeet Vyas is not only a talented actor but also a brilliant script writer. In a conversation with Arjita Mishra, he says it is quite challenging to write for a web series as there is a definite end unlike other daily soaps
Enough with the saas-bahu sagas on Indian television with the unending twists and turns. Breathe in some fresh air and treat yourself to super entertaining, real and relatable web series like on YouTube. The creators, we bow to and laud, have been churning some great mini series like Y Series’ Bang Baaja Baaraat. You can appreciate no ad-hassles in the middle or dramatic, ear-hurting background scores. Sumeet Vyas has been on a mission to bring to you the epic Bang Baaja Baaraat series and we hope the second season follows soon.
How you started your career in BollywoodIJ
My career as an actor started by doing theatre at the age of 17. I used to work with the group call ekjute which is run by Nadira Zaheer Babbar. The first film which I did was English Vinglish. Before that I have done a couple of films which never took off or didn’t get released.
You are a writer as well so what do you enjoy most writing or actingIJ
Actually, I enjoy both. But I would say I enjoy acting more because it’s more fun to do and there is less responsibility. In acting, one had to just go and perform his own part whereas in writing, you have to play all the parts in your head. So there is more responsibility and more hard work I would say.
How different is working in a web series from a filmIJ
It is not really different, as an actor, you do the same thing but writing wise especially in a web series, there is a little change because it is episode based story so every episode must have hook in the end so that people may develop interest and watch the next episode. It is actually very different from writing television shows because we write five or six episodes or ten episodes for a web series because it has definite beginning and end to it unlike TV shows which do not have an end. They get more time to write an episode.
What is the scope of web series in futureIJ
There is a huge scope and I believe that this is the next big thing to happen because it is age free and many people were really interested in watching it and today, the younger generation doesn’t watch TV. They don’t watch daily soaps and we have exposure to all kind of things. We have to exposure to the bigger shows, we have seen Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Friends and all of that. We can’t be fooled, you cannot write anything and that will be accepted. So a certain standard is expected out of any web series. The audience is also increasing in numbers because earlier the urban population was very small but now the urban population has increased. So I think it’s a good time for people to watch a web series.
Does starring in a web series fulfill your financial requirement as you are paid lesser amount of moneyIJ
Yes, it does fulfill our financial requirements. It is different for different people actually. like for me, I would be lying if I say I don't need money, I too need money and I work for money, I do films as well. I balance it out by doing something that I enjoy doing, in which I may not just think of money and just focus on the content and I am doing it because I really liked the content. I think most of the people balance it like that.
These days, promotions are made a big issue. There are different promotional strategy for films and television. So how do you promote your web seriesIJ
For a web series, the good part is that people are very well connected with the internet and from there they get to know what new is coming out or what is trending. So most amount of promotions happen on the internet only like from you tube, individual websites, Facebook or from blogs. The rest of the promotions are done through the print media.
What are your upcoming projectsIJ
I have done a web series call Permanent Roommate which was the first web series ever made in India so, currently we are shooting for its second season which will come out in January last or February first week. There is another web series which I am writing for TVF (The Viral Fever).