Exclusive | Palki Malhotra: It's a natural gift to identify stars

Amid a wave of crime thrillers and intense dramas Palki Malhotracreated Campus Beats is here to break the monotony Headlined by Shantanu Maheshwari Shruti Sinha Tanvi Gadkari Sahaj Singh Chahal Harsh Dingwanii Tanya Bhushan Dhanshree Yadav and Teriya Magar the 10episode show released on September 21 on Amazon MiniTVThe creative mastermind behind the series based on college life friends romance and much more is Palki Malhotra who has created some masterpieces on Indian television during her illustrious career As Campus Beats continues to draw audience the creative producer and writer spoke to MidDaycom exclusively about her idea behind the series She further opened up about her tryst with dancebased shows the process of casting and the inherited talent of identifying stars in newcomers Here are the excerpts from the interviewPalkis idea behind Campus BeatsSharing the story behind the conceptualisation of Campus Beats Palki said I always wanted to do a dancebased youth show like Dil Dosti Dance for the longest time Since the second season of the show wasnt materialising I thought of creating something in a similar universe The idea came to me during the pandemic when people were moving towards KDramas While they are doing a great job we have done that much before themHer vision behind Campus Beats was to make a show that becomes the audiences best friend amid all the chaos thats happening around people Palki said it was a conscious decision to not enter the dark and intense space this time It was a conscious decision to keep Campus Beats clean While working on it I felt the world we live in is already chaotic and in such cases we cannot make entertainment more chaotic We had to add elements that could be enjoyed by all but without losing the relatability Since childhood we have chosen to be entertained by lighthearted and vibrant things My vision was to keep Campus Beats clean and fussfree I wanted to make the show look and feel hopeful and positive hence avoiding topics like ragging and bullying We wanted to make the show our audiences best friendPalki on having a soft corner for dance and training reallife dancers to get into the skin of their charactersThe star cast of Campus Beats is from a dance background Palki along with her team ensured that the dancers were welltrained and ready to face the camera The cast of Campus Beats comes from a dance background and I was clear about this Its very easy for people to sit on chairs and dismiss people saying Theyre dancers cannot act Its my expertise to identify the right person for a character and bring himher on board and train them properly We picked dancers and did rigorous training with them They went through proper auditions and understood the craft of characterbuilding Thats when these dancers faced the camera for the first time If you train them efficiently and theyll do wonders she sharedShe further added Also I have a soft corner for dancers I believe they are never given enough chances and theyrsquore extremely talented people I took real people and brought them into the reel lifeIts my fathers blessing that I can naturally identify starsWhen asked Palki about her process of identifying stars in newcomers she replied I feel I have a natural gift to identify great talents It comes from my father He was an acting coach I feel I have inherited that from him I just know that this or that person will make it big Even when Shantanu Maheshwari came on Dil Dosti Dance he wasnt an actor but I knew that he would do it I feel proud that he did a Sanjay Leela Bhansali film Gangubai Kathiawadi I take personal pride in my actors successesShe continued I have a strong gut feeling along with a calculative mind I can read whether a person will try to become a character or just wants to become a star I also have a judgement of giving the right person the right role If a person is goodlooking and can create a good fanbase I give himher fewer dialogue and focus more on the vanity part and highlighting the glamourous part I believe itrsquos my fatherrsquos blessing and I have a solid understanding of the marketCalling herself a 16yearold at heart Palki added If I look at a person and feel that I can be hisher fan heshe will make it big I have been a fan of Karan Singh Grover Shilpa Anand Jennifer Winget and Shantanu Maheshwari When I saw Kushal Tandon for the first time at a party I knew isko hero banana hai Hersquos doing so well for himself nowPalkis take on TV vs OTTSharing her opinion on the difference between TV and OTT Palki said Therersquos a lot of difference With TV therersquos a certain narrative You cater to a family audience and a particular lifestyle It has to be more inclusive of everything and everyone It isnrsquot for a particular target audience OTT is specific You are paying for a particular platform so people are specific Due to this it makes you sharpen the content more You have to churn episodes daily on TV and dont get enough time to polish the show OTT gives that freedom as you get enough time to make a show and release it at your own pace The choice is in the audiences hand so we have to be more particular and crisp This is exactly like TV vs films If youre watching Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani on TV or phone its just another love story What makes it brilliant is the visual richness on the big screen The grandeur is missing on TV Otherwise the medium is not bad at all