Aditya Revankar’s love of making films propelled him to use his honest portrayals of everyday existence in movies to spread awareness of how precious life is
Aditya S. Revankar is a native of Karwar, Karnataka, who later relocated to Goa and is currently residing here. He earned his post-graduate degree from IIP Mumbai after graduating with a science degree. He is currently working for a pharmaceutical company and enjoys a happy home life with his family. Aditya expresses gratitude to his mother, who raised him by herself after his father passed on.
Aditya’s inspiration from his professors and peers during his childhood is where his quest to becoming a filmmaker began. He was always excited to participate in theatre activities. Following that, he was chosen for the Yakshagana, a well-known folk event in Karnataka. He received a standing ovation for that performance. Aditya believes that this field will teach a lot about the future that is really exciting. Then he began creating stage scripts in addition to screenplays. He wrote quite a few plays while pursuing his Science degree. Additionally, he and his team received recognition for their outstanding achievements and his interest in film making kept on growing from there on.
When asked about his venture, Aditya elaborated, “I like to travel, listen to music, and mostly love to watch movies. When I would watch movies, I used to often wonder how the background score was meticulously planned down to the smallest details. Other aspects, such as the location ideal for filming that specific scene, the landscape, the weather, etc. Each film conveys a message. The director, actors, and actresses work as a team to convey the message to the audience in a way that is appropriate for the story’s intended audience. I was driven to take action for my community and raise awareness of how valuable life is. I used to discuss the stories with my teachers throughout my time in school and my co-workers, and I used to heed their advice. Hence with the support of my friends and family, I started NVNS Production.”
He further goes on to share details of the films he has produced under NVNS Production. Initially, he created a story that he believed might be marketed to other producers and film directors. He soon realised that nobody would genuinely appreciate his ability without prior experience and preparation. Consequently, he started his production firm in 2019. His debut short film, Sikka, was soon posted on YouTube in 2019. The team and everyone else got excellent feedback and appreciation from the viewers. Salute, a film about celebration, came in second. Soon, covid-19 occurred and as a result, the C-C +, film entered the scene. This movie describes the period of lockdown and how people were dealing with significant challenges at the time. He sought to turn the film, which depicted these bleak times into something, uplifting and hopeful.
After that, he changed it into confidence positive and confidence negative. Social media also enabled one to maintain contact with loved ones. During that time they were unable to use any professional cameras because of covid-19, therefore his team members in Pune finished the job entirely with the tools at their disposal. Two filmmakers worked on the video using their mobile phones to film, edit, and publish it. The audience responded positively to this as well.
With his rising growth in film making he intended to film Ikshana which was later nominated for the prestigious short film awards. He approached a renowned Marathi performer named Anjali Joshi, who was so taken by the storyline that she immediately agreed to be part of the short film. Aditya considered the issue of obtaining the necessary assistance from brands once they had finished filming. He contacted these companies personally as a result, but unfortunately, he received no feedback. And with little hope he tried to approached the optician company Lawrence and Mayo. He connected with Dr. Vivek G. Mendonsa, Director of Lawrence and Mayo Group via LinkedIn. Aditya voiced his thoughts on this short film, and Dr. Mendonsa responded right away. After reading the script, he liked it. As a result, they got into a partnership with Lawrence and Mayo.
The narrative of a mother and son is the subject of the movie Ikshana. The youth are the target audience for this short film. Following that, he launched the short film in 2021, which also had a positive reception. He then submitted this film to an Indian film house. Approximately 2500 applications were filed overall in India. With great luck, Ikshana was shortlisted for the film festival, and after receiving a call from them, the short-film was chosen and was awarded the third position.
The goal of this film was to increase social consciousness in the general population. Aditya thinks about creating wonderful stories all the time. He thus employs a method to document every event that occurs in his life.
Moving on, Aditya talks about his inspiration for the short film Ikshana which came to him while going to work one day. He stated, “One morning I was in a hurry to go to the office, as I was wearing my shirt, a button fell off. I asked my mother to mend it for me; she got her sewing kit to stitch the button. She strained as she attempted to get the needle into the thread. I realised then that my mother is getting older. Once she wore her spectacles, she was able to sew the button without any problem. And so I captured that point and turned it into a short film.”
Aditya created the script and the shoots were held in Pune. He already had a great team and all he needed were some excellent actors who could capture the essence of this film. Hence he approached Joshi, who is a veteran and has worked in many Marathi movies and series. He managed to effectively finish the film despite the difficulties that he faced during this process.
No road to success is complete without the challenges faced by an individual. Aditya talks about the hardships that he had to encounter as a novice in film making. Being the only member of his family to enter the field of film-making, presented various hurdles for him. He initially struggled with figuring out how to approach the entire process, so he began reading and watching film making courses on YouTube. He had to teach himself how to do it. The next step was to assemble a team of experts, and one of his friends who is a theatre performer assisted him in this process.
Aditya’s busy schedule made it challenging for him to balance both his career and personal obligations, which prevented him from having enough time to commit himself entirely to film making. Many people have advised him that he is on the wrong path and that it would be better for him to focus more on his field than on making short films. He struggles to successfully juggle a balanced personal and professional life in 24 hours. Only when he travels for work does he have time for himself. He has invested all of his savings on his passion to become a filmmaker.
Aditya shares ideas about his next initiatives. He noted the impending release of Ikshana 2, a venture with the Lawrence and Mayo team.
The name Wake up was the official working title for the next film he has in mind. The movie is slated to be released is in February 2023. He also has several other concepts in mind under Dr. Vivek Mendonsa’s guidance.
