Mozez Singh: Human

Mozez Singh: Human

Years ago, when Platform first spoke to Mozez Singh about his beginnings and debut film Zubaan (it was also Vicky Kaushal’s first film), we learnt that he is somewhat of a multitasker. At the time, Mozez was juggling a project as a co-producer for a film called Peddlers, he was also the line producer for A Mighty Heart, and designing an uber-chic furniture range for Good Earth. Cut to today, he can still walk and chew gum at the same time — Mozez made a short film called First Period very recently, wrote a feature film, started work on a documentary and co-wrote & co-directed his first-ever web-series, Human alongside Ishani Banerjee and Vipul Shah. It is a medical thriller that highlights how human drug trials are conducted, who are the people who sign up for them, and whether they are aware of the dangers involved — largely the illegality of it all in a country like India. The show is now available to stream on Disney+Hotstar. We asked Mozez to break down his journey with the show. Read below:

Hansika Lohani Mehtani: Can we first talk about how and when your journey with Human began? From what we know, it is a medical thriller that explores the murky world of drug trials on humans.
Mozez Singh: Vipul Shah approached me in early 2019 to direct a film for him, set in the world of human drug trials. He had a script ready and asked me to read it. But the script didn’t work for me at all, although I was intrigued by the idea of human drug trials. I hadn’t seen anything like that ever, cinematically, before. I went back to him and told him honestly that the script doesn’t work for me, but I’m intrigued by the idea. So I offered to go back and create something, a whole new world set around the same subject of human drug trials.

Vipul was surprisingly completely fine about it. Thereafter, I went back into my little corner and basically came up with this whole world of what is now the show, Human. It’s a completely original idea. I roped in writer Ishani Banerjee, who has worked with me frequently in the past, to finish the script. And once I came up with the basic idea, I shared it with her and then she and I started building on it. It’s a very complex, layered and nuanced world that we’ve built. Lots of things are happening in it. Although it was completely different from Vipul’s script, he loved the new one. That’s how it all started actually.

HLM: So, you’ve lived with the script for quite some time now.
MS: 
Oh yes. I’ve been with this project for almost, I would say, three years now.

HLM: So what kind of research went into it because medi- cal dramas require fact checking for every little detail. 
MS: First and foremost, I’m a filmmaker, but I actually come from a pharmaceutical background. I’m from the Ranbaxy family. My grandfather was the founder of the company. So I’ve always been very familiar with the pharmaceutical world. Even though my interests have been very different, it’s always been there in my life. So that was one part of it. And Ishani and I did a lot research. We went and met activists, we met people who’ve been a part of human drug trials. We met with NGOs who are working for people who have been under trials. We did a lot of research. The show is entirely set in Madhya Pradhesh because that is the epicentre of human drug trials in India. We specifically set the show there. We did a lot of reading up on stuff ourselves. But the world that we have created is entirely a fictionalized one.

HLM: And can you tell me a little about the casting process. What were you looking for in the main characters?
MS: Basically, we wanted two very strong female leads. The show is about many things and I don’t actually want to give away spoilers, but it really celebrates female power. And you’re going to see that when you watch the show. It’s about women calling the shots, about women who are strong, who are complicated, who are good, who are bad, who are everything. The show makes a very, very loud comment about the fact that women are equal to men in every possible way and if men can call the shots, so can women.

So in order to fit those roles, we needed two very strong female actors and Shefali (Shah) and Kirti (Kulhari) were perfect. And then for Vishal (Jethwa), we needed a young boy who was like a live wire. And I can’t even explain to you how well he’s performed in this.

HLM: If we talk about the work behind the camera, can you tell me that if there are multiple directors for a show, how challenging is it to maintain the overall tone and the consistency?
MS: This is my first web-series and I had a completely seamless experience. There was absolutely no hassle at all. I mean I directed five episodes and wrote all the ten, and maybe because of that, I had a great sense of the whole script. Vipul Shah was like a bouncing board throughout the whole writing process, so he was always completely involved. The shooting was very uncomplicated and very simple. Vipul is a senior in the film industry and has done a lot more work than I have, but he always treated me with respect and I’m grateful to him for that. And I also want to mention our incredible DOP. Full props to him for maintaining a similarity between the shots of both the directors.

HLM: You just talked about how this is your first web-series. You’ve done a feature before, a short film, and now a web series too...
MS: I’m doing a documentary next.

HLM: Oh that’s great! But does your creative process change with every format?
MS: Firstly, I feel really blessed that I’m able to do so many different things. I never wanted to have a career which was about doing just one thing the whole time. I think I would’ve gotten bored to death. I’m happy that it’s panning out in this way. But the creative process changes from project to project. I get hundred percent involved in whatever it is that I’m doing. I see no other way of doing anything until I’m five hundred percent immersed in it. So for me, eventually, it all comes down to the same thing whether I’m doing a feature film, a short film, a documentary or a web-series. The only thing that’s different is the amount of time that you are involved in each project. I’ve been working on Human for three years now. I haven’t worked on anything else for so long. So the duration might be different, but the process is absolutely the same.

HLM: Lastly, what do you look for in a project before coming on board?
MS: For me, the story must be emotionally nuanced and complex. It must make me feel and explore depth. Otherwise, if it’s just very superficial, I completely switch off. And because I’m primarily a writer and then a direc- tor, I can just bring exactly the kind of depth that I want to bring because I live it and I feel it. So for me, there has to be depth. There has to be complexity and nuances. Each character must have a very rich interior life, whether they’re good or bad. That’s the hook for me. What really gets me is the complexity of human life.

This article is an all exclusive from our January EZ. To read more such articles follow the link here.
 

Text Hansika Lohani Mehtani
Date 19-01-2022