Goregaon to Ramdev Film City has over the last five years become the preferred destination for TV producers
The rocky mountains of Kailash. A village in Rajasthan. A plush house in South Mumbai. Any thing can be recreated in Naigaon, the new hotspot for the Mumbai television industry.
It has taken actor Suhasi Dhami 40 minutes to travel from her home in Goregaon to Ramdev Film City in Maljipada, Naigaon East, where she is shooting Life OK's popular show Devon Ke Dev. Mahadev. It's quite a distance, given all she is expected to do today is sit cross-legged on a rock against a blue screen and chant: "Om Namah Shivay". Dhami, who plays Parvati, is a solitary figure in the 100x80 ft studio which holds the rocky mountains of Kailash.
Naigaon is also home to Jaitsar, a village in Rajasthan (Balika Vadhu on Colors), Varanasi (Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke on Zee TV), Akbar's palace (Har Mushkil Ka Hal-Akbar Birbal on Big Magic), a fantastical land (The Adventures of Hatim on Life OK) and a plush house in South Mumbai (the forthcoming Jamai Raja on Zee TV). Welcome to Naigaon, TV producers' paradise.
The northern suburb of Mumbai, which is part of Thane district, has over the last five years become the preferred destination for TV producers. Ashutosh Gowariker's forthcoming series Everest, which will air on Star Plus later this year, used Naigaon as its temporary base. It is also where crews of Sony's popular crime shows, CID and Crime Patrol, come when in need of an isolated jungle or a lush farm.
It's not just the small screen industry that's attracted to it. When Dharma Productions' Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania needed a dhaba, they found an apt location in Naigaon. Once known for its many cowsheds and Bhajansons Dairy Farm, a food pit stop for those travelling on NH 8 Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway, Naigaon is giving Filmcity in Goregaon East and studios in Andheri East a run for their money.
That wasn't the case six years ago, when SphereOrigins, the production house behind Balika Vadhu, first arrived looking to recreate Rajasthan in Mumbai. "We were actually hunting for space in Mumbai's vicinity," says Sunjoy Waddhwa, the show's producer, "but they were not working out." Bungalows in Madh Island in Malad West, Goregaon East's Filmcity and Sankraman Studio, and studios in Kandivali West and around Chandivali and Saki Naka in Andheri East, have been the perennial hunting grounds for TV producers.
But the rise of general entertainment channels and popularity of daily soaps created a need for new space. In Naigaon, Waddhwa found the ideal location at Magnum Studios in Kaman village, where "we could do what we want". The show's executive producer, Sheikh Zakir Salam, says that on their first visit in 2008, the crew was surrounded by abandoned sheds and farms. Balika Vadhu, the second longest running show on Indian television, occupies seven floors of the 13 available in the studios, two of which function as warehouses for clothes and props. Naigaon's biggest lure, says Salam, is the abundance of varied outdoor locations. "You want a lake, a waterfall, a field, a hill, temples, everything is here," says Salam. "Balika Vadhu wouldn't be what it is today if it were not for Naigaon."
Balika Vadhu's success meant that Naigaon was on the radar of other production houses. Jay Production (Rab Se Sohna Isshq), Hats Off Productions (Behenein, Byaah Hamari Bahoo Ka, Mrs. Tendulkar), Swastik Pictures (Maan Rahe Tera Pitaah) and Shakuntalam Telefilms (Gunahon Ka Devta) all followed and constructed sets. "There is a peaceful atmosphere here," says Sanjay Sharma, head of production for Devon Ke Dev... Mahadev, on air since December 2011. "It is away from all the chaos of the city. There's no crowd, it is clean and there's lots of greenery." The surge of daily soaps has created employment opportunities. When Salam needed a terrace, he relied on the knowledge of Sohan Banwarlal Goel, 35, a grocery shop owner in Kaman village. Goel now is one of the busiest location coordinators in Naigaon, getting requisite permissions from the Virar-Vasai Mahanagarpalika and Waliv Police Station.
"Initially, there was a lot of excitement as the locals realised that there is a lot of money in it," says Goel, who now owns eight shops. "But they didn't have the knowledge that one needs to be a member of Allied Mazdoor Union (which represents light men, set makers and spot boys) to work on the sets." Gradually, locals acquainted themselves with the needs of the industry and have established businesses such as catering (Mom's and Siddhivinayak), generator supply (MD Power), prop shops (Laxmi Gopal Property Wala) and transportation.
Sanjay Mourya, 30, who runs Chowariwala Transport, started in 2004 with only two tempos but today runs a fleet of 24 vehicles that shuttle props, lights and camera equipment from one location to another. In 2011, he introduced vanity vans to cut the costs of production houses. Mourya says that Naigaon is a cost-effective option for TV producers and channels compared to locations within Mumbai. "Floor rates are 50 per cent less," he says, "and there is no octroi charged on props."
It also helps that many technicians and spot boys stay in nearby Vasai, Virar and Mira Road. Those who live farther away, such as the crew of Life OK shows, The Adventures of Hatim and Devon Ke Dev. Mahadev, have rented apartments in Star City, which is located near Naigaon railway station. Naigaon may be convenient for the crew but for the actors it's a dull suburb with few attractions. Roopal Tyagi, better known as Gunjan of Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke, complains about the lack of healthy eateries in Naigaon, which is home to roadside dhabas known for their oily fare. Her green room, whose walls she has adorned with Garfield posters like 'Welcome to my room. When are you leaving?', has a mini-fridge and microwave as bailouts. "Nobody dares come here," she says. "My friends have visited me only twice in three years. It needs basic things like a gym and a salon. Actors have absolutely nowhere to go if they have time to kill between shoots."
It's a sentiment shared by Toral Rasputra aka Anandi of Balika Vadhu, who chooses to sleep in her room between scenes. "If it was in my hands, I'd open a mall here," says the Matunga-based actor who takes an hour to get here and often shoots over the weekend. "By the time I'm done, back in Mumbai everything is shutting down." Rasputra's colleague Shashank Vyas, who plays the role of Jagya, is one of the few actors to have lived in Naigaon. Shooting for 14-16 hours a day in 2010-11, Vyas decided to cut time spent travelling from Santa Cruz by staying in the area for a year and a half. "I missed dinner and lived on oatmeal and cornflakes as there are no good restaurants here," he says. "In hindsight, it was a wise decision. All the money I saved, I invested."
Even as Naigaon tries to adapt to the demands of the industry, problems persist. Friday is known as 'no-electricity day' here. Power cuts are persistent- one every three to four hours. With no streetlights, security remains an issue, especially for women. A lack of public transport means autos often charge steep prices for short rides. There's some development too.
There is a rise in the number of residential buildings in Pereira Nagar in Naigaon East. The number of vehicles on road has increased as autos and buses drop workers from the railway station to the sets. Naigaon also has three-star hotels, Survi Palace and Royal Hills, offering the luxury of swimming pools.
Naigaon is conscious of its rising importance. "Six years ago, a 10,000-sq ft property cost Rs 1 lakh, today it is Rs 10 lakh," says Goel. Once wary locals have now embraced the new neighbours. "Initially, there was a lot of dadagiri (bullying) here. Now, they are family," says Sanjay Sharma, production head for Devon Ke Dev Mahadev. "If I have some problem, at least 100 people will come to my aid." It is still not the easiest place to get to. Until a month ago, actors spent up to three hours travelling to work after an old bridge, Fountain, broke down. It took six months to be repaired. Even as development occurs, Naigaon proudly holds on to its heritage. One of them is Bhajansons Dairy Farm, which houses 2,000 buffaloes and 50 cows. Dhami calls it a "curse" because of her weakness for its delectable sweets. "Their mango lassi and masala milk is to die for," she says. "Mohit (Raina, lead protagonist of Devon Ke Dev Mahadev) and I love their carrot halwa." Shiva-Parvati enjoying carrot halwa. That can happen only in Naigaon.
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