Surya Balakrishnan, who has co-directed the acclaimed OTT show Khauf, considers herself ‘medium agnostic’

Amazon Video’s latest horror series Khauf has viewers horrified, stupefied, transfixed leaving them with not only a lingering feeling of dread but much to mull over. And probe, question to where the real horror lies. Co-director of the much acclaimed series Surya Balakrishnan admits how prior to being associated with the genre she was not exactly a fan of it. Maker of short films like Arre Baba and Kheer, she preferred slice of life drama. But today as she is digging deep into horror she has begun to realise its immense possibilities. In fact, the reason why she said yes to Khauf was how it builds up fear not only through its entity of ghost but it’s very many layers.

Brought up in Mumbai, to begin with, she could not relate with the way creator-writer Smita Singh had coalesced her experiences of living in Delhi and of working women’s hostel, the epicenter of horror in the series. Surya shares, “Often I would tell her; do we really need this.” But as more and more women are finding the show relatable, she observes, “We wanted to keep it real.” You might sense a dichotomy between harsh reality of life and phantasmagorical elements of the supernatural, but she explains, “The show deals with different kinds of horror, reflects fear which lot of us live with in real life. Even the ghost entity is metamorphical.” A woman (Smita) telling women’s story may or may not always be the best option, but for their show she feels, “It truly worked.”

As for more than one director taking on the reins in the long format of storytelling, which has almost become a norm, she does not think it is difficult to arrive at a common ground.   More so, since Pankaj Kumar, who has directed six episodes, also happens to be the director of photography. Thus maintaining the visual tone and tenor for all eight episodes was not so challenging.

Trained in both graphic design and filmmaking, this alumna of New York Film Academy was drawn to filmmaking for she felt it’s the most powerful way of telling a story. More recently as she has finished a documentary Amar Katha on the Amarnath Yatra, we wonder if her film acquires more urgency in the light of recent Pahalgam attacks. She observes, “Well, it’s likely to attract more eyeballs. Kashmir will always remain an important subject for us.”

The feature documentary chronicles how the yatra, a quiet peaceful affair looked after by a Muslim family, the Maliks, has over the years morphed into a spectacle after the Shine board took over. Ecocide is a word she uses in context of the environmental damage. She adds, “Indeed, it has affected the ecosystem, the environment around it and we need to pay heed.”

As her film awaits the festival circuit, she admits cracking the festival code isn’t easy. Why, one noted festival programmer shared a vital piece of information with her. At the Toronto International Film Festival out of staggering 9,000 entries, only 25 are selected. Back in time she also got this dismal piece of advice from a well-wisher —“You will eat rejections for breakfast.” But nothing is stopping her or making her spend sleepless nights. She states, “Reel culture might be taking over more of our screen-time, but there is an audience for all kinds of films, including documentaries, also thanks to the fact that many OTT platforms are streaming them.”

Navigating between making commercials, shorts and documentaries, she agrees that the medium does dictate, but considers herself ‘medium agnostic’.  She continues to love making ad films her ‘bread, butter and cheese,’ for “in ad world you are constantly in practice and nothing is better than practising your craft.”

Her filmmaking skills will manifest once again in a web series based on a book, a short and more. Hailing from the hard-sell world of advertising, she understands ‘you never say never.’ But at the same time she would like her cinema to say something and not just be another random story. Just as Khauf isn’t your regular horror fest…  Expect more surprises from her.

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I do not know if men’s reaction to Khauf is any different though more women are finding it relatable. But men too are able to look at the bigger picture. The crux of the story is being communicated in a very similar way to both genders.

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