Umesh Bist
A
Journey.
Sometimes
sculpted, sometimes not.
Always
satisfying.
A
graduate of the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre at the Jamia Millia
Islamia University in India, Umesh Bist co-founded Rosetta Stone Media Private
Limited, a television software company in 1992, and has since produced and
directed many short films, documentaries and television serials.
Over
the last twenty years, Umesh has conceived and executed many fiction and
non-fiction shows for television.
Umesh
is the Creative/Series Director of Kyunki Jeena
Issi Ka Naam Hai - a currently running television series
produced by UNICEF-Miditech and telecast on Doordarshan, India’s oldest
television network. He is also the Creative Director of Galli Galli Sim Sim – a
television show for children for Sesame Street/Turner-Miditech which is
telecast on the Cartoon Network and the Pogo Channel.
Umesh
has directed many short films and
documentaries receiving kudos for them from around the world. Bangle
Box, starring Nandita Das and
Uttara Baokar was India’s entry in International Film Festival while Hotel
was screened in the Star bestsellers on Star TV. Seva, a film about chikan
workers of Lucknow was selected
by the UNESCO for screening on International women's day at Paris, France and Aye
Mohabbat, a film on legendary
ghazal singer Begum Akhtar premiered at the Nehru Centre in London in 2002.
Umesh
rounds off his creative and directorial talent with experience in lifestyle, news
and current affairs programming. He has designed and executed shows like 30
Minutes, Healing and Beyond, Going On, In This Our Land and Arts
Plus.
Healing
and Beyond
was India’s first medical investigative serial and Going On, a unique
docu-drama about physically challenged people enjoyed high TRP ratings in the English
programming segment.
Umesh
also directed Partners in Progress - a film on Indo ASEAN economic
cooperation for India’s Ministry of External Affairs - which was screened at
the ASEAN Summit in Laos 2005 when it was inaugurated by the Indian Prime Minister,
Dr. Manmohan Singh.
In
search of Steam, Room without a View, Divine Wilderness and Katha
are a few other short films and documentaries that have been screened
at various film festivals of repute.
FILMOGRAPHY
FILMS:
CHILDREN
OF DARKNESS, 1989: Directed
this film on Child Labour for the UNICEF which was shot in the streets and
slums of Calcutta with street children. A month long film workshop was
conducted with the children who later participated in the film as cast and the
crew.
WOH LOG,
1987: Scripted
and directed this short feature film based on a lower middle class family in
India. The story revolves around the father whose acceptance and denial of
changing values forces him to bear the agonies of a dialectical society.
TELEVISION
SERIALS:
KYUNKI
JEENA ISSE KA NAAM HAI:
Series
and Creative director for this television serial, which is being produced by
UNICEF and Miditech. The show is currently on air.
GALLI
GALLI SIM SIM: Creative
Director of Galli Galli Sim Sim- Indian Chapter Of Sesame Street for Miditech.
The series is on air on Pogo and Cartoon Network - 2005 and ongoing, now in Season 5
ARTS
PLUS: A
weekly television Arts Magazine for Star Plus.
PAAS HO
TUM DOOR BHI: A
television serial about the families, whose children migrate to foreign lands,
in search of better prospects. The series was shot in India and England and
broadcast on Sony UK and other overseas territories.
HOTEL: A murder mystery film
revolving around a newlywed girl.
AKRITI: A serial on women
empowerment, literacy and social justice. Telecast on Doordarshan -1
SAMBANDH:
A
Bengali telefilm focusing on the issue of loneliness in old age Broadcast on Tara
Bangla
SAAT
MOHAALA: A
ghost story in Bengali for Tara Bangla. Broadcast on Star-Tara Bangla
GUEST
HOUSE: A
story of love, crime and
passion. Broadcast on Star-Tara Bangla
AASAMAN
AUR BHI HAI: Contemporary
stories focusing on women issues. Telecast on DD1
TANHAI: Tanhai told an unusual
tale of a girl who sets out to achieve her goals in spite of all the odds. The serial
was telecast on the Metro Channel Doordarshan.
MANZILIEN:
Manzilien,
based on the true experiences of a young IAS officer, was a very popular television
serial, telecast on prime time on Doordarshan.
30
MINUTES: Current
affair series, telecast on Doordarshan.
HEALING
& BEYOND: Produced
and directed this investigative documentary series about the state of Health in
India. Telecast on Doordarshan -3
GOING ON:
Directed
this docu-drama series on physically challenged people. The series used real
people instead of actors. It had the highest TRP ratings in nonfiction
category.
IN THIS
OUR LAND: Directed
this unique travel show for Doordarhan, covering various social and cultural
aspects of our country.
IN
SEARCH OF STEAM
(3 part series): Today steam engines are being phased out. This three part
series captures the memories of the fading golden era. Telecast on the Indian
National Network
SABRANG:
Directed
and presented this magazine format serial on adult education.
MOODS OF
THE MORNING: This
serial does not use any narration for nothing else is required except the
visual beauty and the music to portray the moods of the morning.
SAREY
JAHAAN SE ACHHA: Produced
and directed this unique travel show for Department of Adult Education.
TELEFILMS:
AGAAS: The story of a woman
in search of herself.
SARDAR
POST: A
telefilm on Indo Pak war at the Sardar Post.
AYE
MOHABAT!: A
film on legendary gazal singer Begum Akhtar. The film was screened at Nehru centre
London.
MUKTI: Based on the award
winning story ‘The weight’, Mukti was shot on locations in Uttaranchal and
depicted the vicious circle of exploitation where women becomes the best friend
and the worst enemy of another women.
ADHIKAR:
Shot
at Bhatti Mines, Delhi, ‘Adhikar’ is the story of the fight of mines workers
against an exploitative system.
GAURI
TAL: Ganeshi
fights against the whole village to save the dying lake. An environmental film
set in Kumaoun hills.
SAMBANDH:
Sambandh
is the lonely tale of an old women, who after being deserted by her own family
discovers a new purpose in her life in bringing up, a young orphan boy.
DHAK KI
RAJKUMARI: Based
on a true story ,the film sketches the story of a young girl and her fight
against the powerful mine owners.
BANGLE
BOX: A
film based in Rajasthan about a woman’s fight for her rights.
OF
MELODIES DIVINE: A
film on Langa folk singers of Rajasthan.
ROOH
PUNJAB DI: A
film on folk singers of Punjab for Ministry of External affairs.
ROOM
WITHOUT A VIEW: A
true story of two hemophiliac brothers affected by AIDS .
TELEVISION
ADVERTISEMENT SPOTS
VALUE
ADDED TAX FOR GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MAHANAGAR
TELEPHONE NIGAM
LIFE
INSURANCE OF INDIA
WORLD
HEALTH ORGANISATION
IPCL
INDIA
DIRECTORATE
OF ADULT EDUCATION
NATIONAL
AIDS CONTROL ORGANISATION
CENTRAL
BANK OF INDIA
DOCUMENTARY
FILMS
FREEZE
FRAME: For
the first time on television, thirty minutes devoted to those leading men , who
bring to us the best of still photography in India.
BEADS OF
BONDAGE: In
the Yellama temple of Saundatti, Karnataka the practice of dedicating young girls
to the goddess continues. The programme exposes this old tradition which today
gives religious sanction to the evils of prostitution.
TROUBLED
PARADISE: Panning
across the blue sea and clear white beaches the camera focuses on the problems
caused by the tourist influx in Goa .
RIVER IN
TURBULENCE: Thousands
will be uprooted once the Narmada dam is complete . While discussing the cost
and benefit ratio , the film highlights the fear and apprehensions of the
residents of the submerging areas.
ROAD TO
NOWHERE: Shot
in the dense jungles and treacherous terrain of Kerala , the programme gives an
inside story of drug running in the country.
SHATTERED
LIVES: Story
of the Chakmas - a sensitive rendering of the plight of the Chakma refugees. The
programme deals with their traumatic exodus from Bangladesh, the brutality and
horror of their experiences.
FAIR
PLAY: A
film on professional entrance examinations in India.
IN THE
FOOTSTEPS OF BUDDHA: A
film on Buddhism for Ministry of External Affairs GOI. Besides India the film
was shot in Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Myanmar.
SHIFTING
SANDS: The
film set in Rajasthan, dicusses TIME as the final destroyer and the supreme
creator. A saga of destruction and renovation of forts and palaces.
THE DIVINE
WILDERNESS: Screened
over more than ten times on ZEE TV ,the film is a lyrical tribute to the beauty
of the Gharwal hills.
ECHOES
FROM THE PAST: A
film about the sand, ruins and tales of Jhalawar.
SCALING
NEW HEIGHTS: This
film traces the journey of three women Everesters, one of them being Santosh
Yadav, the only women in the world to have climbed the Everest twice.
BHOPAL
AFTER SIX YEARS: An
update on Bhopal gas victims.
IN THE
SHADOW OF THE BUFFALO: A
film on the Toda tribal of Nilgiri hills .
DOOSRI
ALKA: Portrayal
of a young girl who had the courage and the determination to fight the evil of
dowry at the cost of her own future.
DRUG
MENACE: A
film on drug running and the growing number of addicts in our country .
COST OF
THIRST: Afilm
about the plight and resettlement of the evacuees of Narmada and Sardar Sarovar
dams.
SPITI -
THE FORBIDDEN VALLEY: A
documentary on the traditional life-style of the rugged people of Spiti, hidden
behind magic , mystery and the mountains .
THE
ADMINISTRATOR: A
documentary on the history and achievements of the Indian Administrative
Services .
AIDS
KILLS - LOVE CAREFULLY: While informing about the scourge of the century ,
the programme brought the heated debate between lawyers , doctors , social
workers and young students on Dr. Paintal's proposed legislation to ban sex
with foreigners .
BHOPAL -
THE CONTINUING STORY: The
programme brings out the trauma and plight of thousands of gas victims , three
years after the tragedy . It's a story of their wait and fight for survival .
SPIRITUAL
LIFE OF DELHI: A
film for ministry of tourism GOI, covering various spiritual aspects of Delhi.
JAL
JIVAN: A
film on the water resource management.
FESTIVALS
OF INDIA: A
film for Ministry of Tourism GOI on different festivals of India
KATHA: A film on Katha an NGO
working for the empowerment of women in New Delhi.
KOTAS-
THE MOUNTAIN PEOPLE: A
film on Kota tribals of Nilgiris.
BANARAS
GHARANA: A
film on the Banaras Gharana of Hindustani Classical music. Shot on the banks od
river Ganges the film features prominent artists like Ustad Bismillah Khan,
Pandit Krishan Maharaj, Sitara Devi, Pandit Channu Lal Misra and others.
CHALO
SCHOOL: A
film produced by Aga Khan Foundation.
BEYOND
REFLECTION: A
film on the journey of Tista Das- a woman trapped in a man's body. Produced by PSBT.
WRITINGS
TOBA TEK
SINGH- A LYRICAL PLAY: Based
on Sadat Hasan manto’s story ‘Toba tek singh’, I wrote a stage play in verse
for my theatre group ‘Theatre Union’
MARZ KA
MUNAFA: A
play about the banned drugs being pushed into third world countries by the
Multi-national drug companies.
MUKTI-The
Deliverance: A
film based on the age old ritual of euthanasia, still practiced in the remote
villages of Uttranchal.
PEHACHAN:
A
film about the rangdari system forced on the mine workers in Bihar.
INTEJAR
EK SAHAR KA: A
telefilm about the destitute children who take to drugs and crime.
APNE
PARAYE: A
film about the fight of the local people against the land mafia in Uttaranchal.
GAWAAH-
The Witness: Feature
film based on the effects of domestic violence on children.
PAINTER
AND THE PROSTITUTE: Currently
working on the final draft of this feature film.
Umesh
Bist
(91)9811014851 (Delhi) or (91)9833495414
(Mumbai)
(91) 11 22724373 or (91) 11 26523225
umesh.bist@gmail.com
umeshbistproductions@gmail.com ubist@yahoo.co.in
