From Corporate to Cinema: Poonam Kaul on Passion, Perseverance, and Purpose #35

Journey from Corporate Marketing to Filmmaking with Poonam Kaul | Indian Community Podcast

In this episode of the Indian Community Podcast, hosts Rahul Mehra and Amit Gupta delve into an inspiring conversation with Poonam Kaul.

 Poonam shares her remarkable journey from over two decades in corporate marketing with giants like Nokia, Apple, PepsiCo, and Microsoft to establishing her own film studio, House of Omkar. She discusses the making of socially impactful films like 'Pinky Ka Basta' and 'The Last Color,' which tackle critical issues such as girls' education and societal norms. 

Learn about her collaboration with Michelin star chef Vikas Khanna and the legendary actress Neena Gupta. Packed with personal anecdotes, challenges faced, and the passion driving her work, this episode is a must-watch for anyone interested in impactful storytelling and social change. 

00:38 Introduction to the Indian Community Podcast and Poonam Kaul
01:32 Poonam Kaul's Transition to Filmmaking
02:03 The Inspiration Behind 'The Last Color' movie
03:59 Challenges and Triumphs in Filmmaking by Poonam kaul
08:21 Casting Neena Gupta and Other Actors
10:09 The Making of 'The Last Color'
19:30 Divine Interventions and Filming in Banaras
23:44 Introduction to 'Pinky Ka Basta'
26:59 The Birth of Pinky Ka Rasta During COVID
29:17 Challenges Faced by Adolescent Girls During the Pandemic
30:57 Government Efforts and Societal Responsibilities
34:18 The Role of NGOs and Skilling Initiatives
35:32 Personal Stories and Impact
37:25 Building a Unified Indian Community
40:09 The Journey of Ek Desh by Poonam kaul
43:36 From Corporate to Cinema: A Bold Transition by poonam kaul
44:24 Upcoming projects of Poonam Kaul- Imaginary Rain: A Story of Hope and Resilience
49:07 Reflections and Future Projects of poonam kaul
51:44 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

#PoonamKaul #IndianCommunityPodcast #VikashKhanna #ShabanaAzmi #neenagupta  #FilmmakingJourney #CorporateToCinema #HouseOfOmkar #PinkyKaBasta #TheLastColor #GirlsEducation #VikasKhanna #NeenaGupta #SocialChangeStories #Inspiration #WomenInFilm #Filmmaking #IndianCinema #COVIDImpact #GirlsEmpowerment #EducationalChallenges #SocialIssues #IndianFilms #IndependentFilm #FilmProduction #ImpactfulStories #WomenFilmmakers #IndianFilmmakers #AdolescentGirls #PandemicImpact #Storytelling #MotivationalJourney #CinemaforChange #FilmIndustry #SocialImpactFilms #EmpowermentStories #BehindTheScenes #PodcastInterview #InspiringWomen

Transcript

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 0:00

Suddenly, we decided we're going to make the film He even bought a camera. Khud shoot kr lete hai But I'm like, no, I don't think that's possible

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 0:11

how was that experience working with Vikas and Neena

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 0:15

this is the time when Neena ji was Looking for work. she came to Banaras and we were already started the shoot​guess what? We don't have a sari. We all the saris are all colored. So, Ab Hum Kya Kare

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 0:26

Oh my God.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 0:27

If I go into doing something, I will make it happen.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 0:30

when you want something with a pure heart, then even God conspires to make it happen,

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 0:38

​Hello everyone. Welcome to Indian Community Podcast. I am Rahul Mehra with my co host Amit Gupta. Today, we are thrilled to have with us the extraordinary Poonam Kaul. With over two decades in corporate marketing for giants like Nokia, Apple. PepsiCo and Microsoft. Poonam made a bold transition filmmaking with her own studio, House of Omkar. Her short film, Pinky Ka Basta, shines a spotlight on the critical issue of girls education the impact of pandemic. Her work not only entertains, but also inspires change in the society Poonamji, welcome to the Indian Community Podcast.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 1:31

so much for having me over.

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 1:33

So Poonamji, my first question is what motivated you to add filmmaking to such an illustrious corporate career? Was there a specific event that led to this decision?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 1:45

Thank you for, calling it out as an illustrious career. Since the time I started working, I think one of the things that really drove me was the fact that and I think that's been the driver for me to, I need to have a spring in my feet when I come to work. So I think. That's what drove whatever I did in my career. And similarly, you know, when I was when we decided to make films, um, this is a book by Vikas, Vikas Chef Vikas Khanna, who most of you know as the Michelin star chef with now a new restaurant. five months old yesterday in, in New York city, Manhattan and called the bungalow. So Vikas and I worked together for years and he's mostly been writing the books related to food. This was last color was his first fiction. And again, it was inspired by something that we saw when he was writing his book called the Utsav. And, it's Utsav is like a huge compilation of festivals across the country. And that's when we went to we went to s we went to lots of places where we were talking about food. And it was one of those moments that, you know, very, very emotional moment I would say when we saw some of the old women dead who were you know, just left to. By the kids, some of them were just left at the railway stations. Then the kids told them that they would come back soon. And they never came back and they were women with they were, they were really, really tough stories to listen to, but they all got excited with the food and, you know, then Vikas and all of us as a team made food for them. And that's when he started writing this book called The Last Color. And I remember when I first read the book, I, my first reaction to Vikas was. This needs to be visual and you know, we were like yeah, okay, we'll think about it. But then when I read it again I was very sure that we have to make this into a film and I'm not a filmmaker because has done films he's made documentaries and I have been behind the scenes, you know, advertising films or you know, other films, which is, when we realized that, you know, we need to make this into a film. So, you know, initially we approached filmmakers. You know, directors, because we were like taught from the industry. And so we approached. directors, we approached a couple of them, met them. And then I realized that Vikas was not, he was just too much into the film. You know, I was very passionate about the film and so was Vikas, but he was just, just into the film. So whoever, as a director, we realized would come on board, would have a tough time managing that. So that's when we said, let's do it on our own. And you won't believe when we said let's do it on our own we the first time, the background score of the film, and that was being created because suddenly calls me from, you know, one of the school studios in Old De and says, I've been a deja old, old America record. That's how it started, you know, so, and I, I remember it was winter, I landed up somewhere in Old Delhi in some studio, but there were kids and that actually is the it's, it's the Tandav sung by the little girls and Tandav is normally sung by you know, boys, men actually. So, so that's how it started. And so like, you know, I, I don't think there was like this big, huge moment where we decided that now I'm going to set up a studio. So, it's one of those things that just kind of transitioned. Into saying, okay, I think this needs this. And and then when, when we set up, so my sister and I set up a house of Omkar, I don't think I want to call it a production house because that's not, that's kind of limiting what we're trying to do. I have been very, very passionate about Social issues that I personally believe where, you know, it's not about how many people can impact it's about saying, you know, thinking what, what can I do? And that's how House of Omkar was set up with that. Whether at that time it was for films, but we also realized that the kind of films we can do can help drive change. We are at that cusp in the country today. And again, House of Omkar, like I said, was Omkar is my father's name. And you know, when that's the, that's the only name that came to our mind between me and my sister. And that's how my filmmaking career started. That's a long answer. Does that help?

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 6:18

problem.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 6:20

Okay. Tell me to cut short, huh? Because I can just go on.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 6:24

so I'll tell you although it was a long answer, it was there was. There's a lot of emotions or, know, layers of emotions there. And finally, when you told us what the House of Omkar stands for, right? And that gave me goosebumps. Okay, I feel that was a beautiful story the way it has. It has come through, right? And fact, Rahul and I, when we started off. Indian community. It was also very fluid and dynamic. Like, like you said, we were conversations and one led to the other. And when, you know, we, we actually said, okay, let's record whatever we're talking and put it up on YouTube. Right. And that's how the Indian community podcast

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:07

Yeah.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 7:08

started off.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:08

Yeah.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 7:09

having a casual conversation, which we said, okay, let's record this and go live. And,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:14

You know, you're inspiring me to do this because my sister and I often when we are in the car, we are like, this can turn into a podcast because we are like, you know, sometimes, okay, this is, you know, taking apart things or just being the gossip girls and there is so much content. Sometimes you realize,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 7:34

yeah, absolutely. If

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:36

okay, this is not,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 7:36

ever decide that you want to get a podcast started, do let us know. We've had some experience in this space.

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 7:44

record it, I'll come with a camera to shoot.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:45

I'm sure,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 7:48

Yeah. So Rahul, Rahul is in Delhi, so he can definitely help you. So

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:53

yes,

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 7:54

Yeah,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 7:54

we should definitely meet.

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 7:55

you stay? Yes. Great. I'll also go ahead.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 8:02

and you collaborated. There is one other if I may say, in that movie, which is Neena Gupta, right? And, and getting Neena Gupta to agree to a story like that that would have also been another story. There must be another story behind getting G to,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 8:19

Yes.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 8:19

you know, agree to that movie. So how was that experience working with Vikas and Neena and, and getting them to come together to, to make something as beautiful as The Last Colour? Correct.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 8:34

Like I said, you know, we were interviewing other directors, other producers to you know, make the film. And then suddenly, you know. We, we decided we're going to make the film because actually even bought a camera. I don't think he said this ever. He even bought a camera. Khud shoot kr lete hai hai he bought a Sony red, but I'm like, no, I don't think that's possible. I think we need proper camera people. And then, you know, so then we had Jitendra Mishra, who's our you know, he's the third in the triangle. He's the only person who's from a film background between the three of us. And, He's actually been he's founder of a company called cinema for good. And he is also president of all the actually the biggest children's festival is a festival director for that in India. So he was a friend and he came initially, like I said, you know, it was very, you know, People just coming together to help. So he joined us initially to, and though, to be honest, Ika has, because he's been behind the camera he's shot a few documentaries before. One of his documentaries is also part of the Howard curriculum. And plus he's also been on Master Chef. So, you know, he had a lot more camera experience than I definitely had. But then, you know, when we started. There were lots of decisions and lots of things that we did at that time, which, you know, now when I think about it I can actually write a backstory, a book on the backstory. When Neena ji, for example, came in, so Vikas knew Neena ji, you know, she was doing a, she had done a film in the US where Vikas, I think, you know, they got to know each other in the US. So when he reached out to her, this is the time when Neena ji was. you know, coming back to her, the current brilliant phase that she's in. You know, living up at the moment. So this is, this is a time, but I, who had not happened. Okay. And she wrote that post. If you remember on Instagram that I'm based in, I'm, I'm looking for work. And I have so many years behind me. So that's how, you know, we connected with her and we reached out to her and, you know, when she came to, Our shoot, we told her to come to, once we met her, she kind of agreed then but she wasn't like confirmed, confirmed. So, So then she came to Banaras and we were already started the shoot phe. So our, the good thing with, with our shoots is that you know, we, we actually follow what I call the GTM way of working in marketing. So so, very, very different from how, you know, long production things get set up. So we told her, so she came to just check us out that time, you know, are they even. You know, is it worth my time also? So she came with her husband, I remember. And, we were shooting with some actors. And the whole scene was, it's a scene in the film where, you know, they, they, the, all the women play with colors. And we had only a limited number of saris. And the entire shoot was done in a day. So she came and Vikas said, Take a look test. Take a look. So, you know, so she was like, okay. And guess what? We don't have a sari. We all the saris are all colored. So, Ab Hum Kya Kare and so you won't believe it, but because actually went in and there was a So he just stitched up two chadars and he's a multifaceted guy. He's, he's stitched up two chadars and gave it to Neena ji. She wore it. And that actually is the cover shot of them. And if you see the cover shot where she's wearing that white saree with all the pink on her, that's the cover shot. And it is the, it is

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 12:13

Oh my God. And you can't, can't tell. I mean, if I look at that shot, I can't tell.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 12:20

Yeah, it's a patla, malwala, malwala chaadar hota hai na. So it is that. So from Neena ji, then, you know, then she agreed. She realized, she saw they were all around her. People were just passionate about what they were doing. And I think she just felt that. And and she said yes to us. And so that was her coming on board. But I think what was also important was every character that we picked in the film. The protagonist in the film is Neena ji and Choti. It's a story of a nine year old girl. We, you know, did some 2000 auditions. We weren't able to lock our Choti. And and we did, you know, we got a production house to help us, you know, the line production, et cetera. And we just weren't able because all the kids that we were meeting, we're all geared up for TV and, you know, they would be in that zone. So, and we wanted Choti to be absolutely raw. So again, the the, you know, girl who did the role of Choti has never faced camera before. And we picked her up in a school in old Delhi. We actually went to a school where, you know, we were talking to the kids there and we saw her and we knew she's our Choti. And you know, then speaking to her parents, her principal and everybody to get her to, you know, agree to do the film. And there are, imagine that girl has never faced camera before. Never. She had never faced camera. I mean, we sat with her in our own way to, you know, get her trained and we fast spent hours and hours with her. But you know, like we really worked with her, I think for about two months to get her to that space. But she is outstanding in the film. If you've seen the film, she's absolutely, she gives the, the experienced actors a run for money in that film. And she's this little nine year old girl. And so she was there, then even the role of Anarkali,, who's a transgender. So like everybody told us, you should not, you should take an experienced actor. You know, it can be either ways, if you don't have the right actor, again, we were convinced that we will take a transgender for the role and not someone who's because I, I just believe that that's the right thing to do. And you know, so did with us at that time. And we actually got the lady who plays Anarkali is someone who's, who's, she's an actor. Yeah. She's an actor. a very, very good actor. And she did a damn good job. So I think all the decisions that we took, and I think that's the beauty of running your own show, running your own studio, is that you're not, you decide, because when you have that vision, that this is what we want to do. And you know, this is, this is our mandala and how you play it up and restart all over again, if needed. You possibly can't do that if you have a well established big production house. So, so, yeah, so that's how the film journey started.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 15:21

And how was working with Neena g? You know, when she got,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 15:25

Oh, shit.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 15:26

you know, with the story that you just described to me, I'm imagining what she went back and told Saba, right. That, know, marry right. And I'm now doing a movie with them, so. I'm just imagining what that conversation would have been between.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 15:48

Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. No, actually not. Sorry. One more thing. If you see, and I think that's another, the, the, like I said, you know, the beauty of being you're having your own and not having the rules of this is how it is to be done. There's a kid in the film he's basically the romantic interest of Chhoti. We show them as two kids playing together and then he grows up and there's just one shot where we kind of close the story. So that kid again, you know, we are a small production house. So I was like, you know, we'll take it. We'll see him in an acting school in Manaras because there are two shots in the film. So again, Ika and I, and a couple of us went to the, you know, guard. We were sitting on the guard and I saw these two kids, two boys playing there, and they were like, you know, KA they were like, you know, on the guards take Henry. They live on the guards, you know, so, and this kid was so amazing that we actually increased the length of his role in the film. Again, the only challenge was he wanted to become, we had to tell him you know, that time cast is old. So, but again, an outstanding character. So I think that's the thing about you know, setting up your own production house, having your own you know, you follow what you think. is, is right. Absolutely.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 17:24

That's great. And when you and Vikas chose this subject, right, you must have also had opinions, right? Because there were so many other genres that you could have chosen to, you know, in and when you explore a theme that is as sensitive as this especially in, in a country as diverse as us, right? what were your thoughts? Was there fear? Was there anxiety? What were you and Ika thinking? How would people react to it? You know, how will people react to a movie like this? Because it's a sensitive topic. You, you don't see everybody making content in, in this space. So what were your thoughts and those conversations between you and because on that subject,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 18:14

I'm trying to remember because I think when we decided we were going to make the film I don't, so arguments, mixed opinions, on any of the projects that you know, the two of us work. I think. We fight a lot more than we we argue a lot more, but I think end of the day we, so the one thing that both of us and Jeetu, Jitendra, we were clear, all three of us were clear is that this is not going to be a rona idh bhone wali film. This will not be a film that shows India in you know, this is this elephants and snakes and widows and, you know, traditions and casteism and rituals wali film. This will be a film that. that will show India in its beauty. So if you see the film, I, and I'm, I'm, maybe I'm just being a little prejudiced and a little biased, but I don't think anyone has shown Banaras like the way we have shown. There are flaws in the film. When I look at it now after doing, you know, three, four films, there are flaws in the films. There are things that we could have done better, but I don't think anyone has shown Banaras the way we have shown Banaras. And I think I think somewhere there was some divine intervention for us that things would just fall into place, you know, and shooting a widow story in Banaras in a place where, you know, there've been other films that have been shot and got stopped and, you know, we shot the film there. And we had lots of issues, but we were kind of, something used to happen and we would kind of, you know, circumvent that. And I remember once there is a scene in the film where one of the actors is coming from this you know, a step well, and we lit up the whole well with the us. And then, you know, some group of people came and told us to stop and, you know, and all of that. And. So, you know, we spoke to some more, some other people and kind of, while this was happening, they just went over the step well and stopped everything. But, you know, it went off, but I remember within 15, 20 minutes you know, we, we had some locals also helping us, the issue got sorted. And I remember. The cast was doing it. I was doing it. You know, there were a couple of us who were just then lighting up all the diyas all over again because we knew light khatam ho jayegi and we need this light. And I think again, when we shot the dance sequence in the film we were just going around looking for the right place where we can capture Ganga in its glory. The sun came at the final day of the shoot. The sun came perfectly at that time when Neena ji takes her first step. There is no light. There is nothing there. Other than sun got delayed a little that day to come and we got this light in this best. So, you know, sometimes you think about it and you're like, there were other things, a lot of other things that play. And I think because we were doing it and I personally believe if you're doing something for the right thing and you have the right intentions, there is things kind of fall into place. And I think that's what happened with the entire film. I mean, I, I remember when we initially decided Ham, I was the one who was very skeptical and we finished the shoot in 21 days. And I was working in PepsiCo at that time. So I was literally doing coming to the shoot over the weekend, taking two days but we shot back to back and did it.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 22:01

Poonamji of the Paulo Coelho quote, right, which was also made immortal by Shah Rukh Khan, when, when something really,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 22:12

right. That

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 22:13

then the world conspires to make it

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 22:16

was

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 22:16

right. But I

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 22:17

absolutely, absolutely.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 22:18

I, I would add a couple of words to that quote, right. When, when you want something with a pure heart, Right? Then even God conspires to make it happen, right? Because getting the sun there getting all these hurdles to be smoothened out. I feel that. that is because there was a noble intent there, right? So that's when it goes a level further and it's not just the world, but even God was conspiring to make it happen.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 22:48

I certainly think it was, I. I think as a team, so I am not I am, I'm not very religious. I pray of course, but I'm not, I think religion has a space inside the house and not on the street. So that is one of the things, but I, it was unbelievable when I, when I was, when Vikas was going for Ekis and he would say, and Vikas is not too much of a religious person either. But he would. Tell me, you know, Ganga Ganga, you know, everybody says, when you go to Banaras, everybody says Ganga Maa Ki Kripa Ganga Maa Ki Kripa, you won't believe, he would call me and say ki yeh wala shoot toh na, it is just Ganga and it actually, when you think about it, it was, I don't know, there was some, I, I, I just think there was there was some divine intervention for sure, to help us make this film

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 23:42

Tell us a little bit about

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 23:43

and I think,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 23:44

venture, which is Pinky Ka Basta. Again you and Vikas have come together to create something very beautiful and even the subject is very interesting. I don't want to talk about it. I want you to talk about it because you'll do the best justice. Tell us a little bit about Pinky Kabasta. And of course, we'll make sure that all the links to all these Movies are provided in the description of this video. So, people who are watching this can also go in find these beautiful movies, but tell us a little bit about Pinky Gabasta and what inspired you to this subject.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 24:20

so, Actually Pinky Ka Basta was the starting point to me was, I was I had quit Apple just when COVID happened. So 31st March, 2020 was my last day in Apple. And I went home thinking, you know, I'll take a break for a couple of days and you know, come back and, you know, look for some other corporate role. I needed like a break at that point, but then COVID happened. And, and I was stuck in Jammu for almost eight, nine, nine months. And yeah, so, and that is the time when Jammu didn't have, because of the article 370, there was hardly any Wi Fi working, it was 2G. And so the only good thing was that we had a, I'd got a Wi Fi at home just a month before that. And then COVID happens and think about it in a small town. There is no connection. Your phone is only got that much. And and I was feeling very helpless at that time too. You know, I wanted to do something in Jammu and I didn't know people there. Like I didn't have a, I mean, I have a family network there. I didn't have working network in Jammu. So, but then, yeah, things improved. I think we were, got the first broadband in our area. And I think my house and my cousin's house was the first house to get that. And that's when I started working a lot on. COVID related things. And I ran one of the longest longest serving behavior change campaign on masking on vaccination. Lots of issues. I raised a lot of money at that time which I've never done in my life. Okay. And so I raised money for all these communication related activities. I also set up something called Ek Desh, which is our social vertical under House of Omkar. And, so when I came back to Delhi, I think the trigger point for me was our security guard here had he was I think, I think, I think I'll rephrase this. So I'll just ask me the question again, because otherwise it will become too long ending. What was the question again? Sorry. Pinky avastha. It will take me a lot of time to come to Pinky Kabadha. If you can just ask me the question again. Yeah.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 26:35

So, Poonamji, your latest movie, Pinky Ka Basta, right, is, is a very interesting subject as well. It's not, it's not again a common subject that somebody would explore. So how did that thought come to your mind and what inspired you to make this movie on Pinky Ka Basta and what is it all about? Okay. So, because you're the best person to tell us more about it.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 27:00

So, Pinky Ka Rasta was actually started while COVID was still on. And I had just quit Apple, gone home you know, thinking I'm taking a break for a couple of weeks before I, you know, come back to Delhi, but then COVID happened and I was stuck in Jammu for a couple of months and that's when I started working on a lot of COVID related projects. I started volunteering a lot on COVID. all COVID related projects. And but those were more behavior change campaigns around masking, vaccination. And that's where we, again, in Jammu, while I was in Jammu, I think April, April, 2020 is when I set up something called Ek Desh, which is the social vertical under House of Omkar. But I, thinking of a stop you know, the trigger point for me was our security guard in Delhi. You know, I called him and I you know, if he needed any help or anything. So he said, and he has two daughters and and a son. And and I was like, He's like, so, and he continued to be here and you know, and once I came back to Delhi, I said and how are the girls doing that school? So, and I was like and both the daughters were doing really well while they were in Delhi, but his point was you know, the school is very far and they were in ninth and ninth and 10th, eighth and 10th at that time. He's a school re apto, you know, and I was, I was, I just flipped and. You know, just get them back here. We will take care. And my mom is has been an educationist. She's she retired as a professor and my mom would be her first question. Whenever, you know, she would meet the security guard always used to be on video, but I think, you know, this is, this is her standard. And I told her as well, and she was like, she, she was, she got very mad at him, but you know, that was the state and that was the state of affairs everywhere, especially in these in. underprivileged and I mean, I would say lesser privileged backgrounds. So, and when you, when you think about it, when you think about it deeply, and I'd worked with the adolescent girls earlier as well, when I was in PepsiCo I had worked on a project in a district called Banaskanta. Again, the same set of issues, adolescent girls because what happens is, you know, while the government is doing a lot, and I would say I'm a, I'm a big advocate of. the steps that the government is taking. But I think there are some things that people also need to do as parents. And it's always easy to drop the girl. You know, it's always easy to say, she's not my, And I think COVID aggravated that. So I, I personally, if you think about the numbers, there are some really, really stark numbers. 11 million girls across the world have dropped out of school. Thanks to pandemic. That is the aftereffect of pandemic. It's like a silent pandemic. Nobody's talking about. It's almost loss of a generation because, you know, girls. If you have a girl in the family who's educated, she will ensure that her children are doing better than her. Yeah, you know, so if she's not educated, like some similar, like my, my security guard's wife is not educated. You know, Hiralal and his wife and Hiralal ki bibi ko ne padhai nahi karhi hai. She doesn't understand the need ki padme kyu hai ladki ko. Hiralal ne thodi bahut padhai karhi hai toh usko thoda bahut padha diya usne. That is it and that's done or pandemic. And that's happened everywhere. So think about it like this. 56% of the girls anyways drop off after when they reach class 11. So for every a hundred elementary schools, when I say elementary, it's class one to eight. There are only 14 secondary schools and there are only six higher secondary schools. So may I say a problem. 47 percent of the schools for girls don't have wash facilities, which is drinking water, sanitation, hand wash. They don't have that. Toilets. They don't have that. Then you have I think 30 percent plus don't have boundary walls, 18 or 20 percent schools don't have female teachers. So, you know, when you are in the hinterland, you don't have boundary walls. For example, female teachers play a big role there. They don't have teachers or so. These are all layers that are already existing. Add a pandemic to that. So that just messed up the whole thing. Like India had 23 million child rights. Okay. And if you get married earlier, you have, you know, adolescent girls get married. There are million other issues that happen. Abortions. early pregnancies, malnutrition. So, I worked in Banaskanta in Gujarat at one point in time when I was in Pepsico, we tried to get again for adolescent girls get them back because they were, there was, there was an inherent malnutrition issue there. And the government had tried everything, you know, they had given them free milk, the milk would not reach the girls. They had given, they gave them fortified milk that would reach the brother and the father, never reach the girl. So, so, you know, they were when we were talking about Tropicana at that time, which was, you know, on our iron, which was about helping, you know, increase the iron intake. And then we realized that that's when the girlfriend told us, can you help us here? So when I studied that issue, so this was almost, you know, already issues hai, aur pandemic aa gaya upar se, so it just amplified it. And it, it was, it was really you know, really, really sad when you see so many girls who, you know, who have dreams. And everything is just, you know, they get pulled into household works, work, they get pulled into you know, the whole internet issue and that's what we try to bring out in the film as well. There is a gender gap, there's a gender divide there as well, 49 percent men versus 21 percent women have access to the mobile internet. So similarly, if you look at the in the, during the pandemic, when the school online schools started, if there's one phone that goes to the sun. You know, the girl will figure out her way. And to be fair, you know, again, you know, the government did a lot of stuff. I think it's where the issue also is, you know, they can create the ecosystem. The people have to do that. People have to, and which is where I think that, Agar Ladki Ko Padhao Ke Toh things don't move. Other people don't take, A step forward. So that's what we try to do with Pinky. What we are trying to do here is we created this film and We've, you know, kind of created an ecosystem of NGOs. There are issues like this. So there is nutrition is an issue for girls. Skilling is an issue for girls. Like, for example, these 11 million girls globally that we are talking about. Voh aap school wapas. But can we skill them? Can we do things to help them? At least make them independent. Can we make them self reliant? So, give them some skilling. So there are NGOs that are working on those kinds of issues as well. It is a bracket that just drops off. You know, like till class eight and nine, and this is a thing that just drops off. So I'm hoping that with thinking of us now, we are. able to bring this issue up and get people that even if you're able to support one girl, I would say that's job done. So

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 35:19

So true and so thankful for you to be so observant of things around you, right? And also those steps to make those changes, right? I am curious, did Hiralal's daughters get back to school?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 35:39

the younger one has, I think I've just pushed him a lot. So the younger one has, the elder one is not, she's not going to come back to school. I think she's also kind of crossed that secondary school age. Like he, we've got a a cycle. So that they could go to the other village because the class 10 school is in the other village. So yeah, that's the other school's distance. So we got a cycle, we got two cycles, which I'm told the younger one has been used by the son. So, but at least one is back in school

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 36:18

Have

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 36:20

I keep on talking to her. I you know, even his son actually is he's very bright. Like he called me and. From, suddenly he sent me a quick question in Hindi. So, our Hindi is not that good. And then he called me and said, You will answer this, right? Okay. But I know the younger daughter is here.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 36:44

you introduced them to AI?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 36:46

It's too hard. You know, all of these things in villages is still very, very far. And I see that not just here, not just in this issue, there's another startup that I work with where we help that's my day job actually, where we help people get jobs. It's not social impact, but it's a, it's a, you know, Proper startup. It's the antithesis of ocre indeed. But again, we are in tier two, tier three cities working in tier two, tier three cities in up. But you see this everywhere and it's a lot is changing, but a lot of issues still remain the same.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 37:25

And I'll tell you, Poonam, how I, got introduced to you. So there's a small story there. So we are also of that opinion of, you know, one, one India, one community, right? So the reason we started off with this whole Indian community is that we said, okay, okay, You know, here I'm in the U. S. I see North Indian Indian community, South Indian Indian community, Tamil Indian community, there's a Malayalam, you know, Kerala Indian community, kinds of different versions of the Indian community. And essentially what, what happens there is those are really great platforms. For people to still get connected, right? But then they're, they're focused on a specific audience. We said, okay, can there be one Indian community? And that's, that's the, the conversation that Rahul and I were having where can there be

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 38:21

hmm.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 38:21

Indian community? community, which is global. Intent

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 38:24

Yeah.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 38:24

bring people together, bring ideas together, share these stories like, you know, what you've been sharing with us today. that's when we said, okay, let's do this thing. Let's try to build that one Indian community, which is, which serves People you know, we, we are not biased by, by age, by caste, by, by color, by origin,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 38:47

Egypt. Yes. Yes.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 38:49

anything, right? So we're, we're trying to,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 38:51

I think much.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 38:52

and, and when I saw a post that you had shared about Ek Desh and I was like, okay, hang on, what is this? Right? So I was like, okay, then. When I went further, I realized, Oh my God, this is not just this, there is so much, you know, behind this. And I said, okay, I must speak with Poonamji and figure this out and, and talk to her about what she's doing. And I, I must applaud everything that you're doing, everything that you've shared with us. All the content that you're producing is very difficult to produce. Right? There are, yeah,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 39:25

Glamorous.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 39:26

and that's, that's the difficulty, right? It's very easy to say, okay, I'm going to go and create comedy or you know, action or romance and drama and all of that stuff, but you're not doing that. You're taking these bold, difficult steps. And it's not just for you. You're, you're doing this for, there's a, there's a greater good involved over here. You know, the, the society at large and it's not easy to be on, in this mission, right? Me and Rahul, we tried to do this. We, you know, we would be, we are at baby steps, whereas you're, you're kind of in that marathon. Sprinting forward. I would say based on everything that I've heard so far. Okay.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 40:09

you for that. Even Ekdesh when that came up you know, if you remember when COVID happened and Rahul, maybe you would recall. I remember when I spoke to some folks in the government I was told, Aap kuch masking pe bana sakte ho? And I was like, masking sakte hain? You know, because that time even the surgical masks.

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 40:29

Right.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 40:30

For one mask. This is April. Remember?

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 40:33

Sure.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 40:34

so a couple of us actually came together and when we set up Ek Tej, the idea was I don't want to be an NGO. I can't be an NGO, but can I be the you know, the enabler for ensuring that people are getting the right information? So whether it was masking, whether it was around vaccination, I mean, we did so much work at that time around masking that people would refuse to wear a mask and everybody in the country from you know, from the prime minister to Akshay Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, and everybody was saying mask, you know, so, so there's a whole story behind that also. But I think somewhere because of my background being you know, marketing storytelling. And I think that's where I realize now, you know, I don't think you think about it when you're growing up. Now, when I think about it I think it's all about telling these little stories. Masking also, I tried to tell a story because you know, what we realized was we did a survey. We actually did some research across some 20 cities and we realized that you know, when you ask people, There was no one wearing a mask. So that's when you put your research hat on. And we asked people, you know, this is the typical thing you do in research. And they said, so your numbers straight away came down from one compliance from 92, 93 percent to 48%. And then we approached the whole thing with not getting an ambassador. We got soldiers. The whole concept was around Corona soldiers. That you are a soldier in your house now and your fence wall is the boundary line. So, you know, we had this whole conversation for three years from Corona soldier campaign to you know, where we adopted some villages, we made them a hundred percent mass compliant. We got people to draw Rangoli and say, this is the, You know, because this is my boundary line. So, you know, we build that whole thing. And that's, I think that's when I realized that that's what I love doing. You know, that's where I started my journey as a, as a entrepreneur. And I'm working with startups and organizations building this whole, their brand story. And so I think. My day job is telling stories for brands and organizations. And those stories are like, you know, 90 seconds to through an ad or through a press release or through, you know, any other activities that, you know, one kind of works with them on. And then my sundown job is making films and see if we can help cinema to drive change. I think as more as catalysts can I trigger something? Can I create an ecosystem like for Pinky Kapasta? That's what we're trying to do. So,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 43:17

That's great. And is

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 43:23

can you tell us something about about your upcoming project, imaginary rain? What new stories and themes are you exploring in that

43:32

Thank you Imaginary rain

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 43:36

rain actually started when I was still in Apple and this is pre COVID we shot the film and we thought and I, I actually quit Apple at that time. And it was one of the trigger points for me because I realized that when I was in Apple, when you were in Apple, you were in Apple, you can't do anything else. So when the shoot for the second film started under my production house, and I'm not at the shoot, that was something I just couldn't handle. So, and then, you know, Shabana ji agreed to play the protagonist's role. And I was like, you know, I might not get another chance in my life to work with you know, a legendary actress like her. And so between that and Apple, I think my film. One and I quit. So I literally landed in the middle of the shoot. And so that film is again about a 65 year old immigrant chef based in New York. And she runs this very small hole in a wall restaurant and And that shuts down because her lease gets over. And but she's for her again, the, the, the kitchen is her temple. That's where she comes alive. That's where she's, you know, she's, she's, she's in her own space. And so when that shuts down, you know, she's emotionally, mentally completely distraught. But you know, her family is like a husband, other family members, other than her daughter, are like, Acha Hua Kya Hi tha somose he to banati thi which is how mostly and this film actually is not so much about the kal hona ho, kind of a glamour this is more about the underbelly, it's more about the it's, it's, it's, picks up a lot of issues around skin, around bullying, around you know, issues that small chefs, women chefs face, not just in the U. S., but everywhere. So, so she comes back home. She comes back to India. She hasn't come to India for 25 years. So this is for her, the pivoting point in the film. And then, you know, she goes back to the U. S. and her nephew who's who loves her and he's, he wants to become a chef. So they both win a Michelin star. So, so it's a story of hope. It's a story of resilience. It's a story of, perseverance and told through the lens of a 65 year old woman. Again, like I said, you know, 10 years back if someone had told me that I'll be making films with no Salman Khan and no you know, A lister actor, but, It's a Shabanaji film. So,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 46:15

that nephew Prateek Babbar? Is Prateek playing? Correct.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 46:20

no, Prateek plays a, Prateek is, when she comes back to India, she thinks she's very scared, you know, and I think most of the you know, immigrants, Indian immigrants who, when they come back to India, if they don't have family, you know, they don't know what to come back to India for. Parents nahi hain, family nahi hain, kis le jaunga? That's the space that she's in. Ki main wahan kya karunga? But she's made a commitment to her son in the film who commits suicide. And she has made a commitment to him that she will come to she'll take him to Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar. So she comes to fulfill that. She wants to close that cycle. And when she comes here, she's very scared. But she meets people here. She meets, that's India for you, right? She meets a family. She meets the driver who again, there's a backstory for the driver. So Prateek plays the driver.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 47:08

it. It's excellent. And is Vikas directing this as well?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 47:13

But, yes.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 47:14

Okay. Excellent.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 47:16

All films are made under House of Omkar, directed by Vikas and Jitendra Mishra is the producer. So all three of us are producers. So that's the philosophy that's working.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 47:26

seen one post where you call yourself as the three musketeers.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 47:30

Yes. Yes. Yes. That's what we, we, we think we are.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 47:36

is this movie expected to be released?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 47:41

So, I'm hoping I late this year, early next year, late this year, next year. It

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 47:49

on screen was in Rocky and Rani. Rocky and Rani, which is also a beautiful movie. Yeah,

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 47:57

I love it. I

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 47:59

My wife Rachna, she can watch that movie pretty much every other day. If I don't tell her, don't, you know, okay. There's that there's an overload. Yeah. So we actually watched it three times in a week. Can you imagine that?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 48:11

can imagine. I can imagine. I can imagine. I've done that to Sholay. I've done that to a lot of men, a lot of Amitabh Bachchan films. So I can totally,

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 48:21

was a, it was a great combination and Shabana G was, you know, really powerful in that movie too.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 48:28

that's true, but this film, she is the hero. I'm thinking now that I don't think there is any other film in the last 10, 15 years where, you know, she's holding the film And she is just, just outstanding. I mean, she would give a shot and we would be in tears, like an emotional shot. And we would all be in tears. And she would look at us and we would be like, we are crying. Like

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 48:56

few minutes, give us those tissues, right? So that's excellent.

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 49:01

be like, is that good? Was that, was that okay? Outstanding. Outstanding. Sorry.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 49:07

So, Poonamji, you pivoted in your career from corporate to cinema that transition is not straightforward. It must have had its own set of you know, doubts, self doubt, you know, there's, there's anxiety. There is, there's fear involved, at least for someone like me, if I had to pivot like this, I would be very concerned about what I'm doing. What were your emotions at that time? And how did you overcome, any of these? And came out in, in such a strong way, right? You're, you're creating strong movies with, with strong themes. So how did you find that strength and that resilience?

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 49:45

It's not that we come from rich family backgrounds and there's a close of cash cash there, but, unlimited. But you know, I think I'm not going to say, they fall into place. And I think that's what really happens. And I think otherwise

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 50:12

and that's good. That's good. You know, that's a great thing to see, you know..

poonam-kaul_1_08-27-2024_225741: 50:17

know I can't do it. But honestly I think that's what drives me. I like picking up things which are, you know, This is not possible. And I think the good thing is that Vikas is a good folly on, you know, he's a good foil on that because he's also, I think sometimes I think we are just a lot of random people trying to do random things. And then I

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 50:44

Right. Because that when, when you're truly self-made, right? You, because if you look at both of you in that sense you, you built your careers from ground up, right? And you've, you've achieved the you know, highest levels that are possible, right? Being a CMO for apple is not a small feat, right? Being a Michelin star chef. Because it's not a small feat and you've all grown organically by yourself. That is what gives you that confidence because whatever it is, you'll figure it out, you'll make it happen, right? Because your intent is to make it happen and you'll make it happen by by putting in that effort. I'm not going to say hook or crook. I'm going to say by putting in that effort, that true intent followed by a hard work is, is where you're. And I would, thank you for all the wonderful content that you're producing and sharing.

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 51:44

And actually that brings us to the end of this episode of Indian community podcasts. Poonamji, your journey from corporate marketing to filmmaking is truly inspiring and your work continues to highlight critical societal issues. We are honored to have had you on the show today. Thank you.

amit-gupta_1_08-27-2024_132740: 52:04

And let's remember every story has the power to inspire change. We've heard so many stories today. So let's keep this conversation going. And until next time, this is Amit Gupta and Rahul Mehra signing off. Stay safe and keep pushing for progress and keep pursuing your passion. So thank you so much and see you in the next episode.

rahul-mehra_1_08-27-2024_102741: 52:24

you. Thank you.