FAIZ RAI
“I’m a Samahaarian because I believe that any fears, inexperience can be educated out and I believe in taking action.”
Faiz Rai, 24, an electrical engineer by education only; since always inspired by movies; for always to make movies and movies only.
He has acted, throughout his whole school and college life, only in 2 plays and very miniscule roles as he puts it because of his introverted nature. Then during his 2nd year of engineering, this self-claimed introvert broke the shell, coming out of his boundaries, pushed himself beyond limits and overcame his fears. So, what was the milestone, the event that marked this significant change in Faiz?
Following the suggestion of a friend he joined Samahaara theatre group for a workshop, addressing his need to experiment with something new. Though acting wasn’t exactly the thing on his mind, he ended up crossing the barrier with all the help from Rathna Shekar Reddy who led the group. The result – a wonderful play titled LAST WISH BABY, in which Faiz went ahead and performed on stage. And from there on, there was no looking back. He went on to work with Samahaara for two consecutive theatre festivals and four plays, filling in the shoes of an actor, a graphic designer and more.
He owes a lot to the group for Samahaara was what gave him the space to grow, the courage to overcome fears, the room to experiment. Despite the difference in experience and the exposure, Rathna Shekar and Anjali, the force behind the group, were open to suggestions always, receptive to their inputs. These two formed the major reasons why Faiz felt a permanent bond being created with the group and an association which will last for life. Whether one is a learner, a beginner, with stage fright or an introvert, whichever stage a person is at, he has seen Samahaara helps them overcome each of that and grow, morph into an actor, bring out that inner talent which each of them has hidden in them.
He attributes his very ability to express to Samahaara which helped him to follow his dream with a conviction and come out with Yellow Studio Works. He started YSW with another friend who shared his dream, with a sole purpose to make films and now YSW is 4 films old with their latest production Shaji which has been selected at the international film festivals of Ahmedabad and Jaipur and also has won the special jury prize at Bangalore Short Film Festival. Despite this, Faiz believes he is an aspiring filmmaker and not to be referred as a filmmaker yet.
His way to give back to what he has gained from Samahaara- the films he makes, his expression itself through those films.