My next stop is television: Ajay Naik

This year, after a long time, director Ajay Naik will be celebrating his birthday, which falls today, at home with family. The director, who is know for his films such as Lagna Pahave Karun (2013), Satrangi Re (2012) and the most recent Hostel Days, generally prefers to be working on his birthday. Last year, he had begun shooting for Hostel Days, which released in January 2018. “This year, it is going to be a family affair. They have planned something, but they are being secretive. I am assuming that they will be preparing a huge spread of my favourite dishes, which will definitely include aamras,” he says.

A musician by heart, Ajay recalls how he would spend his summers doing odd jobs. “I would collect all the money possible through sales jobs and other menial ones and then combine it with the birthday money given by my parents or relatives. I’ d then go and buy myself a musical instrument,” says Naik.

He adds that coming from a lower middle class family, he never wanted to burden his parents with demands. “I’d work during vacations so that I could buy musical instruments. Even as a child, I would never accept or demand gifts. I was raised in a way to never ask but work hard to earn it yourself. And, I am proud of it,” he says.

Ajay is currently working on a Hindi script and is also planning to venture into television. The Baavare Prem He (2014) director says, “My next stop is television where I will be involved creatively but won’t be directing. Television is growing as a medium and it is a very challenging and dynamic industry. However, I have a temperament of a film-maker, so I will be producing and creatively leading the team.”