New Delhi, 17 May

Costume designer Pia Benegal says she wants to diversify as a producer and take her filmmaker father Shyam Benegal's banner forward.

Known for her work on films such as 'Zubeidaa', 'Dil Se..' and 'Aligarh', the costume designer recently finished work on the first season of Hansal Mehta's 'Gandhi' web series.

Pia said she will continue to work in costume design even as she makes strides as a producer under Shyam Benegal Sahyadri Films (SBSF).

"I look forward to interesting projects as a costume designer. Other than that, I want to diversify beyond costumes. Since my father has left a legacy of films and series, I want to diversify and become a producer. I want to produce feature films, short films, TV series, etc. I'm meeting very interesting script writers and directors," she told PTI in an interview.

Pia had been a "silent partner" of SBSF for a long time with her father at the helm, but she wants to take it forward in a new direction.

Shyam Benegal, one of the giants of Indian cinema's parallel cinema movement, died on December 23 days after celebrating his 90th birthday.

"I will not be taking forward the Shyam Benegal footprint, because I can't be him. But I will do what makes me excited about stories and what I feel really touches me...

"If people are looking for Shyam Benegal's legacy being taken forward, his company is moving forward. But the exact footprint of Shyam Benegal, I'm not sure about that, because I want to move with the times and technology. I want to create a very exciting and interesting look for the future which will have a bit of me too," she added.

Pia, who served as a junior assistant to her father in both direction and production, started out as a costume designer "by accident" in the 1990s.

"He was working on a film called 'Antarnaad' (1991) which had not been titled yet. He had no money to hire somebody to do the costumes, so he came to me. He said, 'See, you're working as a junior production person. Why don't you do this for this film and give it a shot?'

"I said but I don't know how to even stitch a hook or a button. How will I make and organise costumes for actors? So he said, 'Well, why don't you just read the script and try doing the costumes?' That's how I did the costumes for my first film which was 'Antarnaad'," she recalled.

Gradually, Pia said, she fell in love with costumes, so much so she enrolled herself at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Delhi, for a one-year course in 1999.

"I wanted to brush up on my skills as a costume person. So I did that (course), and I got better at everything. That's what it was all about, just getting better and better at the skills... When I became a costume designer, I really enjoyed that whole process, learning on the job, and I did many, many films with my father. I am grateful that he gave me the opportunity, and I enjoyed working with him, so I had lots of fun times with his unit."

As a costume designer, she worked with Shyam Benegal on films such as 'Sardari Begum', 'Mammo', 'Zubeidaa', 'Suraj Ka Satwan Ghoda', 'Hari Bhari', 'Welcome to Sajjanpur', 'Bose: The Forgotten Hero', 'Well Done Abba', and his last 'Mujib: The Making of a Nation'

Asked how her father was as a filmmaker, Pia said he would hand over a script to every department, ask them to have a look at it and come back if they needed help.

"He was very good at designating. He wasn't somebody who would want to handle everything and give instructions. I thank him for that because that gave me a lot of freedom to do my research, to read, to pay attention to details...

"He gave me the freedom to do network, source, make mistakes and take the fall and then climb up and stand up... The whole thing was, 'You must learn on your own, it's not my job to help you and hold your hand'. He did the same for everybody," she added.