Filmmaker & Author Ashwin Alok Shares Insights About His Professional Career

It is not an easy task to establish yourself in every niche, it requires effort and dedication to be a multi-talented person. But, Ashwin Alok, an ace filmmaker, and writer is one such person who has been successful in maintaining the balance and has established himself in the industry with ease. With his years of experience in the industry, he has done many short films on various social topics. And, for the same has won many accolades in his name.

The virtuoso has a YouTube channel called ‘Kreative Krew®’ where he publishes his short films and other cinematic videos. Not only he is good at films, but he has also written books that have garnered lots of love from the audience. Talking about his experience and work he has shared some insights about the same in the interview.

What was your moment of epiphany for stepping up as a Filmmaker and then an author?

When our film for the UP Government ‘Derwa’ was premiered in Feb 2020, it was one of my greatest moments as a filmmaker. The premiere event was attended by around 80-100 Government officials and the film received a standing ovation twice. I was not able to make it to the awards but the very same day I got calls and emails from many people appreciating my work. Looking at this my mother said, “Ashwin it feels like your Bollywood film is released today.” And, this statement of my mother made me feel happy and motivated me to work harder.

After successfully working as a filmmaker, I wanted to write a book. Penning down my thoughts in a book was not a big deal for me until recently. It took me 3 months to write my book for which I had so many ideas already written on my laptop. I always thought about it as work that needs to be done nicely and I did it. But after the release, people started looking up to me as an intellectual mind, even my close ones. I realized that writing a book was a very big deal for them and for this they appreciated me a lot. Many of them read the book and even the manuscript before the book was published. I received feedback that said that my book actually has so many important learnings which were helpful to them and would be helpful to many people. This was the moment when I thought I did a tremendous job and felt happy.

What has been your most prized creation and why?

A documentary on PHC Derwa was our first government project which paid really well among all our previous projects. It was our entry into the government sector after which we started getting more such opportunities from the government officials directly. After that, we made many films & documentaries for the government which helped us to get more projects. Not only has this film of ours has been appreciated, but another film ‘Bread Butter’ was selected to stream on OTT platform Disney+hotstar. This was a big breakthrough for my career and I really feel proud that my work has been recognized on a large scale.

Why did you decide to title your book 'the music of silence’?

The title is inspired by solitude and the clarity of the opportunities in front of us in that solitude. I believe if we’re silent, we tend to be more focused. In that silence, if we are conscious of our surroundings and try to keep ourselves calm (silence), we can raise the frequency of our thoughts and attract the best ideas (music) in life. I call this process listening to the music of silence.

What has been the biggest roadblock that you have encountered and how did you get through it?

The biggest roadblock was the lack of vision when I came to Delhi in 2017 to become an entrepreneur and lack of knowledge on excelling as an entrepreneur. I had no one to support me and help my business grow as there was no settlement in Delhi. But after some time, I finally settled here and decided to stop looking for help from external sources and opted for self-learning to grow myself on my own. In my life, I have seen, examined, experienced, and learned a great deal. I took a lot of online filmmaking classes and improved my talents. I also began reading books and made it a habit to read every day. I quickly realized that I had gotten a long way from where I started in a short period of time. All of this self-learning assisted me in being more aware of my aims and behaviours, as well as overcoming my hurdles, which were nothing more than self-imposed mental restrictions.

The biggest roadblock was the lack of vision when I came to Delhi in 2017 to become an entrepreneur and my lack of knowledge at excelling as an entrepreneur. I had no one to support me and help my business grow as there was no settlement in Delhi. But after some time, I finally settled here and decided to stop looking for help from external sources and opted for self-learning to grow myself on my own. In my life, I have seen, examined, experienced, and learned a great deal. I took a lot of online filmmaking classes and improved my talents. I also began reading books and made it a habit to read every day. I quickly realized that I had gotten a long way from where I started in a short period. All of this self-learning assisted me in being more aware of my aims and behaviours and overcome my hurdles, which were nothing more than self-imposed mental restrictions.

Do you plan on ever converting your own book into a movie?

Someone, most likely another director, should be inspired by my novel and make a film based on it. It would be an honour to have touched someone's soul in that way, and that film has the potential to reach a wide audience.

One piece of advice that you'd like to give to budding artists?

I would like to suggest to aspiring artists that solitude is the quickest way to grow oneself, but it's also the most difficult. If you're feeling brave, go for it. If you arent already brave, work on it and then go for it. Self-learning is the second most important thing because understanding your circumstance is the key to every lock you'll encounter in life. Always be grateful for everything that life has bestowed upon you.

With such vast knowledge, he is constantly trying to make changes in society through his films. This talented person has already started working more passionately on his dreams and will reach new heights in no time.