I'm a Master in India

Shiva and the crew left two days earlier than Biron, but arrived in Varanasi a day later.

There was nothing they could do; the railway tracks spanning over a thousand kilometers had four different gauges, requiring them to constantly change trains and transfer along the way.

After three or four days of tossing and turning, even a fit man like Lanka, who worked out every day, looked disheveled and haggard.

Taking a long-distance train journey in India in the early 1990s was a physically demanding and torturous ordeal.

However, Lanka was in high spirits, as he had finally been able to hold his head high in front of his family.

Just before he left, his family had still been urging him to give up his dream and go back to Dubai to do the fabric business seriously.

Lanka told them he was going to be a male lead, but his family didn't believe him at all.

It wasn't until he produced the actor's contract and the train ticket to Uttar Pradesh provided by the crew that Lanka's brother, Hitesh, hesitantly flew from Dubai to Mumbai.

After everything was verified, his brother, Hitesh, immediately informed their parents in Dubai of the news.

They were very excited, as if in a dream, and genuinely happy for Lanka.

Lanka also felt that the two years of suffering were worth it; he no longer had to rack his brains for excuses for not getting roles.

For instance, it's the rainy season, so filming is impossible. Ganesh Chaturthi is coming soon, everyone is on holiday, then there's Diwali, followed by Pitru Paksha, and the entire crew is shut down...

He no longer worried about the questions from relatives and friends in his hometown of Jaipur, "Why aren't you famous yet?", "Haven't you made a name for yourself yet?", "Even so-and-so is famous, why hasn't it been your turn yet?"...

Now he could openly tell everyone that he was about to make a name for himself.

Before leaving Mumbai, his brother Hitesh gave him another fifty thousand rupees. Well, that was more than three times his salary.

Lanka didn't expect to make money from this movie; what was important was that he had become a filmmaker in Bollywood.

He was full of ambition, but after joining the crew, he was extremely humble and listened to the director's instructions with absolute deference.

Lanka didn't care about money; he once told Director Shiva, "Even if the crew doesn't provide food, I will still come."

Because he was worried about getting fat from eating too well, Lanka also brought running shoes. He planned to exercise every day and eat jaggery and peanuts when he was hungry.

He also treated his colleagues in the crew with great enthusiasm, running back and forth to help them carry luggage along the way.

After arriving in Varanasi, he even paid out of his own pocket to buy packed lunches for everyone, as they hadn't had a proper meal for several days.

"Lanka, take the people to the hotel to check in."

Director Shiva waved his hand and handed the people over to him.

"Right away!"

Lanka quickly shoveled in a couple of bites of rice and got busy again.

"He's an energetic young man."

Ron smiled as he watched all of this.

"This kid is not bad; he's even taken on the work of the production manager."

Shiva was also satisfied with Lanka's performance.

"Let them rest for a day first, and then go to the countryside tomorrow."

Ron had just seen that everyone in this group looked tired.

It was clear that they had been through a lot on the journey, and if Urmila had been with them, she would probably be in a state not much different from having diarrhea.

Shiva agreed with this arrangement; the three or four days on the train had left his back so stiff he couldn't straighten it.

Ron took him and another producer to a hotel; as the main creative team, they were well taken care of, which could also be considered encouragement before filming began.

As for accommodation? Sorry, the entire crew of over forty people, including the director, were staying in homestays arranged by Ratan.

As the saying goes, the budget was limited, so they went with whatever was cheapest.

The homestay Ratan found was owned by his friend, and the accommodation fee per person per day was only 60 rupees.

Not to mention the leaky rooms, the mosquitoes at night almost overwhelmed the entire homestay.

Everyone complained constantly, but they were also used to it. This is how low-budget movie crews are; there's nothing strange about it.

After enjoying a delicious dinner at the upscale hotel, Ron, the investor, Mary and the other producers, Director Shiva, and screenwriter Ravi sat together to discuss the upcoming filming.

"The filming location has been found, it's near the city, there's a temple of Durga there."

This was also a location Ratan had scouted for Ron.

"I need to take the cinematographer to take a look."

Director Shiva was noncommittal.

Once he was in character, he became less easy to talk to. As a director, he had to be responsible for his shots.

Whether the filming location was suitable or not was up to the lens; others' opinions could only be used as reference.

Ron appreciated this attitude of his; after all, only if the movie was made well could he make money.

"Mary and I will go with you tomorrow."

"I want to go too."

Leena quietly raised her hand.

"You stay at the hotel and take care of Urmila."

Ron pressed her hand back down.

"She has her own assistant..."

Leena muttered a couple of sentences under her breath, but she didn't insist.

Ron gave her an approving look; that's a good girl.

Leena's skills were such that a few ordinary Indian men couldn't get close to her, and Urmila was in a weak state, so she had to be well protected.

"Do we need to let the male and female leads familiarize themselves with the script first? While we are out scouting locations."

Mary asked.

"No need, I've already told him the plot."

Director Shiva shook his head indifferently.

Oddly enough, the male lead, Lanka, hadn't even touched the script yet, and he didn't plan to ask the director for it.

His close friend, Raj, highly agreed with this approach, because even big stars wouldn't do this.

In Bollywood, asking the director for a script is a big taboo, unless you don't want to stay in the crew.

Directors hate this kind of person the most, "Who do you think you are? What, you think what I told you doesn't count?"

Bollywood, which seems to be the most open, is actually just as hierarchical.

After setting the itinerary for tomorrow, the few people began to check the crew's expenses again.

The budget of three million rupees looked like a lot, but it was actually not much at all.

Shiva's director's salary was 300,000 rupees, and Urmila's salary was 200,000 rupees.

Other supporting actors combined added up to another 200,000, plus producers, cinematographers, stylists, lighting technicians, and crew laborers...

The cost of these personnel alone accounted for one-third of the overall budget.

Food, clothing, accommodation, locations, props, equipment, and materials during filming could not be done without a minimum of 1 million rupees.

After a quick calculation, 2 million out of the 3 million budget was already gone.

The remaining 1 million had to be saved for post-production costs, such as music, editing, special effects, copies, and so on.

It could be said that every single rupee carried a heavy responsibility, and they could not afford to waste even a tiny bit.

To save costs, even the film used for shooting was the relatively cheaper 16mm specification.

Each roll of film was 400 feet, which could shoot about 11 minutes of footage.

Bollywood movies, even low-budget ones, generally have a running time of 2.5 to 3 hours.

If a movie is too short, the audience who bought tickets will feel cheated.

So even if they had to insert a few meaningless song and dance sequences, the director had to make the running time at least two and a half hours.

"In Praise of Durga" was also about this length, and calculated at a finished film ratio of 1:1, it would require at least 14 rolls of film.

But very few crews can achieve such a high finished film ratio; projects with sufficient budgets usually prepare film rolls at a ratio of 10:1 or 15:1.

Of course, Ron and his team couldn't be so extravagant; 2:1 was the maximum. This meant that for each shot, the actors had at most two chances.

Getting it right in one take was best; too many NGs would definitely result in scolding.

Under such frugal conditions, they also needed to prepare about 28 rolls of film for shooting.

This stuff was entirely imported; there were currently no substitutes in India.

The original price of 70 US dollars per roll of film was raised to 100 US dollars after factoring in high import duties.

28 rolls of film, converted to rupees, was about one hundred thousand. Tsk, that's equivalent to 6.25 times Lanka's salary.

During post-production copying, the 16mm footage would be converted to 35mm film after shooting was completed, which was a common practice for low-budget Bollywood movies.

It could be said that the entire crew racked their brains to save costs.

Ron never thought about increasing the budget; that was impossible and against the rules.

Businessmen seek profit; only by controlling the budget can they make money.

Early the next morning, when Ron woke up in the rolling hills, Director Shiva was already waiting downstairs.

He was accompanied by the producer and a cinematographer carrying a bag.

The three of them looked haggard, with large mosquito bites all over their arms, lips, and ears.

"How did you sleep last night, gentlemen?"

Ron, yawning, paid no attention to these details.

"Not good at all, some mosquitoes didn't get enough to eat."

Shiva said grumpily.

"I'll have someone send over some mosquito repellent."

Ron chuckled.

Today, he would personally lead the team; Ratan had gone back to the countryside to do a hemp business deal.

Without the minivan, the few people had no choice but to take the bus.

Fortunately, Ron had lived in Varanasi for a while before and was still somewhat familiar with the area.

He had also spent his middle and high school years here, and it had been less than three years since he left.

Varanasi has a population of over a million, making it a truly large city.

There are wide, bustling, and commercially active streets here; nine o'clock in the morning is rush hour, with heavy traffic and noise everywhere, a cacophony of roars, rumbling, and clanging.

The aroma of fresh food wafted through the air, and snacks with plenty of spices whetted everyone's appetite.

Ron only bought some easy-to-carry rotis and milk tea before urging everyone to hurry to the bus station.

It was called a bus station, but it was actually just an uneven open space, with no roof or service station.

Soliciting passengers was entirely up to the drivers themselves; the front and sides of each bus had Hindi writing indicating the destination and origin.

But Ron still went up to each one and chatted, asking each driver where they were going.

"Isn't it marked on the front of the bus where it's going?"

Mary couldn't help but ask.

"That's right, but it's not reliable."

Ron continued to do his own thing.

"What do you mean, the signs aren't reliable?"

"Of course,"

Ron shrugged, "Some of those drivers are going to places where no one goes, those obscure little places. Therefore, they put up signs for more popular places."

"Are you saying that the place they're actually going to isn't what the sign says?"

"Exactly, this is a characteristic of North India."

Ron smiled broadly.

"Why?"

Mary was puzzled.

"You know, because of this, people who want to go to popular places will seek them out. Then, the driver might be able to persuade them to go to less popular places. Business considerations, Mary, pure business considerations."

"God!"

Mary sighed, you never know what outrageous things are waiting for you in India.

Finally, Ron found the bus going to the Durga temple, and their group filed in, urging the driver to start the car.

This old Bedford bus, with its tired springs, swayed like a tugboat in a storm.

The roof, sides, and floor of the bus creaked and groaned, and every time the brakes were applied, there was a long, sharp squeal.

But they finally set off; the crew started working a day earlier, and Ron could also go and discuss the branch factory business a day earlier.