Siddhartha Dey Interview
Siddhartha Dey is a seasoned Indian screenwriter in the Hindi entertainment industry. He has scripted major reality television shows, fiction series, and grand live events, including Bigg Boss 1, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, and prominent national award shows. He has worked closely with top TV networks and prominent film personalities like Shahrukh khan and Saif Ali Khan, gaining further national recognition as a contestant on Bigg Boss 13.
Q. For years, you've been the storyteller behind some of television's biggest shows and events. But beyond all the scripts and stories, who is Siddhartha Dey? We'd love to know how you would describe yourself.
There are two Siddhartha Dey's in me. One is a genuine nationalist! Loves his country madly, loves his countrymen crazily. Likes to take his SUV and wander across the country, meet people, especially villagers, spend time with them, know their world, and, if possible, advise and help them. Loves to see the sunset with farmers returning home with their cattle and school children heading back from school. These school kids are extremely happy when they return home after school hours... you have to look at their bright faces. I see them teasing each other, jumping with joy, and running. They want to go home and play cricket, kabaddi, or football, hopefully, and not indulge in mobile phones, I pray.
The other Siddhartha Dey lives in a Utopian world. Life is permanently good in that world. I hate fights and quarrels. I was the first-ever writer of Bigg Boss in India. At that time, the weekend episodes would go live. But in the second weekend itself, I realized all that negativity and fighting were not for me. So I literally ran away from Karjat, even though the producer had locked me up in my hotel room. If you have access to those episodes, you can see Arshad Warsi (the host back then) asking me not to leave the show in the live episode itself, without the audience understanding who Arshad was asking not to leave -because at that time, people didn't know that reality shows had a scriptwriter, nor did they know me by name.
And see - 12 years down the line, I was in the same show as a contestant Bigg Boss 13. That's me. I am not rigid about anything in life. Jo aaya, usko jee lo. I enjoy the smallest things in life, like sitting on a riverbank for hours or driving solo non-stop from Vrindavan to Nagpur, while at the same time loving to travel to the most exotic and expensive places in the world. I become a child in Disneyland, when I make the most delicious mutton curry, when I see old couples walking hand in hand, or when I eat Pani Puri at a roadside vendor. I also love having expensive cars and shopping at luxury stores across the world. So life is a mixed bag. Enjoy everything and every moment. Hinduism believes that after 8.4 million useless lives, we get our human form. I want to experience, explore, and enjoy everything. Everything! Religiously, I have unimaginable faith in Christ as well as Krishna, Hanumanji, and Lakshmiji. So on a Christmas night, I make the idols of Hanumanji and Lakshmiji visit Christ's house and vice versa. That's my Utopian world. Life is genuinely good and at peace here... with entertainment, music, travel, food, and lots of romance.
Q. Over the years, you've written and been a part of so many memorable shows and stories. Looking back, is there one project or one experience that has stayed especially close to your heart? We'd love to know why.
I have written innumerable shows for “Shah Rukh Khan” (I have the exact number, but nazar na lag jaaye, so I am not mentioning it) - hundreds of them, including corporate, wedding, private, award nights, and concerts. Each one of them has been a milestone. Writing for him is my comfort zone. We think alike: same humor, same philosophy, same naughtiness. For his most difficult show, I have finished writing in a single day. It's like writing for myself. And it's a dream to see him carry that on stage in front of a thousands-strong, non-stop cheering crowd, every single time.
The same applies to Maniesh Paul (who has anchored so many shows that now every stage should have a gold statue of him), Bharti (they would love to have her statue as well, but it will need five times more gold!), and Sunil Grover.
Other than that, I like writing reality shows. It's such a beautiful experience to see unknown people come from absolutely unknown backgrounds, growing in front of my eyes and making it super big in life! Arijit Singh, Neha Kakkar, Monali Thakur, Nakash Aziz, Jubin Nautiyal, Antara Mitra, Sreerama Chandra, Abhijeet Sawant, Ankona Mukherjee, Mohammad Danish - all of them! The best thing is, only those singers have made it big whose seasons were written by me! The rest went into some kind of reality show rut, one after the other, as if that was all their life was about.
I guess I wrote for them more like a friend, a father figure, and a guide, rather than a usual writer. Going for auditions, picking up random people, turning them into winners, being a part of their success journey... it gives a real kick!
Q. Your song Ek Pal Mein is beautiful and heartfelt. We'd love to know - what inspired you to write it, and what was the experience of bringing it to life?
Thank you so much for the appreciation! I believe in love at first sight! Any beautiful girl, person, sight, scenery, or song - if you don't fall in love at the very moment of coming across it And you have given a second thought to it, then that's not love.
Like all the songs of A.R. Rahman after Raanjhanaa are a scam. Rahman is my favorite, but none of his songs after Raanjhanaa have hit even a single right chord. Not a single song from his own production 99 Songs is even known to people. But paid critics continue to write, "Rahman's songs take time to grow on you." Bro, they are songs, not algae or fungus that will grow on you! I am not saying we have done better than Rahman or comparing ourselves at all. Rahman has proved himself as an icon. But this is what happens when icons don't take their work seriously. Every film... whether Mohenjo Daro, Chhaava, Fanney Khan, Mom, Jhoota Hi Sahi, Issaq, Shikara, Beyond the Clouds, Dil Bechara, Heropanti 2, Atrangi Re, or Maidaan - all are musically colossal disasters! So, I learned from Rahman that you may be an icon, but you have to be extremely serious when you are working. Here, I would like to make it clear that in no capacity am I speaking against an icon. He has proved himself time and again. But one has to consistently deliver, because the audience believes in you, spending time and energy on your product. And the audience is God. You cannot cheat them.
Coming back to my belief in love at first sight - I wanted to pen something that makes it clear: wahi pyaar hai jo ek pal mein hua! To be practical and go by current trends, I could have kept only one antara, but I made a full six-minute song with a brilliant composition by Vraj Kshatriya and damn soulful singing by Pawandeep Rajan. Siddhant, the next-gen hero and the protagonist of this poetry, has performed outstandingly well in it. And Varsha is a gifted actress. We shot it in towns like Bhandara and Ramtek in Maharashtra to give it a more romantic and earthy look. All my songs are an ode to Kishore Kumar and R.D. Burman. I had better live up to these Gods.
Q. Looking at your journey today, we're sure it must not have been easy. What were some of the biggest challenges that shaped you, both as a writer and as a person?
Nothing is easy. If it's bringing you name, fame, and money - it won't be easy at all! I am an engineer and hold an MBA in marketing. Leaving a full-fledged job was not easy, especially when nothing was certain here. You won't believe it - on 9th December, I was promoted in my very lucrative Ispat job, and on 10th December, I resigned because I felt every promotion was taking me further away from my dream. So, I resigned, and my dream parents cooperated with me. They understood me. Even during my three and a half years of intense struggle, they never once asked me, "Aaj kya hua?" or "Kab tak hoga?" Even though my father was about to retire and we all understood the gravity of the situation, they never pressured me.
Here in Mumbai, I had romanticized my struggle. I would walk to save bus fare, but practically every evening I would go to Marine Drive or a premium mall to feel like a hero. With my hair flowing in the breeze, I would feel like a hero whose time would surely come!
And when it did come - I wrote my first-ever script for Shah Rukh Khan and Saif Ali Khan, two of my absolute favorite actors, for the Filmfare Awards night. That single event changed the course of award show writing forever. Before this, award nights used to be horribly boring with lines like "Taare zameen pe hain..." and "Mehfil ki shamma..."
You need to have patience and faith. Jesus Christ said this. Sai Baba said this - Shraddha and Saburi! And see - people dream of working with SRK all their lives, and I started my career writing for him.
Q. If you had complete creative freedom to write one story with no limitations at all, what kind of story would you want to tell?
Your questions are actually intelligent. This means you are an intelligent person.
Now replying to your question - I would always write human stories. I have met more than a lakh people personally, whether through reality show auditions or during my travels. I find human stories too fascinating.
I am currently in the process of finalizing two scripts. “One is the journey of a nobody to a very, very big somebody”, and “How absolute power corrupts a simple, innocent man until he becomes the exact person he once hated”. The other is the mother of all suspense thrillers - something that would have made Agatha Christie proud of me and kiss my hands. Or maybe my cheeks.
Q. Before we wrap up, we'd love to know a little more about your interests. Is there a book, film, or series that has stayed with you over the years or one that you find yourself recommending often?
Padosan, Mr. India, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, Chandni, Chitchor, Don, Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, Sholay, Titanic, 3 Idiots, and Dangal - these are pure entertainers. Absolute entertainers! You can be clean, beautiful, and yet riveting, compelling, and exciting enough to make people come back to you again and again.
Also watch Pather Panchali, Aparajito, Apur Sansar, Charulata, and Jalsaghar to experience a completely different kind of filmmaking.
Thank you again. Your questions were truly exciting. Loved them. It shows you know your job. Lots of love to you and to the people who will read this!
Bio
Born on April 12, 1984, in Nagpur, Maharashtra, Siddhartha Ashish Dey began his professional journey on a traditional corporate path. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and an MBA in Marketing, eventually securing a lucrative position at Ispat. However, driven by a deep-seated passion for storytelling and creative arts, he made a pivotal choice to resign from his corporate career - turning down a fresh promotion - and relocated to Mumbai to pursue scriptwriting full-time.
In Mumbai, Siddhartha established himself as one of the entertainment industry’s most versatile writers. He became a key figure in Indian reality television as the inaugural scriptwriter for the first season of Bigg Boss India, helping lay the groundwork for the show’s original format. Over the years, he developed a prominent profile as a writer for live shows, award ceremonies like the Filmfare Awards, corporate galas, and global concert tours. His close creative collaboration with Shah Rukh Khan resulted in hundreds of scripted shows, while his writing also shaped stage performances for top hosts and entertainers, including Maniesh Paul, Bharti Singh, and Sunil Grover.
Beyond scriptwriting, Siddhartha played an influential role in early-career talent shows, writing for foundational seasons of major singing competitions that featured rising stars such as Arijit Singh, Neha Kakkar, Jubin Nautiyal, Monali Thakur, Sreerama Chandra, and Abhijeet Sawant. Twelve years after working behind the scenes on Bigg Boss, Siddhartha stepped in front of the camera as a contestant on Bigg Boss 13 in 2019, earning widespread household recognition. Drawing inspiration from classic musical legends like Kishore Kumar and R.D. Burman, Siddhartha continues to expand his creative work into screenplays, original song concepts, and creative production, guided by a philosophy centered on exploring diverse human experiences, storytelling, and travel.
Interviewed by Himanshi Bhatt
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