We sugar coat social messages in our satirical videos: Aniket

Before we tell you about Old Delhi Films, we are assuming you have heard of Ohh Dilpreeto, the desi version of Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi’s reggaeton pop smash hit Despacito featuring rapper Daddy Yankee. Because, it is the Punjabi version of this song that made Old Delhi Films, an online entertainment channel, a household name among the pop music buffs in the country.
Though the original, since its release, has been re-sung in a lot of different languages, in India it’s Ohh Dilpreeto that caused a stir online garnering a staggering 1.5 million views in a video sharing website since it was uploaded on July 20.And Hyderabad got a taste of this “phenomenon”, when Aniket Jaiswal, the founder of channel, came to the city as part of a comic book convention in the city recently.
Old Delhi Films, comprising Aniket, Sweta Gupta and Shashank Sharma, has made a name with its quirky brand of satirical and funny videos on trending topics. From classroom racism, guy problems, sexual harassment and rape, safety of women to ‘friend-zoned guys’ and ‘period-zoned girls’, they’ve tackled it all. “I always wanted to become a filmmaker. I used to make short films, but as they were not doing so well, I wanted try a new platform and amplify my fan base. This was the time when homegrown comedy channel on youtube were doing really well, so I thought this was the right genre and time to make a mark,” says Aniket, who was active in Delhi’s college theatre circuit with his theatre group Manch Tantra before ODF took off.
“One fine day, I put forward my proposal to my group and they all agreed to be a part of it and Old Delhi Films was born. Today, we pick trending topics and make sarcastic and humorous videos on them to put across our point of view. For example, we might make videos on current issues such as the Hrithik Roshan and Kangana Ranaut saga or the ban on crackers by Supreme Court in Delhi. The reason behind doing this, I feel, is because people don’t connect well if you tell them things with a straight face devoid of any satire or humour. So we sugar coat our messages and perceptions,” Aniket avers.
So, how do they engage audiences on stage? “Well, we don’t go on stage! We prefer to put our point of view across through stand-up comedians who become the mouthpieces of Old Delhi Films whenever such a need arises. In Hyderabad, we had stand-up comics Akshay Srivastava and Saransh Batra doing that job for us. They highlighted the issue of
stereotypes both North Indians and South Indians face in each other’s land. I personally believe that these
notions must originate from somewhere as there can’t be any smoke without fire. Having said that, not every Delhite or North Indian is the same and the same applies to our South Indian brothers,” he says,
signing off.