Apple Inc’s Pixar is known for delivering animated family entertainers and introducing a new short film with the feature movie each time. With the release of The Good Dinosaur, the audience also got the chance to watch Sanjay Patel’s Sanjay’s Super Team, which was recently shortlisted for the Best Animated Short Oscar last month.
An immigrant from Gujarat, the long-time Pixar artist was completely engrossed in his world of comic books and superheroes while growing up in San Bernardino in the ’80s. Apart from his world of superheroes, Sanjay tells us that he also had another world to fit into, the world where he performed day-to-day Hindu rituals and prayers with his father. The film follows the story of a young Indian boy who is asked to turn off the TV and join his father for Hindu meditation. Irritated by the idea of missing out on his favourite cartoon show, the kid soon starts to daydream.
In a chat with us, Sanjay, who is making his directorial debut, speaks about his short film, his conflict and connection with Hindu rituals, the reason for going back to his roots and more.
You were a student when you joined Pixar. At what age did you enter the world of cartoons and animation? When did it become more than just a field of interest?
In my freshman year of high school, a fellow classmate told me about CalArts — an art school built by Walt Disney to train his animators. I knew at that moment that I wanted to go there.
This is your first short film. Tell us about Sanjay’s Super Team. How far is the short film similar to your relationship with your father?
The short film is based on my experience of growing up with my father in the US. Every morning, he would get up and worship his Hindu Gods and I would pray to mine (the superheroes on TV). I never really understood my father or his practices until I grew up and discovered South Asian art. Then I started to read about Hindu mythology and deities.
When did you decide that you wanted to make a short film? Was it always an ambition?
It was not my ambition to make a short film at Pixar. When the studio approached me to make one, I was at a crossroads with my career at the studio.
Having spent the previous decade working by day at Pixar and at night writing and illustrating picture books and graphic novels based on Hindu mythology, it felt like it was time to decide on one or the other. It was a hard decision but I decided to forego the safety and security of Pixar to pursue my personal work. This is when the studio approached me to bring my personal work to work and try and develop it as a short.
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