UMANG JAISWAL

Life lately. v3.0

Super elated to present the D-cut of “Ohhh! Ritesh!” -the Oyo Free Stays League film that I had the honour to direct with the amazing folks @jhatpat_talkies . This project was a true labour of love and I cannot thank everyone enough for the kindness, generosity and support they have shown in me and my craft. The biggest shoutout to the executioner extraordinaire @kunal4pardeshi and my godfather @ferozbkhan A big warm hug and lots of love to the entire team behind these stunning visuals- Oyo Free Stays League @riteshagar Director : Umang Jaiswal Production House : Jhatpat Talkies Executive Producer : Feroz Khan & Kunal Pardeshi Cinematographer : Leslie D’souza @lesliedsouza_ Costume Stylist : Kayal Kothari @stylebykayal Hair & Makeup : Isha Sinha Production Designer : Flying Art Cast : Sarika Sanghi, Usman Khan @iusmaankhann , Mahender Bhist, Priyanka Gandhi @priyankagandhi_0 , Rakesh Giri, Manav Sethi @manavsethi5 , Nitin Sharma @its.nitin_ Chief Growth Officer : Kavikrut Head of Brand : Nishant Jayaswal Brand Manager : Vrushika Sharma @sharmavrushika Client Team : Shashank Jain, Anushka Ahuja, Saumya Tripathi, Kritick Nayak, Chaavi, Yugal Kishore, Somya Maheswari, Rajesh Kumar, Aratrika Gupta, Apurvi Kurukshetra, Yugal Kishore, Nandani Singh, Amit Gawande Agency : Nikhil Choudhary, Shikha, Mahek Jain Music Director : Sukhamrit - Sachin @sukhamritsachin Offline Editor : Kunal Brid @brid_kunal Colorist : Dmytro Vasylenko @dima.color Sound Design : Bashab Bhattacharjee Online Artist : Vinay Amin DA : Ria Gandhi @gandhiria 1st AD : Soumil Kothari Line Production : Mandeep Mishra @mandeepmishra Costume Team : Yasthika @yashtikasharmaaa Art Team : Rupesh Pandey 1st AC : Jayesh Prakash Sen @jayesh__sen Focus Puller : Manish Mishra Gaffer : Rahul Baliyan (Flamingo Lights) Casting Team : Castingwala Company @castingwaala_company Post Producer : Kunal Patel @kp_240892 Post Houses : Nube Studios, Prime Focus Studios, AudiobyBashab, Bayowl Studios @nubecirrus @officialprimefocus @audiobybashab @bayowlstudios Accounts Executive : Pooja Panchal Boys : Yogender and Team

How am I? I’m okay.

Been exhausted since this NYE frankly 🤷‍♀️

Aarzoo ✨

Smol. Friends call me. Ask me how my health is. Sigh in relief and express their gratitude to God that I’m okay. But am I? I’m slowly starting to be reduced to a health problem in the lives of those who care the most about me. And i see why, but it makes me feel smol. Emergent situations, hospital visits and praying for my life has become our default. And when none of those things are ringing sirens over our heads, we’ve forgotten how to be friends anymore. I blame me. And the helplessness i felt. But is that really right? I blame them. And wonder how more to tell them that i miss them being just my friends. But is that right? In this world I don’t know up from down anymore and I know they don’t too. We are all trying to figure out ways to show up for each other while still trying to show up for ourselves. I wish this world hadn’t taught us that they both are mutually exclusive. I wish we remembered how to be, and feel and heal in the presence of those who were also hurting and healing and feeling. I wish emotions weren’t made out to be burdens we carry and in turn subject other people to carry. I wish speaking to each other from the truest depths of your heart was more an everyday integration than an accolade worthy act. If the pinnacle is the performance of human experience and that’s what we are all striving for, then it’s the final curtain call for me. I wish to speak, live, be, feel and heal with and amongst obstinate, loud, stubborn, safe and messy love. If there is a smol magic i believe in, it is this.

Face(s) // phase(s)

We learnt 2 things from this shoot - 1. We make laptop commercials bloody well. 2. Raj Shamani agrees with point 1. Our latest with the elite gang at Womb for ASUS Raj Shamani. Director: @writtenwreck Executive Producers: @ferozbkhan @kunal4pardeshi DOP: @akaptures Costume: Saloni Jain Hair & Makeup: @bakedbeauties05 Production Design: Namrata Basak Associate Producer: Shantal Bakshi Line Production Team: Mandeep Mishra ,Prashant Athagara ,Ananya Brand: @asusindia Client: Dinesh Sharma Agency: @thewombkicks Co-Founder: Kawal Shoor & Navin Talreja CCO: Suyash Khabya COO: Heval Patel Creative Team: Sohil Wadhwania, Paritosh Lonkar, Ankita Sawant, Kartik Iyer Planning Team: Rohit Mani Account Management: Sneha Karkera and Deepshikha Dutta Lead Cast: @rajshamani Casting: @castingwaala_company Talent: Arzoo Bhatiya, Satyam Sharma, Raihaan Esmail, Bhavya Chauhan Post Producer: Kunal Patel Offline: Sushant Jha Online: @ajinkya.jadhav05 Colourist: @sujithvijayan__ Sound: Aditya Arya 1st AD: @sasmitparkhe DA: @maherwadia Intern: @vain.zip AC: Tushar Jamtani Focus Puller: Pramod Shetty Product Shot DOP: Vanshika Singh Post Houses: Splice Studioz, TIAC Recording Studio Lights: Light & Craft Gaffer: Dadu Bamaniya Camera: Tanvi Enterprises Grip: Global Lights Production Boy: Yogendra Patel & Team

Lakshana in film. // NYE 2025

I finally met Douglas this Christmas. When we moved into our society almost 4 years ago, it was around Christmas and we were introduced to this tree as this marvel in our colony that has been a part of record books. It was this 6 floor tall thin pine tree struggling to survive in the Mumbai winters- strung all around with a plethora of mismatched lights that gave it some sort of conical semblance. I never took the record thing very seriously. Christmas 2025 was probably the worst Christmas I’ve had. While the world might think it’s inconsequential for me to be so affected by a holiday i don’t have cultural roots associated with, Christmas has ALWAYS been special to me because my parents made it feel magical. I’ve always had and decorated a tree at home. My parents put gifts for me under it. And I’ve spent many Christmas Eves awake, post a family festive movie session, waiting for Santa to visit. Which until i was well into my pre teens, i believed to be true. So when Christmas came with more complications and reality checks rather than magic, i didn’t deal with it well and somehow that’s when i met Douglas. Douglas is about 60. He lost his sister to blood cancer half a lifetime ago. Christmas was her favourite holiday too. And he made her a promise that he would never stop decorating their tree for as many Christmas’ more than her that he’d see. So now, even though Douglas lives abroad for the most part. Every year in December, he returns to his childhood home to light up this massive Christmas tree so that his sister could see her favourite festival from the heavens above. I asked Santa for a sister the year before Lochan was born and for as long as i can remember, she has always been my Christmas Miracle. I still don’t believe that tree holds a record, but on Christmas 2025, i realised it holds something greater- hope and love. To miracles.

Will always look upto @poojasauhta . She’s my sunflower. 🌻 Happy birthday to my rock.

My heart is synced to the beat I’ve decided to dance the night away So when you turn to look at me as you leave I’ll hug you good night but i think I’ll stay The soft morning sounds of laughters Not one but many, echoing through the walls The neighbour might complain tomorrow But tonight we are here in these joyous halls So when the light begins to enter the rooms And it feels like the end of a Sunday I look at the people who are ready to leave And i decide I’m gonna stay I’m walking on the beach next to my mother As my father swims in the waves somewhere My sister runs up to us like a sea princess With sand on her feet and wind in her hair I see the golden glow of the fading sun the warmth from their smiles making it’s way the shivers on my skin disappear And for a moment I’m certain i want to stay I’m on a set that’s built from scratch A world designed to fit our vision It’s 3 am and there’s a smile on our face This reality was once an imagination And the thought thrills me from within It’s Snowing indoors in Mumbai mid May And as my heart refuses to stop giggling I promise myself that I’ll stay So when it’s time to enter that place once more (The theatre I never thought I’d go back to before my first film screening at least) I extract these moments from my perishable brain And tuck them neatly into each heartbeat Because when it’s time to fight again In a year, a month, a week, today? I will remember how it felt to live MY life And I’ll fight harder so I can stay.