Puneet Sira is a British and Bollywood feature film director and producer who formed The Foundry which is actively developing and producing feature films and a slate of highly anticipated original IP premium content for OTT platforms.. His tenure at BBC Films provided the building blocks that launched his extensive career as director, writer and producer. Since then, he’s been the Executive Producer of Channel V|Channel for the Star TV Network. He’s produced and directed several dramas for television and feature films including the cult classicI - Proud To Be An Indian, Jai Veeru and critically acclaimed Kisaan', for which he received a Best Director honor. Virat Kohli’s Super V, a Superhero animation series, directed by Puneet for Disney, Marvel HQ, Star TV Network, Hotstar and Baweja Movies is the highest rated show in the animation bracket in India..
Biography
Early career
Sira started his career as an actor in the UK at the age of nine where he worked with Rosemary Leach and Ben Kingsley as a beggar boy in Annie Besant, The Warrior's Return as part of The Velvet Glove series for the BBC, directed by Philip Saville. Puneet went on to star alongside Christopher Lee, Mickey Rooney, Oliver Tobias, Emma Samms and Peter Cushing in the feature film Arabian Adventure. He played the lead role of Majeed, directed by Kevin Connor. In the same year Puneet played Kasava Minor in the BBC series To Serve Them All My Days. In 1980 Sira was the youngest member to participate in Comex 10, a commonwealth expedition sponsored by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Founded by Lieutenant Colonel Lionel Gregory, OBE, Comex 10 was an expedition where 40 artistes from all commonwealth countries toured India performing variety acts in every city visited. More acting work followed from How We Used to Live, Why Couples Break Up, London's Burning, The Moneymen, The Park, The Betrothed and the highly acclaimed Walkers Poppadoms Commercial, The Rocking Sikh directed by Paul Weiland.
Film-making career
Sira became an assistant director at BBC Films Department on films such as Hallelujah Anyhow starring Keith David, Sweet Nothing and Can You Hear Me Thinking? starring Judi Dench. He freelanced on Flying Colors, Memsahib Rita, Blue Baby before venturing into directing his own films like Strings which he also wrote and produced. Sira was the director of the London Academy of Acting, where he would teach acting for film. He set up an actors' agency, Talent Introduction Centre, where he provided work for Asian actors in the UK. Casting director was another title to Sira's credit: films such as Jinnah starring Christoper Lee, Flight , directed by Alex Pillai, Immaculate Conception directed by Jamil Dehlavi, Memsahib Rita and Frantz Fanon – Black Skin, White Mask directed by Isaac Julien. On the American feature film Passion in the Desert Sira worked on production. Sira lectured on basic film making at Middlesex University and Italia Conti Acting Academy as a visiting lecturer. In 1998, Sira became the executive producer for Rupert Murdoch's Channel V,, producing more than 22 television shows for the channel in Mumbai. He went on to produce and direct drama for television The StealSTAR TV, followed by Sanatta and Jataka Tales for Japanese television which Sira directed and produced with his partner Vikram Dhillon. Sira went on to direct the feature films I - Proud To Be An Indian , Jai Veeru and Kisaan. As a screenwriter Sira wrote I - Proud To Be An Indian with Vekeana Dhillon. Together they have written the screenplay for the feature film Kurbani for Feroz Khan and Spiceboy for Miracle Films. Sira had written The Steal and Sanatta. Sira and Vikram Dhillon are partners in The Foundry, a production company which has developed several feature films as well as several IP for the major OTT platforms globally
Personal life
Sira married Vekeana Dhillon in 2010, an accomplished screenwriter and actress. Vekeana wrote Sira's I - Proud To Be An Indian, Jai Veeru, Kisaan and Super V. Sira has two children Shaan Sira and Simran Sira. He is the son of actor Mr. Gurdial Sira and Asha Sira.
