From a restauranteur in London to celebrity status in Hollywood, Sheeraz Hasan, founder, CEO and host of Tinseltown TV, lives the American Dream. AV’s Raj Girn had the opportunity to interview Hasan in his most revealing interview yet.
Read On…
What made you pack up a perfectly secure restaurant career and leave London in pursuit of a television career in the world’s most elusive industry—Hollywood?
My father passed away when I was 16, which forced me to work in the family business, a restaurant in the heart of London called Tinseltown Café. As a gift to my mum, I ran the business and turned it into the only 24-hour restaurant in town. Years later, I said to my mum, “Once I have delivered on this duty of mine, I want to go to America.” But I did not want to enter the United States until I had preformed Hajj (a religious journey all Muslims must undertake during their lifetime). Whilst praying during Hajj, I asked God to give me a microphone so that I could glorify his name. At that point I knew that I was ready to go to America and defy the odds.
The odds being that you had no formal broadcast experience and knew hardly anyone in Hollywood. What, then, made you think that you could pull off an entertainment show, let alone one that boasts of delivering A-class Hollywood celebrities and land a worldwide distribution deal?
People used to say to me, “Sheeraz, you are not ready for Hollywood.” But after performing Hajj, I would reply, “Is Hollywood ready for me?” There was such a gap in the market regarding truth and spirituality, so my vision was not to promote entertainment but to promote spirituality within the entertainment industry. As for me having no experience in entertainment or broadcasting before, hey, does Richard Branson know how to fly a plane?
So how did you pull it off? Tell us what happened from landing in Hollywood and getting the first episode of Tinseltown TV aired on B4U.
Here I was in Los Angeles knowing what I wanted to do, but wondering how I would manifest my vision to the world. I’d flick through all the Hollywood shows on mainstream TV and all the Bollywood shows on Indian channels. Then, one day it dawned on me—South Asians comprise the second largest population in the world and they had no direct link to the world of Hollywood. It was then that I knew that I was going to be the one to bridge the gap between the East and West by bringing the world’s South Asian market and spirituality to Hollywood, and I would do it by creating my own TV show. First, I had to get distribution, so I called B4U, the world’s largest South Asian television distributor, and pitched them the idea over the phone. Needless to say, Hari, the US country head loved the idea and asked me to fly to New York for a meeting where I told him that I would bring the biggest stars of Hollywood to his network if he gave me a weekly prime time slot for my show. Two hours later, I walked out with a signed contract, giving me a worldwide audience of over 500 million viewers in 80 countries. The rest, as they say, is history.
What is the focus of Tinseltown TV, and what makes it unique?
Tinseltown TV has a spiritual focus (created by myself and my partner, Zarina Ramzan, who is a spiritual healer in Hollywood). We wanted to bring spirituality to the frivolous world of Hollywood. Also, this is the only show in the world that is bringing Hollywood directly to the South Asian population. There is such an upsurge of interest in our culture in the West, so a natural crossover was imminent.
Isn’t it a contradictory in terms to mix such unconnected worlds as showbiz and spirituality together? What do you hope to achieve by doing this?
Celebrities are such powerful influences that fashion and charities borrow their support to promote their message. Similarly, I am borrowing their support to make spirituality trendy. This way, viewers can see that their favourite stars are also very spiritual—they see a different side to celebrity. This way I hope to encourage the younger generation to follow their favourite stars and do more good and spread spirituality to the rest of the world. Moreover, I am provoking celebrities to question their spirituality. So there is a dual purpose.
What were some of your hurdles and how did you overcome them?
To begin with, people didn’t understand what we were trying to do and it took time to convince them here (in LA) about how successful and important Bollywood is. After going out to an average of three to four Hollywood parties and events per night for the last year and ‘carrying the flag’ of India & Bollywood, I have succeeded in raising awareness about what Bollywood is.
When the chips were down, what kept you focused and motivated?
The power of prayer. It’s no joke to try and break into the most difficult industry in the world— Hollywood—but praying five times a day isn’t either, and I do that!
You have labelled your show as the number one entertainment show in the world. Is this really true?
It’s not me who is saying this; it’s the media and celebs I interview. If you are interviewing the biggest A-List stars in the world about God and their spirituality, there is only one place in the ranks— and that is No. 1.
How does it make you feel that after just one year, you are considered number one?
My mum once told me, “Be careful what you pray for as it might come true.” When I look back over the last year, I’m thrilled because every goal, every dream I prayed for has come true.
Of course, a question that everyone is asking: How much money are you making?
My company, Tinseltown Entertainment Inc., posted a small profit in 2002 and we hit about $1.45 million in sales for 2003.
In such a short time, how have you managed to attract such high profile sponsors ?
We have pioneered new advertising techniques within the show. It’s not just about giving the sponsor a 30-second commercial. We like to give our advertisers value for their money, and more importantly, we focus on results. With new technologies out there where viewers can choose to skip commercials, it’s vital to look forward to new ways to brand and promote products. The way we do this and the way we can undercut mainstream shows is by making the product a part of our show. We integrate our sponsors’ products and services throughout the one-hour show and create product and audience interaction. We are primarily focused on ethnic markets that are traditionally ignored by mainstream advertising companies, but, as a whole, the ethnic buying power is huge.
Which was your best and worst interview ever and why?
When it’s about spirituality, in my book, there’s no good or bad interview.
Who would you love to interview and haven’t yet had the opportunity to do so
I have pretty much interviewed every A-List movie, TV and music star of any consequence. Now, it’s about including a segment for the up and comers—to give them a chance to shine by promoting them on my show to a global audience. Let’s not forget —these will be the A-List stars of tomorrow.
What are some of the highlights of Tinseltown TV and your career so far?
I’ve had many:
•I’m the first South Asian to promote Bollywood to Hollywood.
•My show reaches over 500 million viewers every week in 80 countries.
•Our website (www.tinseltown.tv) receives four million hits a month.
•I won the most prestigious Entrepreneur Award at the recent TiE CON 2003 for Business Leadership of the Year by Deloitte & Touche.
•I’ve been featured in Fortune magazine in the recent Dec 03/Jan 04 issue. I got this recognition for successfully building a stable bridge between Hollywood and Bollywood.
As one of the most gutsy entrepreneurs, what advice would you have for budding entrepreneurs?
You must truly believe in yourself and never, I mean ever, take the word ‘NO’ as a reason to stop pushing. The purpose of life is to experience both the ups and the downs. What makes the difference and has the power to change your destiny is unflinching faith coupled with an action plan that can help you stay focused. This is what I believe to be the magic formula to achieve any goal. Faith is dead without action.
Tell us about your religious background in terms of how you grew up and what you were exposed to as a child.
I was brought up as a devout Muslim and I practice my faith every day. I look at religion as one global belief. We all pray to the same power,which is God. My mother and father always taught me to pray and do good everyday. The reason for so much success in such a short time is because I pray every day, and more importantly, I thank God everyday.
Why did you decide at such a young age to take the Hajj journey when most Muslims take this journey in the latter years of their lives? How has the journey benefited your life?
First of all, you don’t just go to Hajj— you have to be called by God to perform Hajj. Hajj was the turning point in my life. I learnt that there is no significance to colour, creed, sex, class or age, as within the eyes of God, everyone is equal. I’m so blessed by God to have been chosen to perform Hajj at such a young age. There are so many temptations that God puts in our path. I am defying the ultimate temptation by being a part of the most glamorous industry in the world —entertainment. I truly recommend that whatever religion you are of or decide to be a part of, that you do some kind of pilgrimage at a young age. That way you will stay focused and have the strength to resist temptations that will inevitably lead you down the path of spiritual destruction.
In your eyes, who or what is God?
God to me is the power of all existence. God is love. God is light. God is the Almighty. God’s love is truly unconditional. I believe that there is no power greater than God. Before I do business, I remind myself of this, so no matter how powerful the person I am about to meet, I am not intimidated. This way, I am able to get the most out of the meeting.
Are God, religion and spirituality the same for you?
Every human being around the world believes in a higher power. Call it God, religion or spirituality—they are all the same.
How do you view marriages of mixed races and religions?
Truth is God and God created us all; we are all one big family. Therefore, true love exists in spite of race or religion. So, marriage is the only sacred way to experience all that such love is or should be.
Your prayer at the foot of the Hollywood hills has become legendary. Can you recount the episode – your mind frame at the time you did it and how you felt?
As you know, my coming to Hollywood had a spiritual motive, so when I performed my first prayer at the foot of the Hollywood sign, it was to thank God for bringing me there to do my life’s mission. When I was sitting up there that day, I closed my eyes and asked God to open all doors for me in Hollywood; it was amazing as this was what I prayed for at Hajj. Even today, I go up there every week to think and set my goals. When Fortune magazine interviewed me, the first thing they asked was: “How did you make it in Hollywood in such a short time?” I told them that I would show them how, so I took them to the foot of the sign and pulled out my prayer mat and started praying. This is how!
Do you believe in soul mates?
100 percent. When you’re truly in love, that person is your soul mate. I also believe you don’t need to look for your soul mate; when the time is right, God brings your soul mate to you.
What’s your take on sex before marriage?
I have been taught that you should never sleep with anyone before marriage, since when the time is right, you should experience it with your partner in the institution of marriage.
What is your stance on the longstanding debate that discusses the notion of men and women as equals in all walks of life?
I’m all for equal rights for men and women. I believe we are all entitled to be free, educated and to pursue the career or path of our choice. I definitely don’t believe that women should be held back in their life or restricted in any way. Women are our future.
What do you think of interracial/religious/same sex relationships/marriages?
If two consenting adults truly love each other, then there is no reason why they shouldn’t be together.
Is there such a thing as ‘time off’ in your world? If so, what do you do with it?
I very rarely take time off. I only sleep three hours a night. On the rare occasion that I get weary, I remember something my brother Suhail once told me: “Sleep when you’re dead, only then you will achieve your goals whilst alive!”
What do we have to look forward to from you in the future?
God willing, first of all, we will take Tinseltown TV to every corner of the globe and to every ethnic market around the world to reach over a billion people in 2004. Then, we will create different TV shows for worldwide markets under the Tinseltown banner. Once we have enough content, we will start our own worldwide TV channel that will market and promote mainstream products and movies to ethnic markets, domestically and internationally. Currently, Tinseltown is also actively developing scripts to launch Tinseltown Studios. Our first feature is scheduled for release in 2005. And finally, since Tinseltown TV has launched the biggest Web TV channel in the world and has the fastest media turnaround in Hollywood, uploading celebrity content within an hour of the event, our vision is for Tinseltown.tv to become a TV channel on the web, featuring entertainment, news, fashion, sports, shopping, technology, games and world music, apart from having exclusive ethnic shows, enabling us to become an international channel for everybody online.
How can people be a part of Tinseltown TV?
To date, we have self-funded our whole operation and have been approached by various investors whom we are in talks with. We are looking for investment from people who share the Tinseltown vision.
What do you want to leave behind as your legacy to the world?
I would like to give minority groups a voice in the world’s media and help create understanding and peace between different cultures. Tinseltown Entertainment Inc. will be a global leader in entertainment to inspire, enlighten and educate viewers through the medium of film and television. If I can create billions of smiles in this world, it will all be worth it.
First Published in Winter 2004 Issue. www.AnokhiMagazine.com.
Photo Credits
Photography by: Seth Shavaz
Crew Credits:
Stylist: Femida Sidi
Hair & Makeup: Christina Vo/Cosmetic Faces
Clothing by: Grafton & Co.
Open ChestTM is a registered trademark of RG Media Enterprises Inc. All rights reserved.
