It was a day of tributes and of the camera training its attention on marital abuse. In the Indian Panorama section the film ‘Abhijaan’ offers tribute to Soumitra Chatterjee a stalwart of the golden era of Bengali cinema.
“Abhijaan is based on the true life journey of Soumitra Chatterjee, who was an institution in himself”, said Paoli Dam, actor of the film at a press conference. The noted Bengali actress said that interacting with him was always enlightening. “He is one actor, whose legacy, the present generation of Bengal artists has been trying to inherit. His body of work will inspire generations to come. I am privileged to work with him in a few films”, she added.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
She further said that the aspiring actors and filmmakers should imitate his indomitable spirit, unique creative mind and sensibility. Addressing the presser, the producer of the film said “First he refused to accept our offer and he gave his consent later after several requests. Instead of making a biopic, we have shown his real life journey.”
The star of the day however was Chellapandi the young boy who stars in Koozhangal’ India’s official entry for the 94th Academy Awards which delineates the sufferings of marital abuse. It shows the pain and sufferings of a child and a mother, both victims of marital abuse.
“It’s a simple story told in the simplest form. And it is borrowed from my life itself. The film is based on the sufferings that my sister and her small child went through due to an alcoholic husband”, said the Director of this Tamil film Vinothraj P.S. Providing more information about his debut feature film, the Director said Koozhangal is based on the relationship between an alcoholic father and his son and presents their journey to bring back the wife who has gone off to her father’s house.
“I shot the film in my own village as both the story and the landscape were close to my heart. The landscape depicted in the film forms the third character as the behaviour of human beings are also influenced by the climate and geography where they live. The arid landscape and sweltering hot sun in which the entire plot is set are important elements conditioning the conduct of the characters,” said Vinothraj while responding to a query on importance of the landscape in the film.
Narrating his struggles while making the film, Vinothraj said that initially they didn’t have sufficient funds to go for the feature film. “We had sent a rough cut of the film to the NFDC Film Bazaar with the hope of finding a producer. It was noticed by noted Tamil director Ram, who later came forward to support us. Subsequently the film was produced by Director Vignesh Shivan and actor Nayanthara” he added.
Challenges faced by another young boy were showcased in the Kannada film Neeli Hakki. To be or not to be, that existential question that vexed Hamlet in Shakespeare’s timeless eponymous play is what troubles 10-year-old boy Sidda, albeit in a somewhat different avatar. Having been forced to bid adieu to the pristine beauty and serenity of his village, the young boy is confronted with the inevitability of having to choose between the chaotic and alienating hustle of the city to which his family has shifted, and the quiet embrace of the village. Sidda’s conflictual reflections not only reveal to him certain harsh realities of life; they also raise important questions of sustainability and urbanization.
The film was shot with a very small cast and crew, in and around the Director’s home-town, “The only effort was to tell an honest story and to express what we feel. It was tough and yet a beautiful journey to make this film within the constraints.”
This film has been backed by noted South Indian actor Vijay Sethupathi. This came about in an interesting way, narrates Hegde, who has also written the screenplay for the film. “During the COVID-19 lockdown, everyone was sitting at home and wanted to watch new movies. Somehow, Vijay Sethupathi Sir came across our movie, without our knowledge. He really appreciated our efforts, he was able to relate the story to his own life. So he himself offered to be a part of the project. We shot in a remote village of coastal Karnataka and Sethupathi is a southern superstar. So, we were really honored when he offered his helping hands. When such superstars and big production houses give us a pat on our back, it gives us more power.”
Hegde shared his thoughts on the collaboration between OTT platforms and independent filmmakers. “When OTT platforms were launched a few years back in India, we hoped it would curate cinema, but instead, it started curating mainstream cinema. We are still looking for a platform to launch our cinema. Being from a regional language and bearing the tag of festival cinema, we will always be neglected. Independent cinema or small stories is not just for festivals, it is for everybody. Hopefully, in future, we will have no mainstream or independent cinema, but just cinema.”
He requested the OTTs to bring such films to the masses in India. “Cinema is an art form. It is hard for small filmmakers to recover the finance; we are not looking at multi-crore successes, we are just here to make honest cinema. So all of us who are struggling to tell small town stories, we are just trying to reach people.”
The debut director explained the relative advantage of OTT platforms, in expanding the access of cinema across time and space. “We understand how the entertainment industry runs, but I am not making cinema for myself. I am expressing my art through my cinema. Hopefully OTTs will give us a way to reach more people. Festivals are for 10 days, but when the film is on OTT, people can watch anytime, that is the biggest advantage. This year, the official Oscar entry being a Tamil independent cinema, we are very confident that OTTs will support independent cinemas in future.”
The festival ends today and one can safely say, viewers will return home with wonderful memories.
