JAY JOSHI
Along with its fame as a land of musicians, singers, and artists, Goa has in recent years also earned good repute as a land of filmmakers. Goan films are earning recognition around the world, and in India. Adding another feather in the cap of the emerging Goan film industry, the film, Bade Abbu has been selected for screening at Jharkhand National FIlm Festival happening in Jharkhand from October 15 to 17. A total of seven films in various languages around India will be screened at the festival, and Bade Abbu is the first ever Konkani film to be selected for this festival, its producers have stated.
The film revolves around the life of a truck driver in Goa, and the struggles of his family when they are confronted with some unexpected problems. The film is based on a short story written by Heena Kausar Khan, and is directed by Nitin Supekar. Kishore Arjun has written the script for the film and also served as its assistant director. The film is produced by Dileep Borkar and Shyamrao Yadav.
“This film is not your typical art film which only highlights problems of the society. It has various shades including humour,” says Nitin Supekar, the film’s director. “Even so, the film highlights many simple issues, such as what happens when a person does not have a bank account,” he states. “It is shown that lack of education and refusal to change one’s mindset is the reason behind many issues one faces. The film also makes a comment on generation gap, stressing that younger generation needs to be educated and brought up to speed with the times we are now living in,” adds the director.
That said, it is curious how many art films that gain critical acclaim are about problems and struggles of the society. Why does the art-fim scene not celebrate optimistic films? “I myself have pondered a lot on this idea,” says Supekar, informing that he himself is against the celebration of sorrow in films. “But this film is different. It is not a serious issue such as problems of farmers etc. The family shown in the film is not exactly poor per say. To be frank, people at every level of society have certain struggles, and this film is about the simple struggles of a family. Personally, comedy is my favourite genre, and I have added that humorous feel to this film too. It does show problems, but we are delivering the core message in a subtle manner rather than making the audience uncomfortable,” the director states.
Kishor Arjun, the writer and assistant director of the film further elaborates on the core issues tackled in the movie. “The viewpoint of the film is a little different from the short story that it is based on,” says “The original story written by Heena Kausar Khan made a point about educating the girl child. The film does touch upon that theme, but it is mainly about the life of a truck driver and his family. Truck driver is an important profession but despite his contribution to the society, a driver is not respected. Dignity of labour, education and generation gap are the three core pillars of the film,” says Arjun. When one thinks of Goa, one thinks of the beaches and beer, but the film attempts to break that image, he informs.
“ The way you treat the characters and story of a film matters a lot,” says Arjun. “Bade Abbu is a human story. The protagonist and his family do not come across as perfect heroes. They have flaws and make mistakes too. That said, it’s a simple story. Simple incidents which can happen to anyone. We made this film not for the sake of marketing, but for the sake of cinema. We could have chosen to show the family as belonging to any of the major religious groups in Goa, but then it would have looked modified; unnatural.” he adds.
Commenting on the difference between art films and mainstream cinema, Arjun stated that art films are not exactly loved by the general public, but they offer a degree of artistic freedo to the filmmaker, and appeal to the audience who seek to understand core ideas at the heart of the film’s story.
