Past Continuous

anguish and despair of the Partition and families relive those moments everyday. Before I knew,I possessed a storehouse of characters and events,” says Puri.

In his upcoming film Chenab Gandhi,Puri looks at the period between1946-1947 through the eyes of one man. His project having run into rough weather when mentor Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Puri assisted him in Saawariya and Vishal Bhardwaj in The Blue Umbrella) pulled out as producer,Puri says the film will now hit the floors by the year end. “I did have some trouble with Bhansali but it’s over and we’re negotiating with more producers. I hope to release the film by October 2,2011,” he says.

The film,according to Puri,is the story of a time,a town,a people and their struggles during the Partition. “My grandparents walked from Rawalpindi to Amritsar in a single night after the Partition. People were at war. My heroes are not Raj or Rahul,protagonists with no surnames or professions. My heroes are people like my grandfather who still read Urdu,love poetry,and are witnesses to a history gradually being forgotten. My characters are real,rooted,raw and passionate,” Puri says.

Puri drew on these narratives when he made Chaabi Wali Pocket Watch,India’s first official entry to the 2006 student Oscar. Written and directed by him,the film was seeped in Urdu prose,something that Puri is proud of. “It was inspired by my mother,a poetess,who like Babba’s character in the film,never publishes in order to avoid commercialisation.” As for Urdu,Puri would hate to see it die,his love for the language going back to his days in Old Delhi. “I belong to a generation that cycled to school in Daryaganj and rode on

tongas. Soon,the tongawallahs language became mine and the love for culture,for characters,for Urdu grew,” he adds. Chaurus Chaand,the next movie he made,was based on the life of a famous Punjabi poet Pash.

“One can’t always make entertaining films. I believe what you think is what you make. An art form needs to question the social structure,norms and ethics,create awareness and explore human relationships,its roles and achievements,” he says.