What makes a 20-year-old pursuing engineering quit midway and make films? Sulemani Keeda,the title of Amit V Masurkars debut independent feature film,could well be the answer to what triggered its filmmakers true calling. It means great talent,but it can also mean a pest,something annoyingly clingy, says Masurkar,The old Bambaiyya phrase encapsulates the spirit of his first film that tells the coming-of-age story of two struggling screenwriters in Mumbai. Masurkar says that most movies based on the film industry are either about aspiring actors or directors; nobody talks about writers. The citys western suburbs of Oshiwara and Versova,which has a burgeoning number of migrant writers and rookie filmmakers is often overshadowed by city cliches of the dazzling Marine Drive or the ghettoed bylanes of Bhendi Bazar in movies. In Masurkars world,Twitter and world cinema are a part of the lingo,as much as Sahir Ludhianvis poetry. Doing the rounds of big film studios,the boys seek out girls in bookstores and poetry-reading sessions in this Versova indie film,which premiered in the New Faces of Indian Cinema category at the recently-concluded 15th Mumbai Film Festival (MFF). I thought it would be interesting to look at these aspects of the city through two outsiders, says Masurkar who spent his early days in the neighbourhood living the life of a struggler but eventually returned to the comforts of his parents Andheri apartment. The 32-year-old director insists that the film isnt autobiographical,but the characters are drawn from people he has met or known in real life. Sulemani Keeda shows three days in the lives of Mainak (Mayank Tewari) and Dulal (Naveen Kasturia),writing partners and flatmates,who discover themselves as they go through a series of personal and professional escapades. Although replete with inside references and film industry jokes,Sulemani Keeda is a universal story. It takes the narrative path of a slacker comedy,a popular film genre. It is light-hearted,funny but not without the directors assured touches,like an inventive animated set-piece that shows a pet cat snort cocaine and kill itself in a fish bowl,or the poignant moment,when a middle-aged father leaves his daughter to spend a private moment with Dulal a few minutes after he proposes to his daughter. Although I have used a popular template,the characters are not stereotypical,cardboard cut-outs. They behave like modern,urban people, he says. Masurkar seems content to have made the film he wanted to,without succumbing to the make or break pressures of a first film. Most people take their first films way too seriously. About three years ago,I was going through the same phase,stressing over the subject. While spending the New Year in Goa,I decided to just go ahead and make this film, says the director whose first writing stint was with the Great Indian Comedy Show,a sketch comedy act featuring Ranveer Shorey and Vinay Pathak. Directing the Making of film for Dibakar Banerjees Love Sex aur Dhokha marked his foray into films. Made on a shoestring budget,the film was shot over a number of schedules,as the budget often overshot this despite making the most of their own resources,like using the director and the producers homes,and that most of the cast,except actor Aditi Vasudev (who plays Dulals love interest) and few others,were friends of Masurkar. He who hopes the films reception at MFF will push its fortunes to get a proper release. Currently,in talks with several studios,he expects the film to have a big release in early 2014,as opposed to the small screenings that most indie films are subjected to.
