Papa Buka director Dr Biju says lives of marginalised communities are the same worldwide: ‘Be it a democratic, fascist or socialist country…’

Regarding the movie’s portrayal, drawing parallels between the lives of PNG indigenes and Bahujans in India, he notes, “It was during the research for the scripting that we noticed the connection. That’s when we started developing the script by combining the realities of the indigenous people there with those of the Bahujans here. The initial thought was simply a film set in PNG.”

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Asserting that the stories of the marginalised are pretty much the same across the world, Dr Biju says, “Whether it is a democratic country, a fascist one, or a socialist one, the life of the marginalised community is more or less the same. They are oppressed and sabotaged everywhere. Except for minor variations in the extent of it, the common picture is the same. This marginalisation of the Dalit community and Black politics exists everywhere. It is a common phenomenon.”

Interestingly, Papa Buka also boasts big names on its crew list. While renowned Tamil director Pa Ranjith, filmmaker Akshay Parija, and theatre-film actor Prakash Bare have served as co-producers on the film, its music has been crafted by Grammy-winning composer Ricky Kej. It was also selected as Papua New Guinea’s first-ever submission for the Best International Feature Film at the Academy Awards.

Although Papa Buka discusses strong politics concerning the invasion and displacement of the indigenous people in PNG, the film doesn’t feature any violent portrayals, unlike many mainstream movies that immediately go for such depictions at the first chance they get when making films centred around similar topics. When asked what prompted him to traverse the road that’s less taken these days, the director shares, “To attract a mainstream audience, they (commercial films) believe that they have to focus on war, violence, and blood. Our aim, on the other hand, was to document the history and the socio-political aspects. Blood isn’t necessary for that. I don’t think we need graphic elements. By stating facts and picturising historical evidence, we can capture its strength.”

Barring a few of his initial movies, Dr Biju has often given poetic titles to most of his works, with the best examples being Adrishya Jalakangal, Kaadu Pookkunna Neram, and Valiya Chirakulla Pakshikal. However, Papa Buka is named after one of the central characters, an 80-year-old war veteran from the Kokoda Track campaign, played by Sine Boboro. When asked about his thought process behind the decision, the filmmaker says, “I felt this was the apt title. The film progresses entirely based on this character. Also, the name Papa Buka reminds one immediately of Papua New Guinea. It is a name used by the indigenous people in the Bougainville region. Although the character isn’t portrayed to be from that region, it’s a name they use. Since Papa Buka is the spine of the film, I decided to use the character’s name as the title.”

Despite being a recipient of the National Film Awards three times, as well as many other international honours at various film festivals, it’s doubtful if Dr Biju has received the recognition he deserves in his home ground. Instead, the filmmaker, hailing from a Scheduled Caste (SC) background, was once even ridiculed by director-screenwriter Ranjith, then-Kerala State Chalachitra Academy (KSCA) chairman, who asked during an interview what Biju’s relevance was when only a few people went to theatres to see his movie Adrishya Jeevithangal.

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In Papa Buka, there’s a scene where the central character, Anand Kunjiraman (Prakash Bare), discusses the discrimination he faces despite being an established historian because he belongs to a “so-called” backward community. In his home state, he says, “I am only international, not local,” lamenting how he is overlooked in his native environment. When asked if this dialogue had an autobiographical element to it, he says, “You can think of it that way as well. Films happen from our own experiences, the surroundings we live in, and the things we face. So, I have placed it in a way that it can be considered autobiographical.”