Indian sparrow flew over Kolkata film fest

It's not always that we are tempted to read their petulant frowns, but children are a cruelly honest lot.

It8217;s not always that we are tempted to read their petulant frowns, but children are a cruelly honest lot. Something, that exactly fits into Abhaya Simha8217;s scheme of things, a film, which explores the irony of urban life. And of course, a film that took Simha8217;s first full-length feature film to various festivals across the world. Gubbachigalu Sparrows is the only Indian entrant in the children8217;s film category at the Kolkata Film Festival and Simha hopes that good things keep coming in the way of young filmmakers like him.

A children8217;s film is an unusual choice for a new director in this country but the category was the last things on the 27-year-old filmaker8217;s mind. 8220;Gubbachigalu is partly based on a story written by Ismail, a friend of mine. We were discussing the story, when the idea of the film occurred to me,8221; says Simha.

The filmmaker chose children to play the protagonists in his film and is comfortable with the idea. 8220;I didn8217;t consciously try to make it a children8217;s film. I think, even adults will find it relevant to their lives,8221; says Simha.

Gubbachigalu, shot in Kannada, with English subtitles, sends Ila and Anirudha in search of their lost sparrow in a bustling city. During their expedition, they bump into people, which Simha hopes will enable viewers to develop a new perspective of urban life. 8220;From environmental concerns, to the realities of a mindless urban life, the sparrow has been used as a metaphor to explore them all,8221; says Simha.

Sparrows had been an integral part of Simha8217;s childhood days on the outskirts of Mangalore.

8220;Even a decade ago, they used to be all over the place. They used to intrude houses to the point of being annoying at times,8221; says Simha. However, with the city skyline getting crowded, Simha sees a decline in the number of birds both alarming and symbolic.

8220;I8217;m sure children today have fewer run-ins with birds than us. But they know the smallest scientific details about them, even if they have not seen them in real,8221; says Simha.