River Sutra

For film-maker Anup Singh it all started with screenings on ship decks as he sailed with his mother from Africa to India. quot;It was th...

For film-maker Anup Singh it all started with screenings on ship decks as he sailed with his mother from Africa to India. quot;It was this staggering feeling of films being a part of the cosmos itself. The blue expanse of sky, the ocean and a film.quot; These stirrings were given a shape in another setting 8212; but by a screening again. quot;About 15 years ago, I watched a Ritwik Ghatak film, Ajjantrik, in Paris. I knew I had discovered a passion.quot; So, he did the next most predictable thing: joined the FTII, the temple of Ghatak8217;s life and art.

And about 10 years after graduating, Singh decided to make a film on his icon. Seven years in the making, The Name of the River, is nearly ready. The film isn8217;t a take-off on Ghatak8217;s life though. quot;It is a feature film. A love story. But Ghatak is present throughout. I have taken characters and situations from his films and used them as sub-plots for the main story, which is about love, parting and reunion. I8217;ve tried to capture the core of his inspiration. Assimple as that.

quot;Probably not as simple till one watches it. The film minus Ghatak sounds simpler. quot;Marriage serves as the metaphor for the coming together of two nations. It examines the relationship between the past and the present, the state and the individual. Tries to answer the age-old question of identity.quot; The Ghatak influence on Singh isn8217;t in technique or theme. Or, so he claims. It8217;s in the message. quot;He opens up the possibility of different borders. Like a never-ending river. And that, I feel, is India.quot; And hence the title, which incidentally, also draws from the legendary film-maker8217;s work 8212; most of Ghatak8217;s films are named after rivers.

Unfortunately, The Name of a River will not see an India release 8212; apart from Calcutta 8212; even though it opens at festivals abroad by the end of the year. quot;I have no choice. No distributor is willing here.quot; Will he stick to parallel cinema for his next venture? quot;Not at all. I8217;m open to making commercial films as well as serious films. May be one withMeeta Vashisth, his wife.quot; In the Deepa Mehta-Kaizad Gustad league? quot;I don8217;t think too highly of their work.quot; Singh is aiming much higher. His next project is likely to be an English film set in London. quot;Most probably with Anthony Hopkins.quot;

8211;SANJUKTA SHARMA