HYDERABAD: I guess what I’ve learned is that there are no boundaries when it comes to imagination – it’s limitless, quoted musician Cliff Martinez. True to these words, millenials Bhavana Goparaju, Nikita Ivanenko, Rinat Yulushev and Chandradeep Das collaborated across different continents and time zones to create a short film in Bengali titled Ek Poshla Rupkatha (In Loving Memory). Bhavana, who studied Intermediate in Hyderabad and has also worked in the city for an year before she flew to the US, belongs to Warangal.
The short film’s director, 28-year-old Chandradeep Das earlier worked with his father, veteran director Anjan Das, and this is his second venture. Interestingly, the music was composed by renowned Italian artistes Susan Di Bona and Salvatore Sangiovanni. Chandradeep developed the script of the film, and Sreelekha Mukherji, a National award-winning Bengali actress, plays the lead role of Emily Rosario in the film.
Says Bhavana about the project, “I got associated with Das and the movie through a social networking site when he texted me. After an informal chat about our previous movie work and our future plans about movies, he told me his story. It was an instant connection. First because it is in Bengali (and I love the region’s literature, art and culture since a child), his storyline of a lonely old woman which reminded me of my bamma, my paternal grandmother.”
Wintry Candles Productions is an initiative of Chandradeep, Bhavana, Nikita to take their stories to the global stage. The team plans to get the short film screened at various International Film Festivals and then go for digital distribution on channels like Netflix, Amazon, etc., and on Television channels later. Stage 32, a social network for creative professionals who work in film, television and theatre, became the meeting place for Nikita, Chandradeep, Bhavana and Rinat. Later, they collaborated via WhatsApp and Skype.
Born and brought-up in Warangal, 24-yr-old Bhavana went to US in 2014 to pursue her Masters and is currently working at a software company in Minnesota. She also worked as a representative of Citizens against Pollution NGO and conducted awareness sessions on reducing the use of plastic and other topics in Warangal.
27-year-old Nikita Ivanenko was born in Obninsk, Russia, and currently works at a bank in Moscow. His friend, 28-year-old Rinat, was born in Surgut, Russia and is a writer. Nik says the team is launching an ambitious project in the form of an original comic book that starts a whole new universe (comic books, tv series, The first part of it, Hunting for scorpion, will be available in July.
A feature film project is also in the pipeline, says Bhavana, before signing off.
Synopsis
An elderly woman suddenly inherits a large sum of money from her long deceased husband and decides to use it to build a lavish tomb, where she intends to rest in peace after her demise. She believes that her days are numbered and besides, she doesn’t have the will or any apparent reason to live anymore. She has shunned the society long ago and comes across as a cantankerous and grumpy old lady. It is a common conviction that after her husband’s death, the octogenarian has become an abominable recluse.
She constantly bickers with her maid and her neighbours, especially with a little child and his mother who live opposite her apartment. When the tomb is finally built, she pays regular visits to the nearby cemetery every morning. Days go by as the old lady awaits her death. But one morning, she discovers something unusual near her tomb. A thrilling and eventful couple of days await her.
‘multinational’ project
Original Title: Ek Poshla Rupkatha
English Title: In Loving Memory
Language: Bengali
Colour: Yes
Duration: 29:57 minutes
Genre: Drama
Shoot duration: 4 days, in March 2017
Shoot location: West Bengal