BENGALURU: A heritage home could evoke feelings of nostalgia, something filmmaker Prataya Saha taps into in his film, Shonar Khacha: The Golden Cage. Passing by a decades-old home could leave you feeling awestruck, but oftentimes, it’s a different story for the inhabitants.
The 10-minute film is set in Kolkata in 1989. “To give you a little historical backdrop, Kolkata was the erstwhile British capital which had palatial houses which belonged to the sons and daughters of erstwhile landlords but they went into bankruptcy during the ’70s as the economy changed and the jobs changed.
As a result, in the ’80s, and ’90s, they would sell the houses which needed large sums to maintain,” he says, adding the film has a personal touch since he has seen this happening with his extended family. The film explores the struggle of the people to try to hold onto past glory while burning themselves out in the process
Saha mentions the story was given to him by a fellow filmmaker and friend Victor Mukherjee, who had scribbled the idea on a piece of paper and suggested if he would like to make a film on it. “What I like about the story is it’s a very personal one to everyone. For example, the first reaction of the person at whose house we shot this film was ‘This is my story’,” recalls Saha.
The movie stars Anshulika Kapoor, and fashion designer Shounak Pushpita Sen Bharat in lead roles, and the music is done by musician Sanjeev Thomas. After the movie was received well at film festivals, Saha says it is currently getting a theatrical release in California.
“We are doing a theatrical release from September 22, which will help us in qualifying for big-ticket awards. Also, the film is going to go on a six-city tour in the United Kingdom in the first week of October,” says Saha. Apart from that, it will also premiere at the International Film Festival of South Asia, Toronto, on October 14.
“The film festival has Anurag Kashyap as the chief guest, whose movie Kennedy will also be screened,” says Saha, adding that once the international tours are over, the team is planning to screen in Bengaluru sometime in December.