A natural actress: Assam girl Shiva Rani Kalita steals the limelight at Ottawa film festival

Filmmaker Kripal Kalita said he looked for the qualities of a village girl in the lead actress which he found in Shiva Rani.
Shiva Rani Kalita in the movie poster
Shiva Rani Kalita in the movie poster

GUWAHATI: The hard work that this filmmaker of an Assamese movie put in while hunting for a rustic face has paid off.

Kripal Kalita’s “Bridge” fetched its lead actress Shiva Rani Kalita the Best Actress award at the Ottawa 4th Indian Film Festival Awards.

Screened at 28 international film festivals, including the Indian Panorama category for the 51st International Film Festival of India, the film shows the complex relationship between the destructive Brahmaputra and the flood-ravaged villagers who rebuild their houses on the very banks of the mighty river that washed away their homes.

Kripal says the central idea of the movie was the nuanced relationship between the river and the dwellers on its banks.

“The floods wreak havoc every year. So, the message that I wanted to give through the film is that life must go on despite struggles, challenges, and adversities,” he says.

“The film also throws light on the socio-economic condition of people. The annual floods are our biggest problem that impedes development. Since the village does not have a bridge, nobody comes to marry its girls,” he adds.

The artists and the technicians had to go to water to shoot the 89-minute movie that was made in two years – 2018-20. Given the floods and resultant logistical problems, Kripal says it took them eight hours to shoot a two-minute scene.

He says he looked for the qualities of a village girl in the lead actress.  “We discovered her from among 300 girls who had come for the audition. The role demanded the character, Jonaki, to do the work of a man -- ploughing, rearing cattle, building a house etc,” Kripal says.

After her parents died in the floods, it fell on Jonaki to take care of her brother’s education. This is so real in Assam’s flood-affected areas, he says.

“We searched for a girl who does not know acting. As such, she had to mostly do the activities,” Kripal adds.

Shiva Rani is on cloud nine following the recognition. “I always aspired to become an actress but to be selected for the best actress award was beyond my wildest dreams. I thank Gupomoni Gogoi and Anil Chamuah who had taken me to Kripal sir,” Shiva Rani (22), who used to act in plays, says.

She adds she could not believe her ears when the film’s director broke the news two days ago about her selection for the award.

Rama Kumar Das and Sabita Devi are the film’s producers.
 

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