“I got the edit set up at my home and invited the editor, Manish Shirke, to stay at my place to edit and complete my film Gosht Eka Paithanachi”

SHANTANU GANESH RODE tells JYOTHI VENKATESH

What is your latest film Gosht Eka Paithanichi all about?

‘Paithani’ is always a centre of attraction for Marathi women. The feel of the silk threads, beautiful traditional designs, and unique color patterns attract them and get connected with the culture. A ‘Paithani’ is thought as a symbol of dreams and dignity. And that’s what I am talking about in my film.

Does your film deal with the aspirations of a middle class woman today?

The film deals with the dreams of a middleclass housewife (Sayali Sanjiv) and her struggle to achieve them. Her husband who is a florist (Suvrat Joshi) stands with her in all even and odds. And then there is the ‘destiny’ which twists and turns the situations.

Considering the fact that in today’s age when sex is in demand you have set out to tell about the aspirations of a middle class housewife, is Gosht Eka Paithanichi a feel good film or a realistic saga?

My film Gosht Eka Paithanichi is a feel-good film about finding the ways that leads to the real happiness. I know that in today’s times when sex and violence are in demand, like you say, I might sound a bit outdated telling a story of a woman and a sari - Paithani. But this is a story which I lived and I believe many of them are still living. It’s very close to my heart. It is about the beliefs, the faith and the quest of a common man to lead a proud and contented life, away from the chaos of greed and violence.

Tell me to what extent did you enjoy the process of making the film?

We started the shoot in November last year and finished the entire shooting in February this year. The film was shot at the beautiful locations of Bhor, Guhaghar (Konkan), Pune and Mumbai.  I am happy the way film was shot. My cameraman Devendra Golatkar (from FTII who has shot films like ‘Nagrik’) shot it beautifully.

I think you are very lucky that you could shoot your film even before the pandemic Corona Virus set in?

In a way, I was lucky to finish the shoot before Corona epidemic. To tell the truth, we were editing when the lockdown was declared. So I got the edit set up at my home and invited the editor, Manish Shirke, to stay at my place. So it was a kind of work from home for us. We locked ourselves for next 15 days and finished the edit. I used to cook thinking of scenes and shots and used to argue on food about how we can save five seconds to make it crisper. We have finished with the edit and now Susmit Limaye is working on the background music of the film.

Jayjaykar made in 2014 was your debut film and Gosht Eka Paithanichi is your second. Why did it take you such a long time to make your second film?

It took more time than I expected to make my second feature. After my debut film ‘Jayjaykar’, for which I got two Maharashtra State Awards (Best Director and Best film), I planned this project immediately and started working on it. But it didn’t happen because of various reasons. Thrice it was started and every time the project was cancelled. It was tough time for me. There were times when I was stressed. I was about to be skeptical and even took up some acting assignments in the meanwhile, wrote scripts and songs.

Go on!

And all the time I believed this film is going to happen beautifully. And I got that chance. One of the co-producers and my friend, Gayatri Chitre, took me to producer Akshay Bardapurkar who had already produced a big budget film like ‘AB and CD’. He heard the story, liked it and the wheel started rolling.

Was the release of your latest film delayed because of the lockdown?

You bet. The lockdown was an unexpected thing. Actually we were planning to finish the film by April and release the film as early as possible. But this thing came suddenly. It’s a difficult time for film industry as everything is on hold and nobody knows when it will resume. But I believe ‘There is always a silver lining to the dark cloud.’ This too will pass and we will win. I am waiting for the day when we will visit theatres and watch our films.

What do you have to say about your producers Bardapurkar (of Planet Marathi), Piyush Singh and Abhayanand Singh (Golden Ratio Films), who backed the film for you?

Without any doubt or second thought, I would say that I have got a beautiful team. My producers are very cooperative. There was never a ‘no’ to whatever was needed. They always encouraged me with a ‘no compromise’ attitude and there were always timely payments which kept the unit happy.  The entire unit was charged and enthusiastic.

Is it true that you wanted the nature to play a vital role in your film?

Yes. As I wanted the nature to play an important role along with the characters we built the sets on beautiful locations. Our art director, Sanjiv Rane, did his best. We used to travel for one and half hour to the locations from the hotel. Often, our day started at 4 am, work started with sunrise and it was only by midnight that we could rest.

How happy are you with Sayali Sanjeev who has played the main lead in your film?

The actors were amazing. Why only Sayali Sanjeev? All the other actors in my film including Suvrat Joshi, Milind Gunaji, Shashank Ketkar etc are also too good, though I will specially mention Sayali Sanjeev, who literally ‘lived’ the central character of my protagonist. She is very sincere and cooperative. She was able to understand what the scene demanded and perfectly delivered the same. She is a gem.  In fact I also got a bundle of gems, whose names have not been disclosed as yet.