“IT WAS A BIT INTIMIDATING TO BE PITTED OPPOSITE PRIYANKA CHOPRA AS HER MOTHER IN THE BEGINNING, BUT SHE DIDN’T LET US BE INTIMIDATED BY HER”

RAJNI BASUMATARY tells JYOTHI VENKATESH

How would you describe yourself? Are you basically a writer, director, producer or for that matter an actor?

I would like to call myself an all rounder in the sense that I am not only a writer, director and producer but also a journalist and actor. I got into filmmaking in the first place only because I also happen to be a freelance journalist. Before I decided to write and direct films, I used to write not only short stories but also columns on youth and politics for newspapers like The Assam Tribune Sentinel and North East Times.

Tell me about your family?

I live in Thailand for the last four and a half years with my family consisting of my husband, who is posted there as a diplomat with the government and my kids, who are now learning in Delhi University. My husband will be posted back in India after sometime.

What exactly is your latest film in Bodo language called ‘Jwlwi - The Seed’ which was screened in the recent 12th Bengaluru International Film Festival all about?

My film Jwlwi - The Seed revolves around the story of hope, lost and found through resolute perseverance even in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. It is about a young woman named Alaari played by myself who copes with her husband’s untimely death when he was killed in a cross firing between rebel cadres and the State forces, for over a decade. In short, my film is based on how life was affected during the insurgency by the separatist groups in the 80’s, though insurgency has declined to a large extent now.

What does your political film set out to tackle?

My film in which I speak only about the Bodo community in Assam, underlines the new concern which emerges for Alaari as her daughter Erak, who is now all grown up, when  then political climate is heating up to rebel against the majoritarian State

Can you elaborate?

Many Bodo youths are seen joining the separatist movement inspired by their iconic leaders like Mao and Guevera, gaining momentum. It deals with Alaari’s concern whether her daughter Erak also will join the movement too, because I am also a victim of insurgency especially since I have lost my brother, nephews as well as my cousins. There is no closure on my missing brother till date, who se wife is still awaiting his arrival. His daughter is now 21 years old and I had the great burden to set out to make a film.

In how many days did you make your film? How much did it cost you as an independent film maker in Assam?

I shot my film in a span of just 19 days in Bodo areas in Udalguri in India and two days in Thailand. If you ask me for the budget, all that I can say is that I had devoted more than two years of mine to write, direct act and produce the film and it cost me around 50 lakhs of Indian rupees.

Have you been able to recover the cost of your investment in your film?
It has been released in Bodo language all over Assam in only five theaters till date. The biggest plus point for me as a filmmaker is that I could show my film privately in around 50 villages where we recovered substantial amount by charging the screening committees anything from Rs 10,000 to Rs 16,000 per screening.

‘Jwlwi - The Seed’ is your second film as a director and third as a producer!

Yes. I wrote and produced my first film Anurag way back in 2004 with Bidyut Chakraborty as the director. Anuraag fetched me as many as seven Assam State awards and it is sixteen years since I had produced my debut film. Ten years later, I set out to direct my first film Raag as a director with Adil Hussain in the lead. I could not get the right actress to cast as the mother and hence I decided to cast myself in the role in my latest film ‘Jwlwi - The Seed’. I had of course acted in a few roles including the love interest of actor Piyush Mishra in the Akshay Kumar starrer Shaukeens, Priyanka Chopra starrer Mary Kom and an independent film ‘3 Smoking Barrels’.

Was it very easy for you to land the role of Mary Kom’s mother in Mary Kom?

No. Actually I had read the message in the Facebook only a month and a half after she had written to me because I was shooting my own film, Raag. When I saw her message I wrote her back asking her if the casting offer was still on and if I could send my audition to her for the role. She asked me to send the audited tapes immediately to her. I had to do two rounds of auditions to enable Shruti Mahajan to zero in on me for the role.

Were you intimidated with the presence of Priyanka Chopra on the sets of Mary Kom?

Though I confess that it was a bit intimidating to be pitted opposite Priyanka Chopra as her mother in the beginning of the shooting schedule, to her credit, Priyanka was very cordial all the artistes and tried not to let us be intimidated by her.

As a filmmaker, are you keen on making films in Hindi too besides in Bodo language as well as Assamese?

Language is not at all a bar for me as a writer or for that matter filmmaker. If the subject dictates that I make a film in Hindi, I am game to make a film in Hindi too, besides Bodo or Assamese.

How is Assamese Cinema today?

I should confess that it is the best time for Assamese Cinema quality as well as quantity wise. Talented filmmakers as well as trained technicians are there in abundance besides actors and actresses.