Jio Mami Film Festival: The film 'Stolen' raises questions on kidnapping, love, and mob lynching of small children

The Asian premiere of filmmaker Karan Tejpal's film "Stolen", based on true events, was screened on October 29, October 31, and November 2 at the 'Jio Film Festival running from October 27 to November 5 in Mumbai. The audience appreciated it greatly. The film deals with deep themes like child kidnapping, the spread of misinformation, mob mentality, public murder, and social division. The film is the story of a poor tribal mother after her five-month-old child is kidnapped. Gautam and Raman, two rich brothers who come to help her, have to go through a harrowing journey.

The film 'Stolen', produced in Hindi, Marwari, English, and Santhali languages, not only touches the hearts of the people but also raises questions on social media with the kidnapping and gang violence of children below one year of age happening all over the world. Due to this, when the world premiere of the film 'Stolen' took place at the 80th Venice International Film Festival, people welcomed it with a standing ovation. The film also won a special mention in Zurich as part of the Feature Film Competition and a packed audience at the BFI London Film Festival. Now this film is leaving its mark on the Indian audience at Jio MAMI Film Festival.

Story:

In the early hours of a winter morning at a remote railway station in rural India, an accidental encounter changes three lives forever. Jhumpa Mahato (Mia Melejar), a poor tribal woman, becomes distraught after her five-month-old baby is stolen from the railway station. Her past was already dark. Photographer Raman Bansal (Shubham), who reached the station at the same time, unknowingly became a witness to this cruel incident. While his rich brother Gautam Bansal (Abhishek Banerjee), who has come to the station to pick up Raman, tries to help the mother find her daughter at the behest of his brother Raman. Raman actually feels sympathy for Jhumpa's plight. While Gautam cares about knowing more about what does not concern him and believes in the happiness of a privileged life. Their already tenuous relationship is further tested. When both of them get entangled in their efforts to find Jhumpa's child. The trio's dangerous journey through unknown hostile hinterlands jolts the youth out of their protected existence, forcing them to confront the harshness of reality. The trio is forced to break out of the dark circles of society, testing their resilience, faith, and ultimately their humanity. Amidst the heart-pounding action and struggle for survival, deeper themes like motherhood, classism, xenophobia and disillusionment with the system emerge.

Talking about how he got the idea for the story of the film, director Karan Tejpal says, "A 2017 news report on two young men in India who were wrongly accused of kidnapping a child and brutally beaten to death. It inspired me to write the story and make the film. Personally, I don't like staying indoors less. I like to go to remote places for hiking with my friends. Once when I was on one such trip, I learned that two brothers had gone fishing. But the mob falsely accused them of child kidnapping and beat them to such an extent that they died. It created real fear inside me in a strange way. What scared me more was that this kind of injustice could happen and you have no way out?”

Tejpal emphasizes that “It's not as simple as just spreading misinformation and this crowd is some kind of crazy zombie. As we delved deeper into researching this, we realized that juvenile delinquency in India on the other hand, especially among the marginalized demographic of our country, is huge - you can imagine that in our country. 70 percent are marginalized. In that demographic, juvenile delinquency was on an incredible rise."

Producer of the film Dhingra says, “Our film ‘Stolen’ is inspired to some extent from the story of Buddha. The story of Siddhartha Gautama, a pampered prince, who is transformed after witnessing death. The character of Gautama, the central character of the film, reflects that transformation and his own growth as a human being,” he added.

Actor Abhishek Banerjee, who plays Gautam Bansal, said, “‘Stolen’ has definitely been one of the most challenging roles of my career. In my personal life, I am not like the character I have played in this film. It forced me to delve into the depths of human emotions and experiences, demanding a level of authenticity and vulnerability that pushed me beyond my comfort zone.”

Karan Tejpal draws inspiration from classic Indian and global cinema, including the work of filmmakers such as Satyajit Ray.

Talking about future plans, Karan Tejpal said- “We are currently developing two ambitious feature films, one of which is very close to my heart. I've been working on this for ten years." Tejpal is also working on an "atmospheric horror story" set in the early 1900s and based on the exploits of real-life British hunter and conservationist Jim Corbett of Indian origin. The film is an adaptation of one of Corbett's stories, which follows a hunter who is pursuing a cannibalistic leopard through a dark forest. “The film deals with the themes of conservation and superstition.

“Stolen” is directed by Karan Tejpal and produced by Gaurav Dhingra of Jungle Book Studios. It stars Abhishek Banerjee, Shubham, and Mia Melzer in lead roles.

- Shantiswarup Tripathi