Even without going out of the State or going abroad, young production talent of Uttarakhand can flourish in the film industry. Noted actor Priyanshu Chatterjee said this in an exclusive conversation with The Pioneer during his visit to Dehradun on Friday. He also said that for the transition of Uttarakhand’s regional cinema to mainstream, it is essential for them to go back to their roots. He said, “The more local your content is, the more international you become.”
About his upcoming film ‘Little Baby’ he said, “This movie is a medium through which the director Shekhar S Jha has tried to express himself. This movie is about generation loss and the communication issues that a loving father faces with his daughter. Shekhar himself was somewhat in the same predicament, he also has a daughter of the same age. Any form of art is often a shadow of one’s own experience. This also I am sure will be relatable to many parents and teenagers.”
Giving his take on how cinema has evolved he said, “Majorly. From format, techniques and technology to stories and performances everything has changed. Songs and dances are still consistent in Bollywood movies, but even the songs have taken a more local or Desi approach.”
When asked about his experience in Punjabi and Bengali cinema he said, “I already know Punjabi, as I have been brought up in Delhi. Woking in ‘Sirphire’ was simply amazing. Punjabi cinema is still growing. Punjabi cinema is still evolving though Punjabi music is increasingly becoming an important part of almost every mainstream Bollywood movie.”
He added, “Bengali cinema is however different story. Cinema in Bengal I think is even older than Bollywood. With directors like Satyajit Ray and Ritvik Khatekar, Bengali cinema is filled with fabulous content, but they lack in marketing. Their market reach is limited.
They have always worked with an ideology that ‘art rules business’, in other cinemas the situation is other way round. There commerce rules art. South Indian cinema again is becoming increasing popular as they are going back to their roots.”
About the recent release of the web-series he worked in, he said, “I have recently worked with Pradeep Sarkar’s Cold Lassi and Chicken Masala. It was a new experience for me as well for working in a new format, where 10 episodes make up one season.”
On his experience while working in Uttarakhand he said, “This place is calming and beautiful. During the shooting of Little Baby we stayed at a resort for three weeks and the food, hospitality everything there was great. We also had some local food, which tasted heavenly.”
When asked about the debate on nepotism in Bollywood he said, “I think the term has been negatively used. If I am a shop owner and my son or daughter wants to continue the business, who am I to stop them.
Actors like Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Ranbir Kapoor are putting so much effort to be there. Also, there are examples of celebrity kids who were not that successful, they changed careers, became fashion designers, producers or directors or just simply socialites.”
Advising youngsters wanting to pursue their career in acting or modelling he said, “Today one does not need to go to Mumbai in order to become a star. If you have the skills and will, your mobile phone can make you star in a night. It is tougher to live there. Social media platforms are making a new star famous every second day.”
