Filmmakers morons for ignoring 26/11: Jahnu Barua

PANAJI: Nine-time national ward winning filmmaker Jahnu Barua is forced to wonder if Indian filmmakers are 'morons'.
"When the 26/11 attack took place in Mumbai, I was sure it would be the subject of a film. I waited for two long years to see which filmmaker would pick it up. But not a single film has been made on the saddening attack and I thought to myself, are Indian filmmakers morons? Are we all morons? Because when I think of filmmakers, I think of them collectively," he said.
"I finally decided to make Baandhon, after writing a story about the saddening attack," Barua said. Baandhon deals with the impact the attack has on an unsuspecting and innocent elderly couple who know nothing about the world other than the upbringing of their grandson.
It took Barua a very long time to convince the Assam government to fund the project which was made within a tight budget of 50 lakh.
"When we wanted to film a scene at the VT station, we were asked to keep a 5 crore security. We could not afford it. So we planned the scene in advance, rehearsed it and filmed it secretly at the station without authorities' knowledge. In the end it was done to serve a good purpose," he said.
Lead actor Jerifa Wahid said that they worked round-the-clock to fit the film within its budget. "Baandhon speaks directly of the Mumbai attacks but also indirectly of similar issues in Assam and surrounding regions," Barua said.