‘Some of my favourite Ray films were premiered in Berlin’

KOLKATA: Director Amit V Masurkar’s "Newton" was selected for the

Forum section

of the ongoing Berlin Film Festival. A total of five screenings of the film will be held at the festival. Masurkar, who had made his directorial debut with "

Sulemani Keeda

", believes in the philosophy that the only way to make a film one believes in is to make it “regardless of the obstacles”. Excerpts from an interview with Masurkar on taking "Newton" to Berlin:

This is your first film at Berlin though not your first movie. Please describe your journey as a filmmaker.

I dropped out of engineering to work in films at 20. I wasn’t quite prepared for what lay ahead. After working with various people on several unrealised projects, I realised that the only way to make a film you believed in, was to make it- regardless of the obstacles. And so along with my friends who believed in me, I made my first film, "Sulemani Keeda", with a very low budget. The film did well online, after a brief festival run and limited theatrical release. That lead to my meeting with Manish Mundra- who liked the idea of “Newton” and backed it.

Both your films have interesting titles. What’s "Newton" all about?

“Newton" is a story about a sincere, newbie government clerk who is sent on election duty to a remote polling booth in the Maoist controlled Dandakaranya jungle in Chhattisgarh. He tries his best to conduct free and fair elections despite the apathy of the security forces and the looming fear of a Maoist attack. Newton is the name of Rajkummar Rao’s character.

What’s there in the treatment of the movie that sets it apart from other contemporary Indian films?

It's a political film with dry, dark humour- that is a genre which is very rarely explored in India. The film works on two levels. For an audience not exposed to what is happening in Chhattisgarh, or interested in politics, it’s a straightforward story, with a shocking twist. For a discerning audience interested in politics, there are nuances and insights that they’ll get and appreciate.

You worked with someone like

Rajkumar Rao

as well as non-actors in the film. How challenging was it to shoot with both in Chattisgarh where it was raining during March?

Shooting in Chhattisgarh is challenging because there is no readymade infrastructure for shooting. But the talent pool of actors is immense. Some of our Gondi actors had never watched or heard of cinema but were as good as professional actors.

We shot on the fringes of the Maoist controlled jungles, with actors who were in camouflage, carrying fake guns- so there was always a fear of getting mistaken for the real paramilitary. So we had to take care to ensure that everyone knew we were a film crew and had no other agenda!

The rain tried to play spoilsport and it reduced our shooting time and increased our shooting days. But, we managed to shoot everything to our satisfaction, thanks to a patient and hardworking cast and crew.

Any plans on the date/month of the Indian release of the film?

We plan to release the film in mid 2017. The date will be announced soon.

Among the Indian masters who have made it to Berlin earlier, is there anyone who inspires you?

From what I remember, Satyajit Ray was a Berlin regular. Some of my favourite Ray films were premiered in Berlin. The Ray films that I love include "Sonar Kella", "

Aranyer Din Ratri

", "Devi" and "Mahanagar".

What next after ‘Newton’?

I haven’t started work on the next film yet. I’m looking for an idea which will start the next journey.

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