Writers not taken seriously in Hindi films: Mahesh Elkunchwar

NAGPUR: As the first Orange City International Film Festival (OCIFF) drew to a close, it gave a promise of a bigger and better comeback next year. Its third and final day on Sunday saw playwright

Mahesh Elkunchwar

give the first Nilu Phule Memorial Lecture at Persistent Hall, IT Park.

“Scriptwriting requires different skills and discipline,” said Elkunchwar. He distinguished scriptwriters in two camps — those who wanted to write commercial movies such as those made by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and those who wanted to write for movies made by the likes of Ketan Mehta.

Mincing no words, Elkunchwar said, “For an aspiring script writer, it is important to ask oneself what kind of a writer one is and what does writing mean to him. No writer has made a reputation in films. In the Hindi-Marathi film industry, a writer is thought of as a mentally retarded person, and the director is always wiser. And the last word comes from the producer.” Elkunchwar narrated his experiences in writing film scripts based on his own plays, ‘Holi’ and ‘Party.’

On Saturday, the second day of the festival, young director Prantik Deshmukh’s Filmfare award winning movie, Mati Madhli Kushti was screened at PVR screen 4. It was followed by a question-and-answer session between Deshmukh, former dean of

Film and Television Institute of India

(FTII) Samar Nakhate and visual arts expert Vishram Dhole. Deshmukh spoke about his experiences and his initiation into filmmaking.

“After Std 12, I took admission in architecture, but I was interested in films. I then joined Fergusson College in Pune. When asked to make a film in college, I chose wrestling as a theme as I feel it is a neglected sport. People are losing touch with mother earth. I wanted to explore different aspects of a man’s relationship with nature,” he said.

On Saturday evening, director of the recently released Marathi film ‘Ventilator’, Rajesh Mapuskar was seen in a conversation with director of the festival Jabbar Patel and Nakhate. Mapuskar said, “Various incidents that occur in a director’s life are reflected in my art and it makes cinema come alive, making people relate to it.”

“I always wanted to do something creative. I belong to a family which owns a cinema talkies and general stores. I didn’t want to spend life running them. I enrolled myself for a diploma course in Mumbai and started doubling as a spot boy,” he said.

Mapuskar then met director Raju Hirani, who used to then work for a production house. Hirani then convinced him to co-direct Munnabhai MBBS, and Lage Raho Munnabhai.

“After that, my interest in films grew and I wanted to make my own film. Vidhu Vinod Chopra convinced me to direct

Ferari Ki Sawari

, and my journey began.”