#2020BeGone: Dhollywood looks forward to an action-packed 2021

The Gujarati film industry kickstarted 2020 on a high riding on the confidence and a sense of pride that Hellaro brought to the industry by winning the National Award for Best Feature Film. Dhollywood was all set to have yet another rock-solid year with several interesting projects lined up. But the COVID-19 pandemic brought the entire entertainment industry to a complete halt.However, Dhollywood is back in action now with several films going on the floors and the industry is looking at an action packed 2021 which is likely to see a surge in the number of film releases.
As 2020 comes to an end, we bring you what the year was like for Dhollywood:
‘THE YEAR BEGAN ON A HIGH’
With two big films starring Malhar Thakar (Golkeri) and Pratik Gandhi (Luv Ni Love Storys) releasing in the beginning of the year, it promised a good start. With five more films starring Malhar slated to release in the coming months, Dhollywood looked all set for a power-packed year. “The year started well and it looked as if it will be an action-packed year,” says filmmaker Kirtan Patel, who was shooting for his next before the lockdown was imposed. Then suddenly things took a completely different turn.
‘WFH, CREATIVE COLLABS MARKED THE YEAR’
With artistes confined to their homes, it was time to reinvent themselves and their craft too. A number of actors, musicians and filmmakers collaborated to make interesting videos, short films and came together (virtually) to plan for future projects. “It rarely ever happens that we get so much free time, so everyone utilised it by working on something after the initial phase of shock was over,” says filmmaker Mikhil Musale. Actors like Malhar Thakar, Pratik Gandhi, Deeksha Joshi, Bhakti Kubavat, Aarohi Patel and others utilised the digital platforms to reach out to the audiences from their homes. They all pushed their creative boundaries.
‘MUSICIANS HIT THE RIGHT NOTES’
Musicians made the most of 2020. Several artistes like Jigardan Gadhavi, Aishwarya Majmudar, Meet Jain, Binny Sharma and Arvind Vegda set up makeshift recording studios at home so that they could continue making music. Singles and music videos became hugely popular. “It was the best time to make music since we had so much time. If you have your basic equipment at home, you can create and record songs,” says Jigardan Gadhavi, who composed, wrote and released several singles. Bhoomi Trivedi, Kinjal Dave, Sachin-Jigar, Kirtidan Gadhavi, Geeta Rabari, Bhumik Shah, Parth Oza and Ishani Dave released singles making it a musically exciting year.
‘LOOKING AHEAD FOR AN EXCITING AND BUSY YEAR’
Now with new projects starting, Dhollywood is looking forward to an exciting year ahead. “Yeh saal toh gaya, but 2021 will be a lot of fun workwise” says Malhar Thakar who has his dates booked for next three months. Even filmmakers are looking forward to the next year. “We rescheduled our film for next year since it had to be shot overseas, meanwhile we have started working on a new project,” says filmmaker Vipul Mehta. “It is good that so many films are now waiting to find the right dates. It’s only going to be good for the industry,” shares actor Tushar Sadhu.