Eight Bhojpuri films spanning five decades of cinematic story-telling. are being screened at a local theatre during the festival. Among them is Deswa, a film by young Bihari film-maker, Nitin Chandra, which is awaiting theatre release.
With impressive films like ‘Ganga Maiya Tohre Peeyari Chadhabou’, ‘Dangal’ and ‘Bidesia’, Bihar has much to offer.
Besides, there is a huge, local talent bank waiting for an opportunity to do more relevant, meaningful and entertaining Bhojpuri films. However, it is hard to select a Bhojpuri film in sync with the Bihar of today and its aspirations.
In this backdrop, a young producer-director, Nitin Chandra, has boldly deviated from the norm of making a ‘formula’ film in his debut work and scripted ‘Deswa’, building on the young Bihari aspirations and the changing dynamics in the state.
Deswa has been shot entirely in Bihar. It has dominant presence of local talent and has given a platform to young Bihari actors working locally, who share the screen with Bollywood actors like Ashish Vidyarthi in the movie.
“Deswa is an attempt to bring back the pride and the reality of modern Bihar, as it struggles to shed its backward image,” says Nitin.
“It was overwhelming to see the positive response Deswa received at some of the film festivals. People were quite amazed to see that Bihar is not just about poverty, migrant labours and social backwardness. They were surprised to know that shooting in Bihar is a real possibility and makes for excellent frames! My movie is shot in my hometown of Buxar and also in Patna. I wanted the audience to see the real Bihar in a Bhojpuri film,” comments Nitin.