Exclusive Interview with Sudipto Sen on winning two National Awards for the film ‘The Kerala Story’

IANS INDIA

Mumbai: During an exclusive conversation with Filmmaker Sudipto Sen, where he discussed his film "The Kerala Story," which won two National Awards for Best Director and Best Cinematography. Sen described the moment as ‘surreal’ and a culmination of years of hard work. He highlighted the film's impactful storytelling and its exploration of themes like conversion and terrorism. Also, he addressed criticism from Kerala's Chief Minister, stating that the film is based on truth and evidence. At last, he shared his upcoming projects and his thoughts on awards and criticism in the film industry.    #SudiptoSen #TheKeralaStory #Filmmaker #exclusiveconversation #BestDirector #BestCinematography #NationalAwards #BollywoodNews #BollywoodGossips #BollywoodUpdates #BollywoodNews #Bollywood #Bollywoodcelebrity #BollywoodHindiNews #ians

Transcript

00:00So this will be first of all, welcome to INS.

00:03And congratulations, it's a huge honor to receive both the Best Director and Best Cinematography Award.

00:09So how was the, how was this moment?

00:12It is surreal. It is surreal.

00:14And honestly, when we started our journey for Kerala Story, it is almost like 10, 12 years back.

00:22It was a lot of hard work, a lot of arduous journey.

00:25And when finally we made the film, we got huge success in the box office.

00:31Lot of blessings, lot of love, adulation.

00:35So, you know, in that way, commercial success, which has lot of relevance for the film like this.

00:45But getting an award along with the commercial success, it's a kind of a full circle.

00:50And it is surreal.

00:51So, we are still, it is not even 24 hours that the announcement has come.

00:56So, we are pretty happy.

00:58Sir, winning two major award for the Kerala Story must be overwhelming.

01:01So what does this recognition mean to you personally and professionally?

01:05The thing is, you know, we expected more.

01:09Because if you analyze the success of the film, there are many aspects which has actually contributed.

01:18We had a wonderful script.

01:21We had a wonderful makeup of our lead actress, Ada.

01:27We have wonderful acting by Ada and other girls.

01:31We have wonderful music.

01:33Our song, Pagal Parinde, was kind of become a national anthem.

01:39So, we were expecting many awards.

01:44And we, I think, we rightly deserving for those awards.

01:48But, you know, best director award will come to us.

01:52That I never anticipated.

01:54That is how Prashantanu, that is, your best cinematography award did not surprise me.

01:59But my award has surprised me, definitely.

02:02But, yes, it's a kind of vindication of our journey.

02:06And we are really proud of it.

02:08Sir, the Kerala Story has been quite impactful.

02:10What show you, what drove you to tell the story in particular?

02:14And what were the core themes you wanted to explore?

02:17The thing is, the whole, whole journey started from, in 2000, if I am not wrong, 2005, 2007.

02:30Anyway, Diden, Chief Minister, Eshtwail Chief Minister of Kerala, Comrade V.S. Ochudanandan,

02:37once organized a press conference in Delhi to say that the way the conversion is happening

02:44in Kerala, into the next 20 years, Kerala will be turned into an Islamic state.

02:51That is the seed of our film.

02:56And from there, we started our journey.

02:58And when we started getting into the subject of, you know, manipulative conversion in Kerala,

03:06it, it, it, we realized that whatever we are, we understood, whatever we envisaged,

03:13the route is much in deeper space.

03:16So, the research part was very, very important for us.

03:22And eventually, when we come up with the documentary we made in the name of Love,

03:29it was, it got Best Film Award in, in, in, in, in London International Film Festival.

03:33It was, that was a kind of first reaction of the, of the people in, in international audience.

03:42But the film, the way the film has been taken, accepted by the Indian audience,

03:47and even two years after the release, even today it is so much alive in social media today,

03:55that I think it is a very, very significant event for socio-political scenario of this country.

04:03Sir, talking about this cinematography,

04:07playing in and enhancing the emotional depth of the story,

04:10were there any specific scenes where the visuals were especially important?

04:14The whole thing has been important.

04:17Important was that Kerala, we started our film from Kerala,

04:22and, you know, the lush green and the brush green backwater of Kerala,

04:29that God's own country of Kerala that is visually so spectacular.

04:33From there, suddenly we see the darkest part of the dungeon called Northern Kerala,

04:40where this ISIS model is operative,

04:43and then to the, the, the, the landscape of Afghanistan,

04:50Iran, Iraq border areas.

04:55So, it's, this visual journey is very, very tedious and difficult.

04:59Putting into one common platform all these visual extremes

05:04was a difficult journey for us.

05:07Me and my DOP Prashantanu worked on this visual structuring for days after days,

05:14and we realized that the, we are heading to a most difficult part of cinematography,

05:20and I am so happy and so proud of the jury board

05:23that they recognize the, the magnificent work of our DOP.

05:28Sir, can you share some behind-the-scenes movement where filming,

05:33during filming where both you and your cinematographer had to work up challenges?

05:38It was, it was, in Kerala it was not.

05:41I mean, we did our indoor sequences in Bombay, which was not difficult.

05:47Shooting in Kerala was very, very difficult,

05:49because we were doing kind of guerrilla shooting,

05:52because we did not get permission for shooting in Kerala roads and Kerala villages.

05:59So, it was a kind of guerrilla shooting we did seven days.

06:02It was very difficult.

06:05And then the shooting we did in the Ladakh,

06:08above, I mean, higher altitudes of Karakuram and Indo-Karakuram areas,

06:14the upper Shivalik zone,

06:15where the temperature was sometime reached minus 15 degree also,

06:23and the landscape was extremely windy.

06:26So, you know, keeping things settled,

06:28keeping the mental space calm,

06:33the shooting was very, very difficult.

06:36We got exposed to many difficult situations there,

06:40particularly in Ladakh.

06:42But as, as it may sound a bit, bit unreal,

06:47that we knew that we have to do the best possible cinematography

06:53to tell the story.

06:55So, we did.

06:56Sir, both Best Director and Best Cinematography awards

06:59are a testament to the hard work of your entire team.

07:02Sir, how do you plan to continue this level of storytelling in your future?

07:06I, immediately after Kerala's story,

07:08I start, I did a film called Bastar.

07:10Bastar is, again, Bipul Shah produced the film.

07:14This is equally a hard-eating subject of Maoist movement

07:17in the jungles of Chathisgarh Bastar.

07:22Immediately after that,

07:23I just completed a film called Chadok,

07:26which will be released in October or so.

07:28So, it is, it is a journey of telling the truth.

07:33Truth is always difficult.

07:34Truth is always arduous.

07:36So, the journey continues.

07:39Okay.

07:39Sir, lastly, I want to ask you that

07:42Kerala CM has given the statement that

07:47he is not happy with,

07:49what meaning of the Kerala story?

07:51I, number one, he is a politician

07:54and I am not a politician, I am a filmmaker.

07:57So, politician, being a senior politician,

07:59he is, he is a great leader.

08:04Senior politician has given his opinion.

08:07We don't agree with him.

08:09We have enough proof to support our,

08:13our, the subject, the, the, the, the, the,

08:17the film.

08:19Censor board, Indian censor board has testified,

08:22checked the truth about,

08:24truth behind the film.

08:26They gone, dialogue by dialogue,

08:30we gave them the evidence of the truth,

08:33our truth.

08:34We gave them almost 300 pages of written testimonies,

08:39two hours of video testimonies

08:42and censor, good thing is censor board is,

08:45censor board parsed the film

08:46without a single cut of the film.

08:48So, I think Mr. Pinari Vijayan should see the film

08:56and he has given a,

08:59he has given his political compulsion

09:02to talk against the film.

09:04So, he did.

09:06It is, I just want to enjoy the situation,

09:09enjoy the moments,

09:10which was resorted to us

09:12by, say,

09:14jury board of National Film Award.

09:17And,

09:17definitely I am there to stand by

09:20every word being spoken in the film,

09:22every visual shown in the film.

09:24I am,

09:25I know exactly what I,

09:27what the truth behind this.

09:29So,

09:30it's okay,

09:31politicians wants to differ with my film,

09:33I am okay with that.

09:34Sir, last time I want to ask you that

09:35being the senior director

09:37and,

09:38senior director,

09:39I want to ask you that

09:40there are many actors

09:41who say that the awards

09:42are not so surreal

09:44at this place,

09:46at this time.

09:47There are many,

09:48what like,

09:50been manipulated and all.

09:52Manipulated

09:53and we should have to go to the end

09:55and then we will get the awards

09:56and all these things.

09:57Sir, being,

09:57sir, being a part of this industry,

09:59we keep hearing many stories,

10:01but I don't believe that.

10:03And,

10:04at least,

10:05at least,

10:05I never encountered

10:06that kind of situation.

10:09So,

10:09I am not the right person

10:10to tell you

10:11whether it is,

10:12whether this manipulation

10:13really happens or not.

10:15But,

10:15it should not happen.

10:16That is what I,

10:17I have a feeling.

10:19But,

10:19do you think that

10:20prestigious about National Award

10:22is also manipulated?

10:22I don't think

10:24because inside the room

10:25when they watch

10:26three to four films a day,

10:28nine,

10:29ten people

10:29from different

10:30walks of life,

10:31I mean,

10:32from different

10:33genre of cinema

10:34are present there

10:36inside a room.

10:38They do the argument.

10:39They,

10:40they,

10:40they prolong,

10:42they have prolonged

10:43conversation between them.

10:44It's difficult to

10:45because everybody is

10:47great in their own

10:49area,

10:49own,

10:50own,

10:50own professional way.

10:54So,

10:55I,

10:55I don't think

10:56it is there.

10:58But,

10:58no,

11:00I don't,

11:00I don't think,

11:01I don't think I should reply

11:02because I am not

11:03the right person

11:04to reply this.

11:05Sir,

11:06last time I talked to you

11:07that the Kerala story

11:08has received the love also

11:09and the criticism

11:10also in social media.

11:11So,

11:11do you think that

11:12that also helped

11:13the film to grow?

11:15Ah,

11:16that is though,

11:17yes,

11:17because

11:18criticism is always,

11:20always been,

11:21always attract

11:22more and more minds.

11:24So,

11:25the way the film

11:27being loved,

11:29that helped us

11:31to propagate

11:32the news of the film.

11:33Like,

11:34first day,

11:35our film released

11:36in 770 screens.

11:39By the time

11:40the day was over,

11:41it become

11:42almost 850 screen.

11:45Next day,

11:45film started

11:46with 950 screen

11:48and ended

11:48with almost

11:491000 screen.

11:50And by Monday,

11:51Tuesday,

11:52it reached to

11:522800,

11:533000 screens.

11:56So,

11:56increase of number

11:57of screen means

11:58more and more people

11:59started coming

12:00to the cinema hall,

12:01right?

12:01And,

12:02it is possible

12:03only when

12:04the whisper campaign

12:05about the good thing

12:07about film

12:07was going on.

12:09but when

12:10many people

12:10see the film,

12:13then starts

12:14the criticism.

12:15So,

12:15that is another

12:16attraction

12:16for the film.

12:18So,

12:19good criticism,

12:20bad criticism,

12:21good review,

12:22bad review,

12:23all helps

12:24a film.

12:24Last week,

12:25there is

12:26something about

12:26Charak,

12:27sir.

12:27What does

12:27Charak

12:27all about?

12:28is a film

12:30on faith.

12:31Faith means

12:31faith is

12:32like

12:35things which

12:36you do

12:37without any

12:38logic,

12:39without

12:39getting into

12:40the core

12:41of the subject.

12:43So,

12:44when science,

12:46your believe

12:47in science

12:48ends,

12:49faith take over.

12:49So,

12:51the issues

12:52like

12:53human sacrifice

12:55are very much

12:57evident in

12:58the remote rural

13:00areas,

13:00particularly in

13:01the lower

13:02caste people.

13:05So,

13:06Charak

13:06deals with

13:07this very

13:07very sensitive

13:08subject of

13:08faith,

13:11superstition,

13:12obscurantism,

13:14like

13:15human sacrifice.

13:16It will be

13:17released sometime

13:18in October.

13:18Sir,

13:19last one

13:20question I

13:20want to ask

13:20you that

13:21there are

13:21many people

13:22who are

13:22saying that

13:23Shah Rukh Khan

13:23should have

13:24not won the

13:24national award

13:25or like

13:26there are

13:27many people

13:27like they

13:27are saying

13:28that Jawan

13:29should not

13:29won the

13:29national award

13:30or whatever

13:31you get there.

13:31See,

13:32I will not

13:32be,

13:32I am not

13:33the jury.

13:34I didn't

13:34even see

13:35the film

13:35called

13:36Jawan.

13:37I don't

13:38know whether

13:38it should

13:39get or

13:39should not

13:40get because

13:40you know

13:40anything

13:41happens

13:41there will

13:42be opinion.

13:43So,

13:43unless I

13:45see the

13:45film I

13:46will not be

13:46able to

13:47make my

13:47opinion,

13:48Shah Rukh Khan

13:49is a great

13:50actor,

13:50so I am

13:52not that

13:53competent

13:54enough to

13:54comment on

13:55that.

Category

Transcript

Recommended