JOIN USThings have happened quickly, says ‘Village Rockstars’ director
A self-taught filmmaker and winner of multiple international film festival awards, the director makes indigenous and realistic films with non-professional actors. Rima Das strikes a chord with people across the world and has become a household name.
She not only wears the hat of a director but that of a screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and editor.
Her film ‘Village Rockstars’ was screened at over 80 film festivals around the world, It bagged more than 50 awards including the National Film Award for the Best Feature Film in 2018. It was also India’s official entry to Oscars 2019.
Similarly, ‘Bulbul Can Sing’, her most recent film, was screened at over 40 film festivals and has won 14 awards.
Along with being one of the brand ambassadors of Toronto International Film Festival’s ‘Share Her Journey’ campaign, she was on the jury for the Mumbai International Film Festival and Zlin Film Festival for Children and Youth.
She is now being invited as a jury member of ‘Generation 14plus’ at the ‘Berlin International Film Festival 2020’.
In a chat with Metrolife, Rima talks about representing Assam on an international platform, her journey and more.
How does it feel to represent Assam at national and international film festivals?
It really feels great. Things were unplanned and happened really quickly. I didn’t think that my films would do so well and be part of a series of film festivals.
Last year, the film was part of the Berlin Film Festival and this year, I have been invited to be a jury member.
I am definitely happy with how things have taken shape.
Both your films ‘Village Rockstars’ and ‘Bulbul Can Sing’ have garnered a lot of appreciation and accolades across international platforms...
When I started watching films, it was mostly me trying to understand if I am watching a film from China, Iran or Europe; for me, it was about trying to understand why I can connect with the film. Whenever, I am working on a film, I make sure that it is universal.
If the theme of a film is universal, its impact is definitely going to be the same. When I am writing dialogues or framing my characters, I try my best to give more importance to human language and emotions. I want people from all corners of the world to relate and connect to my films.
Generally, talents from Assam are sidelined or goes undiscovered. Has that changed now?
Things have changed for the better in the past few years. Earlier, people of Assam felt that it was out of their reach to make it big outside their state but now, after ‘Village Rockstars’ and Bhaskar Hazarika’s ‘Kothanodi’, the younger generation believes that it is possible to dream big and achieve it.
I think that is important. Now, there are more independent filmmakers in the state making movies.
During my time, I was told that film festivals are hard to crack. But all I can say is that my journey was independent. I am still learning every day. I feel grateful that many young independent filmmakers know my journey and are inspired by it.
You have to take responsibility. I came from nothing, so did Bhaskar, who made ‘Kothanodi’ with a very low budget. We, coming from the Northeast have a responsibility to tell our stories to others.
How did your journey start?
I came to Mumbai to become an actor. My tryst with direction began in 2007, when I was introduced to world cinema. This is when I realised that I too, can tell stories through films.I made my first short film, ‘Pratha’, in 2009 and sent it to different film festivals; it clicked in two to three of them.
That gave me the belief that whatever I am doing is working. While I continued to make short films, I realised that I see life from a larger spectrum, and I could perhaps make feature films. That’s how I started writing.
At that time, I was struggling as an actor. When I was acting, I didn’t give myself time and I was not working hard. I saw a shift in the way I looked at my work, once I started making films.
Today, I am dedicated, I work hard and I am simply happy that I finally found what I enjoy doing — filmmaking. I was aware that the kind of movies I was making would suit.
festivals but I wasn’t sure whether critics and the public would accept and appreciate this kind of cinema.
What advice would you give to the young and budding talents?
This is the best time to explore. Today, even the general audience is aware and talking about film festivals across the globe. When I started, very few people knew what a film festival was. Today, everything is accessible.
Now, if you have the talent and really want to make films, you just need to learn the technical know-how and then go ahead.
Where do you find your inspiration from?
Cinema. I believe cinema is magic. I watch movies a lot, especially, because I am still very new to everything and I am discovering new directors.
Having said that, I definitely take inspiration from life. I observe people a lot.
What is your plan now?
My plan is to go with the flow and take up challenges. I have few scripts in mind, so let’s see how things work.