Akashaditya Lama has a subtle connection with the North East though he never visited the region before 2015. While his forefathers are from Arunachal Pradesh, the film and theatre director had trained in Thang Ta, the martial art form of Manipur, from a member of the royal family. With his new film, Nani Teri Morni, Lama, who was born in Ranchi and spent a part of his childhood in Kolkata, only strengthened his association with the region that is still a mystery to the people in most parts of the country.
The director, who is known for his critically acclaimed play Mohenjodaro the script of which was allegedly plagiarised by Bollywood director Ashutosh Gwariker, tells the story of a girl child in Nagaland who had received the National Child Bravery Award in 2015.
The story revolves around Mhonbeni Ezung and “her imagination”. She was the youngest recipient of the national bravery award for children. She saved her grandmother from drowning and triumphed over her fear.
After taking necessary permissions, Lama had approached the Children’s Film Society India (CFSI), then headed by television superstar Mukesh Khanna. The script was approved but it was only the beginning of Lama’s struggle.
“Initially, we wanted to make a full length feature film but financial crunch forced me to cut it short. My crew members wanted to shoot the film in parts of Assam and other states but I insisted on Nagaland because I was telling the story of that place and people there,” said the 41-year-old director over phone from Mumbai.
However, the 41-year-old artiste had to struggle for the premiere of the film in Nagaland. After CFSI told the director that they can premiere in the northeastern state under the ‘Children Film Bonanza’, the team contacted the state government through email. But there was no response. So two of the team members, including line producer Rebecca Changkija Sema, approached the government. But talks progressed in a snail’s pace. “There was no help from the government even during the shooting,” said the director.
The film crew wanted to shoot in the interiors of the state and had sought help from the government but it did not pay heed. “We asked for helicopter but did not get though we were ready to pay. We asked for transport as the areas were really remote but did not get… we asked for accommodation for the crew but no help came our way,” recalled Lama and added that the ordeal was despite the fact that his film was the first Nagamese film.
Lama explained that the film was “technically the first Nagamese film” because it is certified and was shot with proper camera. “There are some Nagamese short films on YouTube but they were all shot on handycam. Nani Teri Morni is also the first film shot entirely in Nagaland by someone from the mainland. Before this, only tourists who would come for the Hornbill Festival would shoot videos and post on YouTube,” he said and added that 20 per cent of the film is in Hindi because “there are two imaginary characters, the sutradhar (compere) of the film, who speak in Hindi”.
The script of the film was written in English by Lama that was later translated to Nagamese by co-writers in the team. “Nagamese is more like Bengali with a mix of Assamese. I can read, write and speak Bengali because my mother is Bengali and I grew up in Kolkata. So understanding Nagamese was not difficult for me. It won’t be for any Bengali,” the director said.
The ordeal for the crew did not end there. The government had initially agreed to screen the film both in Kohima and Dimapur but later backed out and settled only for Kohima.
“First they said Kohima has no infrastructure so it will be in Dimapur. Most of my actors are from Dimapur so it was a good proposition. Then they said both places. Later again they said both places and once more changed it to Kohima. The road connecting Kohima and Dimapur is terrible and it was not possible for the crew members to travel. Also, an official (Abhishek Singh) shouted at a crew member who was coordinating with the government for the event,” said Lama and added that talks should have been between CFSI and the state but “things were not moving” and he and his team had to intervene.
The film was supposed to be released for the Children Film Bonanza. The state government’s dilly-dally was based on various excuses. An official in the Nagaland government pointed finger at CFSI for demanding tickets. “But the CFSI cannot ask for it. All they want is an auditorium, a projector and children. Now it depends on the state government in what way it wants to hold the festival. It can be a Rs 50-lakh festival or a Rs 5-lakh. The film was all about Naga people and their land and yet the response was tepid,” explained Lama.
Lama — who was the writer of additional dialogues for the film Lahore that won two National Film Awards, co-writer of Chanda Mama Door Ke, writer and co-producer of Hindi play Mohenjodaro — informed that Abhishek Singh, the home commissioner in Nagaland, insulted the line producer and one of the writers after which the crew refused to attend the festival.
The director did not get any invitation from the Nagaland government for the festival though he had written to it a few times. “I was told that there was no provision for the cost of my ticket in the budget. But my crew was not attending the festival so there was no question of me attending it. So I did not pursue,” said Lama.
This was not the first struggle in Lama’s career. Earlier, he was embroiled in a long legal course to fight Gwariker for stealing his Mohenjodaro script and after losing the case, had to beg on the streets of Mumbai to raise the penalty money.
He is the writer and co-producer of the Hindi play. Lama wrote the play when he was only a teenager.
Lama, who has a strong theatre background and has been involved with the stage since 17 years of age, started his career as an assistant director in the Bollywood film Gadar. After that he joined Balaji Films as a writer and has years of experience in working on television scripts, including for Indonesian soaps. He has worked with several big houses, including the Suraj Barjatya production house. “But when it comes to creativity, you can list theatre, film, television in the ascending order,” he said.
He has a theatre group in Mumbai and frequently participates in drama festivals across the country. “My play Mohenjodaro has Thang Ta and Chhou. It is a critically acclaimed drama,” he said.
But the experienced director believes that for a writer or technician, television is the best option to make money. Asked how he balances between theatre, film and television, Lama said he works with television for some months and after he earns enough money, he takes a break and focuses on films.
Talking about his career, Lama said he is keen on directing and was never “quite passionate about acting”.
After a personal introduction, Lama reverted to his new project Nani Teri Morni. He said the team was planning to have a commercial release of Nani Teri Morni in other parts of the country “may be this winter vacation or summer vacation next year”.
Before signing off, Lama, who is well-versed in Bengali, could not resist speaking in Bengali. “Bhalo laglo kotha bole (It was nice speaking to you),” the director said and informed that he is planning to visit Shillong for a shoot.
~ NM