Regional films have never let cinema lovers down. There’s no denying that these films have won critical acclaim and national awards. Recently Marathi film Deool and Byari, both dealing with man’s engagement with religion, shared the best feature film award at the 59th National Awards. But despite faring well at the National Awards, regional films miss out on national visibility.
Chandra Mudoi, director of Assamese film Bakor Putek says, “What regional cinema needs at the moment is a nationwide release. We need to focus on reaching out to the audiences around the country by releasing the film with subtitles everywhere. Secondly, we need to make DVDs of regional films (with subtitles) more accessible to the audience in the metros. For instance, I live in Mumbai and it’s not easy to find Assamese film DVDs here. So that needs to be worked on.”
Similar is the case with regional documentaries. Throwing light on the three important factors which affect popularity and accessibility of regional documentaries, documentary filmmaker Gopal Singh who has worked on regional projects, explains, “Themes in regional documentary films are usually similar. People still work on the same themes about that region. For instance, when one is talking about Punjab, people keep talking about female foeticide. So we need better subjects. Then one needs to focus on the treatment given to the stories. And then, many of these good regional films don’t reach the audience as there’s no room for them at the top slot. Sometimes awards are only given to those known to the judges, so many good films fail to make it to the top.”
NFDC’s production, Anhey Ghorey Da Daan (Alms of the Blind Horse), directed by debutant director Gurvindar Singh, won the National Award in two categories — Best Director and Best Cinematographer.
“The film won the Special Jury Mention at the 5th Abu Dhabi Film Festival 2011. It’s all about people recognising regional cinema. And it wouldn’t happen till the time they start special screenings for these at a national level. I feel they don’t reach us just because they aren’t marketed properly. And these are films which don’t have a huge starcast but still come with a positive message for the society. They need better marketing,” says Mihir Gulati, an advertising professional.