Mangesh Hadawale, who won critical acclaim with his first film, Tingya (a Marathi film), is out with his next film Dekh Indian Circus, and is enjoying a second round of appreciation.
Mangesh, who belongs to Rajuri village near Pune, went through a lot of struggle when he made Tingya. He says 41 producers rejected the film. They advised him not to start his career with Tingya that is based in a small village. But Mangesh had faith in the story he wanted to tell. “Later, I received appreciation from another 41 people from the film industry,” shares Mangesh and adds that the film received more than 57 national and international awards.
When he finalised the story of Dekh Indian Circus, that’s once again based in a small village and tells the story of a poverty-stricken family that struggles to watch a circus, not many people seemed enthusiastic. But now that the film is complete, it has won a few awards as well as appreciation. In fact, filmmaker Imtiaz Ali recently came out in support of the film and has agreed to publicise it.
Mangesh says that he wanted Imtiaz to act in the film. “I went to him with a proposal to play a role. But he was caught up with his film Rockstar then. He heard my story and said he would come to watch the film once I’m through with it. He kept his promise and came for the special screening. I was overwhelmed when he said he liked the film and spoke to me about it for nearly two hours. I was surprised and touched by his gesture when he said he would support me in spreading the word about the film,” says Mangesh, who feels more films about basic issues concerning our society should be made.
He adds that of the many Indian films made every year, only a handful are blockbusters. “If there’s no formula for a hit film, then why not opt for an idea that will touch a few hearts?” says Hadawale, who wants to continue making similar films in the future.
Talking about the film, Imtiaz says, “I was exhilarated to watch Dekh Indian Circus. It is such a colourful way to represent the circus that the dynamics of an Indian village is. The film has a very well meaning heart and a brilliant and entertaining body. I am very impressed with Mangesh Hadawale’s work. I am thrilled to help reach this film out to people in the country and abroad.”