High school is that phase of life when adolescents become teenagers and develop a personality. It is also the period that Bengaluru-based director Roopa Rao explores in the slice-of-life Gantumoote (baggage), her Kannada feature that is premièring at the New York Indian Film Festival 2019 this weekend. It is only the third Kannada film, after U-Turn and Ondhu Motteya Kathe, to show there in the 18 years since the festival began.
Viewers might remember Rao from the sensitively-made The Other Love Story, a 2016 YouTube series about two girls in love in the 1990s. In a smattering of Kannada, Hindi and English, it was relatable, and showed it was possible to showcase same-sex relationships as ‘normal’. While people wait for the second season, the director moved on to Gantumoote.
“I focussed on a 16-year-old in the film, because that is the age when we start understanding life, know the difference between illusions and dreams, and when reality sets in,” says Rao, 37. For the film, she worked with a cast with an average age of 19. “They are spontaneous and not as lost as we were. They seem to know a lot of things, and surprised me, on and off camera. It was refreshing to work with a team in this age group,” she says.
Back to school
Gantumoote is set in a high school, and the team found a location untouched by time in Mysuru. It stars Teju Belawadi, daughter of theatre and stage actor Prakash Belawadi, in the lead. “This is the journey of Meera, a teenage girl. It is set in the 1990s, and she thinks life is like it is in the movies, till she learns otherwise,” says Rao, adding that Gantumoote speaks of the protagonist’s struggle to understand herself. “There’s academic pressure, bullying and first love.”
In keeping with the setting, there’s a reference to Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, which touched a chord with many growing up in that time, and Kannada actor Upendra, who was a rising star then. “These were films and people who affected kids; they were influential. I believe that many people in tier-2 cities will relate to the film.”
Incidentally, small town India was also central to The Other Love Story — it set the protagonists (South Indian Aadya and North Indian Aachal) in a believable middle-class background. The show won Rao Best Director at the New York Web Fest 2016. “This was how I grew up, hearing a mix of Kannada, Hindi and English. Most of us in Bangalore grew up knowing five languages, and that’s the reason I set the show there too.” The show also let her know that if she made something where everyone spoke in the language they were comfortable in, it would still work if backed by subtitles, and would help take Indian content to the larger world.
Festival route
Long before the film wrapped up, Rao drew up a festival schedule that it could be a part of. “This is the third festival we applied to, and I’ve also been nominated for best screenplay. The plan is to do the festival circuit for a while because it’s a great route for independent filmmakers. If you’re looking at a theatrical release, up to 30% of your budget goes towards publicity,” she says, adding that before she considers bringing it to cinemas, she will wait to hear from the other festivals where Gantumoote has entered the final round.
Rao grew up at a time when regional art house fare was reserved for Sunday afternoons, when Doordarshan screened award-winning films. It was there that she watched works by Girish Kasaravalli and Girish Karnad. She fondly remembers Bettada Hoovu, which won Puneeth Rajkumar the National Award for Best Child Actor. “But I’ve always wondered about this gap between art house and commercial, and why they can’t be seen as just movies,” says the director, who rues the lack of buzz around quality regional content.
Hence, the festival route. “I think festival selections will give some sort of a push; people might start to notice the film, and we could land some co-productions. We wanted the creative freedom to tell honest stories; that’s why my business partner Sahadev Kelvadi and I started out on our own with Ameyukti Studios (boundless expression).”
Gantumoote will première on May 11 at the New York India Film Festival 2019.