Quota will be India's first film on gymnastics, says director Amudhavanan

Filmmaker Amudhavanan, who directed the socially-conscious Veruli, is back on the director's seat for Quota, which is set for a Diwali release this week. Amudhavanan tells us that Quota is based on gymnastics, making it the first Indian film to touch upon the sport. 

"While gymnastics is something a normal man needs training for, tribal people who live in the woods are used to climbing trees, jumping from heights, and so on.  Quota will deal with their struggles to make a name for themselves in the sport." Thus, while Veruli dealt with how potholes double as death traps, Quota will speak about how the underprivileged fail to get their due.

"A lot of talented people do not get the recognition they deserve. Instead, those in selection committees give opportunities to influential people," says Amudhavanan, who left his high paying job as the Vice President of Tata Motors to become a director.

He goes on to explains the scenario with an example. "We speak about Usain Bolt’s lung capacity, but it is scientifically proven that our fishermen have more capacity than that and are used to swimming against the rough sea tides. Why aren’t we using them for swimming competitions? All they need is basic training on the regulations of the sport."

Quota has already won accolades  in more than45 film festivals and was a part of seven official selections. "We wrapped up the film last November. The plan was to release the film this April but we had to postpone it due to the pandemic. Despite getting offers from OTT platforms, we wanted a theatrical release so that the film can reach the masses and even those who don't have access to these platforms,"says the filmmaker.