Guwahati: Filmmaker Monjul Baruah’s third feature film Anur: Eyes on the Sunshine has emerged as a film festival favourite already after its recent selections in the 27th edition of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) and the 21st edition of the Dhaka International Film Festival. In the IFFK, scheduled to be held from December 9 to December 16 this year, Anur: Eyes on the Sunshine has been selected for the ‘Indian Cinema Now’ section of the reputed film festival. On the other hand, in the Dhaka International Film Festival, scheduled for January 14 to January 22 next year, the film has been selected for the prestigious ‘Cinema of the World’ section.
Sharing his reactions about the selection of the film with EastMojo, director Monjul Baruah said, “It is indeed a unique and happy experience for me and my team. Everyone knows how hard it is to make it through the IFFK selections. Although I had sent my first two films to the festival, it is Anur, my third film, which has made it to the coveted list of selected films.”
Based on a short story by Anuradha Sharma Pujaree, Anur follows the account of an aged and retired teacher’s life who struggles with loneliness and insecurities following the death of her husband. The ability to escape from her painful reality is hindered by her love for her husband and the memories of him associated with their home. And her home is a place that she will never want to leave. However, the arrival of a special person challenges this loneliness of her life.
“The subject of the movie is very relevant to present times and with grown-up children leaving their old parents behind for employment opportunities in distant lands, the theme, too, becomes widely universal. I could relate to the story on a personal level when my father, now deceased, was ill and bedridden and worried about how my mother would spend the rest of her life alone”, shared Baruah who is also known for directing of Kaaneen and Antareen.
The film led by actor Dr Jahanara Begum also stars Bollywood actor-director Rajat Kapoor in one of the leading roles along with Boloram Das, Udayan Duarah and Bibhuti Bhusan Hazarika among others.
Regarding the casting choice of Rajat Kapoor in the movie, writer-director Baruah says, “Although the character that Rajat Kapoor plays in the movie, was an Assamese in the original short story, we developed it to suit the broader theme and universal appeal of the story. And when it developed to a non-Assamese character, Rajat Kapoor was our first and only choice for the role because he perfectly fitted that character.”
“One of the assistant directors, who had worked with me earlier, had my contact, and I think suggested my name to the director. They, then sent me the script and I was quick enough to jump in,” said actor Rajat Kapoor to EastMojo when asked about how he found his way into the rich cinematic canvas of Assamese cinema.
“I think I am attracted to films made with passion and for the passion of cinema. These projects call out to me,” he added.
“Anwesha Kotoky, an assistant director based in Mumbai, who has worked in several Bollywood films and web series like Heropanti 2, Babumosai Bandookbaaz, A Married Woman, etc., have worked with us for Anur as an A.D. and script supervisor. When she learnt that we were looking for a Hindi lead, she offered to help, and that is how we were able to reach out to Rajat Kapoor”, said Monjul Baruah.
Previously adapting the works of Sahitya Akademi Award-winning author Dr Rita Chowdhury into Antareen and Kaaneen, writer-director Monjul Baruah has found his passion in delivering cinematic adaptations of effectively empowering stories based on women’s lives. Starting with the story of a young Torali in Antareen and a middle-aged women’s search for her long-lost son in Kaaneen, now with Anur, Baruah explores the emotional dimensions of an elderly woman. If taken together, these three films have already become an unofficial trilogy of sorts, each reflecting on a different phase or age in a woman’s life.
“I consider myself extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to work on the film adaptations of the works of such renowned and excellent authors. I believe the subject of Anur is unique, and there is not much work done on this subject in Assam before. But, aside from that, I do have my own stories and also unique ways of conveying them that I plan to work on in the future”, said Baruah dropping a hint about his upcoming works.
“Monjul Barua and his skills as a director have evolved with time and in comparison to his previous works, Anur is a much more accomplished feature. In fact, it is his best production”, said Anuradha Sharma Pujaree on whose short story the film is based on.
“There are a few changes that have been made to the story in the film, and these are very necessary changes for the cinematic adaptation of a literary work. But the soul of the story is very sensitive and unique and the filmmaker has handled it with a lot of maturity. The actors have also contributed in this regard. If the actors cannot sensitively realize their roles, it becomes a problem. But this is not the case with Anur”, added the Sahitya Akademi Award winner.
Speaking about her role, theatre personality and actor Dr Jahanara Begum said, “It is the role of a very sensitive and lonely woman who wants to stay true to her roots. She is unable to leave the house because it holds so many special memories of her husband. She has everything she needs— she is well-educated, she teaches, she is also surrounded by her domestic help –but yet she is lonely and Anur tries to tell her story.”
“I had watched Monjul’s Antareen first and it had touched me very deeply. Every ship needs a sailor to serve as its captain, and if the captain is insincere, the whole ship suffers. Monjul is sincere, his conception is clear and I admire his focus on details. I understood this when I worked with him on Kaaneen. After that, it took him almost one year to develop the screenplay of Anur giving it the time it required. I admire his sincerity of him towards his craft, said actor Jahanara Begum who has collaborated with Monjul Baruah for a second time as an actor.
Shot in the relaxation period between the first and second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, the post-pandemic developments such as mandatory outdoor masking practices followed by the public who sometimes appeared in the background of the frame did make the shoot difficult to accomplish.
“However, one of the biggest challenges we faced was regarding locations. Since we shot on real locations, there were many instances where people were hesitant to lend their locations for the shoot because of fear and apprehensions related to Covid-19,” said Baruah.
“Everyone has put in a lot of effort, and now that there is such encouraging news about its film festival selections, that effort is visible to all”, he added.
Some of the other highlights of the IFFK festival line-up include films like –The Storyteller by Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, Jaggi by Anmol Sindhu, In the Mist by Indrasis Acharya, Amar Colony by Siddharth Chauhan, and Opium by Aman Sachdeva.
Also making it to the selection in the ‘International Competition’ of IFFK is filmmaker Romi Meitei’s Our Home (Eikhoigi Yum) in Manipuri Language alongside A Place of Our Own (Ek Jagah Apni) in Hindi by Ektara Collective.
Produced by Dr Gopendra Mohan Das, Anur: Eyes on the Sunshine is scheduled for a theatrical release on January 27 next year.
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