Vanaja (film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Vanaja

Movie poster for Vanaja
Directed by Rajnesh Domalpalli
Produced by Latha R. Domalapalli
Written by Rajnesh Domalpalli
Starring Mamatha Bhukya
Music by Indira Amperiani
Bhaskara S. Narayanan
Cinematography Milton Kam
Editing by Rajnesh Domalpalli
Robert Q. Lovett
Distributed by Emerging Pictures Flag of the United States
Release date(s) September 11, 2006
Running time 111 mins
Country Flag of India India / Flag of the United States United States
Language Telugu
Official website
IMDb profile

Vanaja (Telugu:వనజ) is a 2006 Indian art house film written and directed by Rajnesh Domalpalli on a story that constituted his Master of Fine Arts thesis at Columbia University. Filmed over two and a half months, it used a cast of non-professional first-timers. It stars Mamatha Bhukya as the titular character - a 15 year-old daughter of a poor fisherman set in the backdrop of a rustic state of Andhra Pradesh in Southern India.

It revolves around Vanaja, who learns Kuchipudi, a classical Indian dance form, while being employed at a local landlady's house. All seems to be going well for her till sexual chemistry evolves between her and the landlady's son, and this eventually leads her being raped by him. The ensuing pregnancy throws her simple life out of gear and how she emerges out of it forms the rest of the story.

The film was screened at the several prominent film festivals such as the Toronto International Film Festival and Berlin International Film Festival among others. While it was nominated for the Diesel Discovery Award at the Toronto fest, it won the Best First Feature award at the Berlin. Besides this, it won several jury prizes at other film festivals. It was also nominated for the Best First Feature and Best Cinematography at the Independent Spirit Awards. The film found favour with many international critics as well. Roger Ebert ranked the film among the five best foreign films of 2007. The film, which runs for 111 minutes and is in its vernacular Telugu language, failed to find any distributors for screening in India.

Contents

[edit] Principal cast and characters

  • Mamatha Bhukya as Vanaja
  • Urmila Dammannagari as Rama Devi
  • Ramachandriah Marikanti as Somayya
  • Krishnamma Gundimalla as Radhamma
  • Karan Singh as Shekhar
  • Bhavani Renukunta as Lacchi
  • Krishna Garlapati as Ram Babu
  • Prabhu Garlapati as Yadigiri

[edit] Synopsis

Vanaja (Mamatha Bhukya) is the 15 year-old daughter of a poor, low caste fisherman from rural Andhra Pradesh. He struggles to support his family owing to dwindling catches at sea and mounting debts. When a soothsayer predicts that she will be a great dancer one day, she goes to work in the house of the local landlady, Rama Devi (Urmila Dammannagari) with hopes of learning Kuchipudi, a native classical Indian dance form. While she is employed as a farmhand, she is entrusted with tending the chicken. She gets caught for chasing them into a pandemonium, and further lies unabashedly to conceal her pranks. Her vivaciousness and spunk soon catch the landlady’s eye. To keep her out of trouble, Rama Devi soon promotes her to a kitchen underhand, where she comes up against the old, crusty and extremely loyal Radhamma (Krishnamma Gundimalla), Rama Devi’s cook.

After settling down at the landlady's house, Vanaja gets invited to play a game of ashta chamma (a leisurely played game in rural towns of Andhra Pradesh) against the landlady herself. Upon knowing that losing isn’t the mistress’s forte, she deliberately gives up her game. This gesture, in turn, eventually secures her the landlady’s mentorship, first in music, and then in dance. Vanaja excels at these art forms, and seems to be on a steadily ascending path until the arrival of Shekhar (Karan Singh), the landlady's 23 year-old son. Shekhar, a handsome, muscular and rather insecure young man, returns from the United States to run for office in the local government. The downward progression begins with the sexual chemistry being ignited between Shekhar and Vanaja (still a minor at 15), as flirtation and sexual innuendo bloom.

On the other hand, her father's fishing boat is taken away by creditors and he begins to drink away her savings. The situation suddenly turns ugly when Vanaja’s superior intellect pits her against Shekhar in a public incident which ultimately humiliates him in front of his mother. Matters escalate and on one day, when a mischievous Vanaja spies on Shekhar while he is in the shower, the spoiled young master rapes her. She loses her job when she becomes pregnant due to Shekhar and gives birth to a boy, much against Rama Devi’s wishes, who would have liked her to abort the foetus. Vanaja hopes that the physical evidence of the child will be proof of the rape, and that somehow Shekhar will be brought to justice. While Shekhar has no desire to marry Vanaja because she is from a lower caste, and the match will be an unequal one. In the end, Rama Devi and Shekhar emerge victorious by gaining possession of the child, who will grow up to be an upper caste boy.

[edit] Production

[edit] Pre-production

Director Rajnesh Domalpalli graduated with a Bachelors and Masters degree in electrical engineering in 1984 and 1986 respectively.[1] During his Bachelors degree at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, he used to write short stories. One of his stories, The Dowry, was twice selected for broadcast by BBC World Service while he was still in graduate school.[2] During schooling, he was introduced to south Indian classical music, especially on the veena, and followed this up with many years of training on the vocals.[2]

While he was working as a software engineer in Silicon Valley, California, he decided to pursue filmmaking and graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree from Columbia University.[1] Without any prior experience in Arts, he was concerned about admission to the University. Out of this concern, he took pre-requisite courses ranging from art history to design to acting to voice study.[3]

[edit] Story and picturization

A short synopsis, along with a character and conflict study of Vanaja were Domalpalli's project submission in his first semester at Columbia University in the Fall of 2001.[1] The story was inspired by a child's scream at being separated from her mother in the film, Sophie's Choice.[2] Over the next three semesters, however, the story veered away from its original focus of mother-child separation to what Domalpalli later said was a study of, "elements of class distinction and conflict that continue to infuse our society and culture even today."[2] Referring to its emphasis, he said, the film was also about "fading institutions of folk art, old buildings that are collapsing, things which we should be protecting - which are a part of our heritage."[3] Speaking of the need for preservation of Indian culture and heritage, he said that making the film was an opportunity to emphasize the Indian folk arts too.

With an early version of the script ready at the end of his fourth semester, Domalpalli's initial intent was to find financing for the film in India and then in the United States. But there were no takers since the film was to contain no big names. Domalpalli's intent was to select non-professional and train them over a span of a year. In the US, producers voiced similar concerns, doubting the marketability of the film and what they called: it's lack cohesion. Domalpalli's inexperience was yet another strike.[4] Recalling initial hurdles, Domalpalli later said, "it was only when I showed my professors a rough cut of the film, and they approved, that purse strings finally came loose."[4] The film eventually constituted the thesis for his Masters degree.[5]

Referring to filming the Burrakatha scene at the beginning of the film, Domalpalli said:

If you talk to people who perform a Burrakatha, you will see a huge difference in the way the older generation performs the art vis-à-vis the way the way the younger generation performs it... This has happened because of the advent of television. Burrakatha is a long-format art form. The point we are making is that if we don't protect these folk arts, they will be on their way out.[3]

Domalpalli's father was a dam construction engineer, and he grew up in Nagarjuna Sagar, Srisailam and Nizamabad, small towns in the state of Andhra Pradesh that come under rural India. It was due to this upbringing and socio-cultural ethos, he later said, that he chose to make the movie in Telugu.[3]

Referring to his decision to cast and train non-professionals, he said in an interview that the inclusion of Radhamma's character was to bring natural feel for the film. Her behavioristics such as the way she "sits, stands, moves, grunts and groans - that is the way people from a village talk and behave... You would immediately recognize a person who served you breakfast... That makes a point."[3]

[edit] Casting and music

The film uses a cast of non-professional, first time actors, who were drawn from the under-privileged sections of society. Given the rural nature of the story, Domalpalli was certain that these actors drawn from hutments, labour camps and India's vast middle class were the right choice. [4] Referring to the challenges faced in casting, he said,

Flyers would need to be inserted into newspapers at night, canvassing at schools, visiting local hutments and persuading dwellers to come for auditions, while simultaneously combating rumors that we were after their kidneys, pleading with government bureaucrats, putting up posters etc. When we wanted to place an ad[vertisement] in the newspapers for the landlady, we found to our surprise that we couldn't do so. So instead, we decided to advertise for household help: Female, aged 35 to 50, needed to care for elderly parents. When unsuspecting ladies turned up for an interview, conversations would inadvertently steer towards film, what a wonderful art acting was, and how rarely ordinary people got a chance to prove their talent.[4]

Referring to casting specifically for the lead roles of Vanaja and Lacchi, he said that they met approximately 2500 children, interviewed about 260 and finally selected two from a shortlist of five to play the roles of Vanaja and Lacchi.[1] Parents of these children were distrustful of them because their wards would have to frequently commute to Domalpalli's house for acting lessons for atleast a year. Domalpalli felt that "to convince people to devote so much of their children's time and energy was hard enough, but to find the right combination of intelligence, commitment and talent as well was probably the steepest cliff we [they] had to climb.[1]

The old maid from the film actually carried bricks on her head. The actor who plays Vanaja's father, was a municipal sweeper and also worked as a security guard for a while.[3]

To emphasize pathos in the background score, Domalpalli used Carnatic music with a violin played by B. S. Narayanan. Narayanan also composed the Jayadeva ashtapadi and Sa virahe, a couple of musical scores formats, in the Rāga Bihag musical mode. Within the intent of including folk songs, Domalpalli and his crew traveled to towns and villages in rural Andhra, recording "janapada geetalu" or folk songs.[3]

[edit] Release and reception

Though, it was released in the United States on August 31, 2007, the film has not found distributors in India.[6] After being screened at over 100 film festivals in 49 countries, the movie has won 24 international awards and 2 nominations.[7] Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the body that governs the Oscars, invited the film’s screenplay to be placed in the permanent archives of the Margaret Herrick Library.[8] The DVD, which released on March 8, 2008,[9] has subtitle options in English. It is available in 16:9 Anamorphic widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, widescreen and NTSC format.[9]

[edit] Special screenings and awards

On September 11, 2006, the film first premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.[10][11] The same year, the film won an Honorable Mention for the Golden Starfish Award at the Hamptons International Film Festival,[12] It also won the Best Narrative Film award at the Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival.[13] Following that, in India, it was showcased at the International Film Festival of India[14] and the International Film Festival of Kerala[15] by the end of 2006.

After the film's screening at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival, it won a standing ovation from the audience, bringing tears to Mamatha Bhukya and choking Rajnesh Domalpalli.[16] The film won on the Best First Feature award at this festival.[17][18] The same year, the film received a special international jury prize at the Cairo International Film Festival,[6] Best Feature at the Memphis International Film Festival,[6][19], Best International Film at the Sacramento International Film Festival,[6][20], a Platinum award at the WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival,[6][21] a special mention for the grand jury prize at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles,[22], the Miloš Macourek Award in special recognition for a feature film for youth at the Zlín International Film Festival for children and youth,[23] an Achievement award at the Newport Beach Film Festival,[6][24][25] a special jury prize for Best Production Design at the RiverRun International Film Festival,[26] the Grand Prize for Best Cinematography at the Rhode Island International Film Festival,[27] the first prize in the live-action feature film category at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival,[28] the Camério Meilleur Long Métrage/Starlink Aviation award at the Carrousel international du film de Rimouski,[29] Bhukya winning the best actress award at the Asian Festival of First Films,[30] and the Golden Goat award for the best live-action film at the International Young Audience film festival.[31]

[edit] Reviews

The critics gave the film an overall positive response, focusing in particular on the theme addressed and Mamatha Bhukya's performance. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times said, "Bhukya is a natural star, her eyes and smile illuminating a face of freshness and delight."[32] He added detail about the film saying that "there are the glorious colors of saris and room decorations, the dazzle of dance costumes and the dusty landscape that somehow becomes a watercolor by Edward Lear, with its hills and vistas, its oxen and elephants, its houses that seem part of the land. In this setting, Domalpalli tells his story with tender precision, and never an awkward moment."[32] Ebert listed Vanaja among the top five foreign films of 2007.[33] Laura Kern from The New York Times said the film "is a coming-of-age tale that is engrossing, if slightly overlong, and absolutely timeless, unfolding against an antiquated class system that sadly stands firm in rural areas of India to this day."[34] A review in Variety called it "... a film that touches the heartstrings as it brings home the cruel class distinctions that poison Indian society" and "... is more than a children's film, despite revolving around a central character of 14. Its social message, linked to the story of a poor farm girl who aspires to be a dancer, never feels forced, and the moral issues it depicts are realistically complex."[35] Commenting on its commercial feasibility, the review concluded that "while that might not translate into obvious box office potential, art house appeal is there for distributors willing to seek out a market."[35] The Chicago Tribune wrote in its review of the film:

It's a touching, believable, often funny but ultimately sad tale of how one class can take advantage of another, even in the guise of patronizing benevolence. Though sometimes shifting abruptly in time, "Vanaja" is an arresting story of modern-day hardship and class exploitation, recalling Charles Dickens as well as Western fairy-tale lore. Domalpalli's settings are ultra-real in detail and color, from the crude, almost feudal deprivations of Vanaja's dirt-floor background to the stately rituals and autocratic entitlement of the well-to-do.[36]

Speaking in detail about Bhukya's performance, the San Francisco Chronicle writes - "Bhukya delivers an entrancing and natural performance, deftly balancing both the wide-eyed childishness of a young girl with the dawning awareness of life's darker possibilities. She's also an accomplished dancer, which she proves at several points in the film." It adds - "can this wonder-filled film truly be not only Domalpalli's first feature, but originally part of a thesis submission at Columbia University? Both in the film's writing and direction, Domalpalli displays maturity, wisdom and a loving sense of visual and character detail."[37] Marc Savlov of The Austin Chronicle said that "director Domalpalli, who, with his debut feature, turned in what may well be the best Columbia University master's thesis ever."[38]

Despite these positive reviews, some critics differed in their opinion about the film and its depiction. The New York Post wrote saying that "there's enough mush in the Indian melodrama Vanaja to fill an entire season of a TV soap opera."[39] and that towards the film's ending, the "viewers will be bored stiff by (the) long, tedious film".[39] Time Out, New York says that the film's "... narrative meanders, but the film evokes village life with stark authenticity."[40]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e "indieWIRE interview: Vanaja Director Rajnesh Domalpalli", indieWIRE, 2007-08-28. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  2. ^ a b c d "indieWIRE interview: Rajnesh Domalpalli: Independent film hasn't really taken root as an alternative here.", indieWIRE, 2006-09-11. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Rajamani, Radhika. "A person with shampooed hair can't play village girl", Rediff.com, 2007-03-07. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  4. ^ a b c d Kumar, Arun. "Vanaja Film showcases beauty of Andhra to its best", indieWIRE, 2007-09-03. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  5. ^ Roy, Sandip. "Indian Made Foreign Film", The Times of India, 2007-10-21. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Vanaja making a mark abroad", The Times of India, 2007-08-07. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  7. ^ "Interview – Vanaja director Rajnesh Domalpalli", efilmcritic.com, 2008-02-06. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  8. ^ De Cunha, Uma. "Vanaja, Frozen... runaway festival hits but ignored at home", The Indian Express, 2008-01-11. Retrieved on 2008-06-14. 
  9. ^ a b "Vanaja DVD", Amazon.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  10. ^ "Vanaja: Film description", Toronto International Film Festival. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  11. ^ "Indian films generate interest at Toronto Film festival", The Hindu. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  12. ^ "Golden Starfish Award Winners Announced", Hamptons International Film Festival, 2006-10-30. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  13. ^ "Sixth Annual IAAC Film Festival Award Winners", Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival, 2006-11-05. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  14. ^ "IFFI 2006 Screening Schedule", IFFI 2006. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  15. ^ "On the travails of a minor girl", The Hindu, 2006-12-14. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  16. ^ "Vanaja making a mark abroad", The Times of India, 2007-08-07. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  17. ^ "Golden Bear hug at Berlin", The Hindu, 2007-02-23. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  18. ^ "Prizes & Honors: Berlinale 2007", Berlinale. Retrieved on 2008-02-16. 
  19. ^ "Memphis Film Festival Schedule", Redorbit.com, 2007-03-24. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  20. ^ "Filmmakers Showcase Diversity in Sacramento", Sacramento International Film Festival, 2007-03-28. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  21. ^ "Winners List 2007", WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  22. ^ "The 5th Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles announces awards", Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, 2007-04-22. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  23. ^ "Zlín International Film Festival for Children and Youth: Closing press release", Zlín International Film Festival for children and youth, 2007-06-02. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  24. ^ "Newport Beach Film Festival presents: Vanaja", Newport Beach Film Festival. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  25. ^ "Vanaja (2006): Awards", IMDB. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  26. ^ "2007 RiverRun International Film Festival Announces Jury and Audience Awards", RiverRun International Film Festival, 2007-04-22. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  27. ^ "2007 Film Festival Award Winners Announced", Rhode Island International Film Festival, 2007-08-12. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  28. ^ "2007's MediaBridge Award Winners", Chicago International Children's Film Festival. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  29. ^ "Les prix Camérios 2007", Carrousel international du film de Rimouski. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  30. ^ "Pacific Talent shines at the Asian Festival of 1st films night", Asian Festival of First Films, 2007-12-04. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  31. ^ "Golden, Silver and Bronze Goats - Professional Jury Prizes", Alekino International Young Audience Film Festival. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  32. ^ a b Ebert, Roger. "Vanaja: Review", Roger Ebert: Chicago Sun-Times, 2006-09-14. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  33. ^ Ebert, Roger. "The year's ten best films and other shenanigans", Roger Ebert: Chicago Sun-Times, 2006-12-20. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  34. ^ Kern, Laura. "Vanaja: Review", The New York Times: Movies, 2007-08-30. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  35. ^ a b Young, Deborah. "Vanaja Review: Variety", Variety, 2007-02-25. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  36. ^ Smith, Smith. "Movie Review: Vanaja", Chicago Tribune, 2007-09-14. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  37. ^ Wiegand, David. "Movies opening today: Vanaja", San Francisco Chronicle, 2007-10-05. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  38. ^ Savlov, Marc. "Calendar: Film Listings: Vanaja", the Austin Chronicle, 2007-10-12. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  39. ^ a b Musetto, V. A.. "Dancer trapped in a caste", New York Post, 2007-08-31. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 
  40. ^ Beer, Tom. "Vanaja movie review", Time Out, 2007-08-30. Retrieved on 2008-02-17. 

[edit] External links

Languages