'Amal' by Richie Mehta could become Canada's official entry for the Best Foreign Film category at the next Oscars, according to media reports. 'Amal' has also become the most talked about film of the year with an Indian theme.
Mehta talks about his film as well as on the decline of great Indian cinema: "Until the major filmmakers and movie stars in India decide to really invest the time and energy into their scripts and develop the projects properly -- this would mean spending years on scripts, overhauling them and passing them through the logic wringer yet still retaining the emotional core -- it won't happen," says Mehta in an exclusive interview with Pervaiz Alam.
After winning the Best Independent Film of the latest Santa Barbara International Film Festival, 'Amal' took the grand jury prize for Best Narrative Feature at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles. Earlier, it won the Audience Award for best narrative at the AFI Dallas International Film Festival this year.
'Amal' explores a slice of contemporary India through a neo-realist portrait of a poor but an incredibly self-less rickshaw driver who touches your heart with his humanity. Its twenty nine year-old, Canada-based, director adapted the screenplay in Hindi from his brother Shaun's short story 'Amal: The Autorickshaw Wallah', and shot the whole film in the capital of India, Delhi. The film is a favourite at international film awards, but in terms of generating business the result is disappointing.
Pervaiz Alam (PA): You have received accolades and top awards for 'Amal' at film festivals, but where are the international buyers?
Actor Naseeruddin Shah and director Richie Mehta filming for 'Amal' in DelhiRichie Mehta (RM): This is something we are working on along with our Sales Agent Seville Pictures. We have our theatrical release coming up in Canada, and the film is beginning to sell to various markets around the world. The film has done well on the festival circuit, but it is still young in its sales cycle. Currently we are hoping that our latest successes in the US will help the film in terms of a US acquisition. This would obviously get the ball rolling in terms of further international interest, including the UK.
PA: So how do you plan to exhibit 'Amal' in various countries? What's the time frame for its theatrical release?
RM: The first market for 'Amal's theatrical will be Canada. It was created by Canadians and with the support of Telefilm Canada and Canadian broadcasters, so it will be first released to Canadians. Then the other markets in place – either simultaneously or thereafter – will most likely release the film. We have an Indian release shortly after the Canadian later this summer
PA: Reports suggest 'Amal' could be a good choice as Canada's official entry for the 'Best Foreign Film' category at the Oscars. Has there been any development recently?
RM: We would of course be honoured to have 'Amal' represent Canada’s 'best foreign film’. However, the submission comes from a special committee of industry peers in Canada, and I am sure they will have a lot of strong Canadian films to consider. So who knows! One can hope.
PA: Did you anticipate the kind of adulation your film has received so far?
RM: Not at all! I wasn't sure the film even made any sense. This was my first feature, so I was going on instinct all the way. That, and the guidance of my producing and executive producing team (David Miller, Steven Bray, Peter Starr, Robin Cass) and editor Stuart A. McIntyre. They supported me all the way, but in the end of the process, when we'd all lost perspective, we just hoped the audience would be able to connect the narrative dots. When they made an emotional connection, and indeed, the type of connection I'd hoped for, it showed that in this case my instincts were not far off I suppose. But of course, that can change at any moment with the next project.
PA: So what's it that has clicked for you in terms of the international reaction to your film?
RM: In terms of what it is that has clicked, the reason I wanted to do this film was to challenge audiences to question their definition of wealth and success, and if they take the step, to ask them to re-evaluate their own lives using that analysis. I think that is happening anyway in the zeitgeist - more and more people are realizing that their everyday habits do in fact affect people around the world in potentially harmful ways. I think - I hope! - 'Amal' touches on that in a way that isn't preachy, and indeed, entertaining.
PA: Your response brings me to a wider concern among some film critics, including me. There's a lot of talk about the exponential growth of Indian cinema, but the ground reality is different; Indian films can't even get slots in the competitive categories of various festivals. What do you think is the reason?
RM: Indian films to me seem to be getting more popular around the world - mostly within the Indian Diaspora, but in some cases among other groups - but the fundamental narrative structures of popular Indian film are still rooted in emotion, not logic.
It's an emotional culture we belong to, where we act on instinct first, logic later. And this is absolutely clear in popular Indian cinema.
Often, one scene will lead into the next with no logic whatsoever. Until that changes, I don't think Indian films will ever find those slots in competitive international festivals. Of course, this doesn't hold true for independent Indian cinema - which play very often in competitive festivals like Berlin and Toronto.
PA: Almost one thousand films a year and no major success since Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding', winning Golden Lion at Venice in 2001? And that was not even an Indian production!
RM: I see what you're saying - when you have such a strong industry like the one in Mumbai, you'd hope for a greater connection to the international festival and critical circuit.
But until the major filmmakers and movie stars in India decide to really invest the time and energy into their scripts and develop the projects properly -- this would mean spending years on scripts, overhauling them and passing them through the logic wringer yet still retaining the emotional core -- it won't happen.
It's incredibly laborious to make feature films as flawless as they can be. We certainly tried with 'Amal,' and it took almost 4 years.
PA: But Canada can make great Hindi films such as yours and Deepa Mehta's 'Water'. What is it that Canada has done to emerge as a successful facilitator for filmmakers who want to make films on India related themes?
RM: Canada is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world. Telefilm Canada as well as other arts backers in Canada maintain the position that they provide funding and assistance for Canadians to tell their stories.
I, along with Deepa Mehta and others, have worked hard to craft my stories...and in this case, my brother Shaun and wrote together...and have been fortunate enough to have them recognized and rewarded. The key was to show the funders that this was our story, and we were born in Toronto, so therefore it's a Torontonian story, despite being in Hindi, and taking place in Delhi.
PA: Life after 'Amal' for Richie Mehta? What's next?
RM: I'm developing a baseball film, a science-fiction film, and an adventure film in the desert, so we'll see what clicks.