Punjabi short films need support from all, says film-maker

AMRITSAR: At a time when the Punjabi film industry is attempting to change its image by encouraging films with versatility ace short filmmaker Navtej Sandhu says the shortfilm genre still has no takers

Updated At : 06:27 AM Jul 29, 2016 IST

‘Gawachi Pagg’ (The Lost Turban), a short Punjabi film, takes inspiration from the rich Punjabi literature. Tribune photo

Tribune News service

Amritsar, July 28

At a time when the Punjabi film industry is attempting to change its image by encouraging films with versatility, ace short film-maker Navtej Sandhu says the short-film genre still has no takers. Despite success of several Punjabi short films like “Nooran” by Sandhu himself, “Khoon” by Amardeep Singh Gill and others, this genre is still struggling to find an audience.

“If you watch them, most Punjabi short films are better than the longer commercial ones, yet they only find an audience online. You make a short film only for your passion for cinema because they do not get you returns commercially, at least not yet,” he says. Sandhu is ready for the world premiere of two of his recent short films – “Bakaya” (the Balance) and “Gawachi Pagg” (The Lost Turban). Taking inspiration from the rich Punjabi literature, both the films are based on short stories by Punjabi writers Jaswant Singh Virdi and Jaswant Singh Kanwal, respectively.

“Gawachi Pagg” is a film that touches the issue of Operation Bluestar and its implications, as a teenage boy struggles to find his lost turban because chaos prevails inside and outside the Golden Temple premises. The lost turban symbolises the lost dignity of the Sikh community and portrays the pain of thousands of Sikh youth, who lost their ‘pagg’ during that time. The emotional interaction between that boy and a police official forms the essence of the film,” says Sandhu.

Senior Punjabi actor Ashish Duggal and “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag” fame actor Japtej Singh play the two main characters in the 35-minute film. “Bakaaya”, is another 33-minute film helmed by the film-maker that centers around the subject of abandonment during old age. The story of a mother, who raises her son as a single parent, only to be left by him at an old-age home in the end, is emotional, sensitive and thought-provoking. Both films were shot in Amritsar within a span of two months and feature actors from the city. The films will be premiered by the Indian Academy of Fine Arts on August 7 in the city.