A film on groom abduction

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A boy wants to marry the girl of his choice, comes home (a small town in Bihar) to convince his parents about her, where he is kidnapped and forced to marry some other girl. Well, that in short, is the story of cinematographer-turned-director Sushil Rajpal’s 'Antardwand' (inner conflict), a film based on groom abduction or Pakrauah Shaadi as it is known in states like Bihar and UP.

Sushil, who hails from Bihar, is the first one to address this social issue through 'Antardwand'. “I wanted to tell this story. The idea was to make people aware about this practice, which is so rampant in various parts of the country,” he said.

'Antardwand', made on a moderate budget of 1.5 crore and with no big Bollywood star in it, surprised everyone after bagging the 55th national award for best film in social cause and best actress award at MAMI in 2009. “People then started taking interest in my film. And it was then that we thought of releasing it commercially,” said Sushil about the film which will hit the screens on August 27.

Sushil said he is “too busy” to feel nervous or excited about the film’s release right now. “I’m too busy learning another important part of the movie business — marketing. Maybe two days before the release of 'Antardwand', I’ll be able to answer this question,” he said.

The film, he said, is based on a real-life incident that happened to one of Sushil’s friends. “I shot the film in Bihar to get the right feel. There are no big stars in the film because I wanted people who could get the dialect right. I even got the costumes stitched by some of the local tailors there to make it as authentic as possible,” he added.

He describes the shooting as ‘smooth sailing’ and marketing the most difficult area. “It’s tough to sell a low-budget with no big name attached to it. Isn’t it? he asked.

Imitiaz Ali was seen promoting 'Antardwand' recently before which Anurag Kashyap said some really good things about the film on his blog.

How does it feel to get support from such talented filmmakers?

“Of course, it feels great. Both of them have different styles of filmmaking but still, they liked my work and are supporting me. I don’t think so I’d have managed to release this film without their support,” he answered.

What’s next for him — a film with a social message or a complete masala entertainer? “I think every Bollywood film has a message; it’s how you tell the story. 'Antardwand' is not an art film or a documentary. It’s a feature film based on a social issue,” he explained.

But is there anything in the pipeline? “Let me recover the money I’ve spent on this one before I could think about making another film,” he signed off on an optimistic note.