Though gifted with breath-taking sights, humbled by the majestic mountains and warmed by the genuine happiness of its locals, Uttarakhand is not devoid of problems. The villages are largely empty of men — they migrate to Delhi and become cooks and waiters, numerous war widows are still waiting to receive compensation from the government, the girls are educated but continue to accept servitude as a way of life after marriage. And the latest - the natural disaster of 2013 that has rendered thousands homeless.
Also, not enough is known about the region but when acclaimed Serbian director Goran Paskaljevic visited Uttarakhand and the Himalayas, he fell in love with Nanda Devi — the mountain and the goddess.
Out of this love was born the idea for the film Dev Bhoomi that has veteran actor Victor Banerjee playing a man who leaves his village in very unhappy circumstances and returns after 40 years to see if he can find acceptance. “To cut a long story short, no, he does not find acceptance. The people still have not been able to forgive him for the mistakes he made. So he moves on.
He also comes because he is going blind. So when he finally leaves the village, he does what he can for them and settles in a monastery. The final sequence is in a Shiva Temple – the highest temple in India – Tungnath,” explains the actor. That is where the protagonist loses his sight but gains vision (in reference to the third eye).
“People want to know if it’s a docu-drama, if it deals with the Kedarnath disaster or other social issues… the answer to all of them is “No’,” veteran actor Victor Banerjee says of his latest project announced at the 16th Mumbai Film Festival. “All the issues are in the background, portrayed subtly.”
Local artists, musicians, tailors and settings lend authenticity to the movie that will be released in March next year. Authenticity is also lent to the project by Banerjee - an actor who calls the Himalayas his home, the mountain people his kin and himself an honorary Garhwali. The thespian talks to MetroPlus about how he unwittingly sowed the seed for this project and his love for the Himalayas.
How did you pitch for a story set in Uttrakhand to Goran Paskaljevic?
He got curious about Uttarakhand and the Himalayas because I was telling him about it. But pitching for it was not done consciously.
What about Uttrakhad appealed to them the most?
Both Paskaljevic and his assistant hail from Serbia which has witnessed a lot of violence over the years. The people of that country are still not able to get over it and they understand the conflict that takes place in our country.
In Uttrakhand, there is a huge presence of the armed forces, the BSF, battalions of the army, etc but they have not been able to get over the sight of soldiers helping little children with ribbons get out of the huge weapon carriers to go to school.
It was not the mountains and food that impacted them the most, but the sight of these little children going happily to school.
What opportunities does this film present for Uttrakhand?
This film has given us a great opportunity to expose a new culture to India. It delves into the lives of the people from this part of India—their marriages, their songs and ballads, the social ritual and customs that are so different from the rest of India. Uttarakhand will be opened up to the rest of the world.
How did you come to be cast as the film’s protagonist?
For some strange reason, he felt I was a good actor. I don’t know why. He had seen my work. So he said, ‘I am going to make a film with you. It has to be you!’
What will you be bringing to the film as someone hailing from these parts and as an actor?
I am a card holder of Uttarakhand. I fought for their freedom. I grew up in the North-East so identifying with mountain people – their simplicity and honesty – comes naturally to me. I even call myself an honorary Garhwali. That is something no other actor can bring to the part.
Somewhere essentially, it would be a story about my people. So the emotion I feel for the people will be real; the identification will be real.
What is your relationship with the Himalayas?
When I don’t have the time to be in the Himalayas, I am in Bombay, Los Angles or NY or Paris or wherever. I don’t spend one millisecond away from the mountains. The Himalayas make you insignificant.
When you are trekking in the mountains of the Himalayas and finally you reach the top exhausted and completely wiped out; you look down and you see nothing. For hundreds of miles you see just hills, mountains and mist; when you look up from your sleeping bag at night you can see just stars. You are nobody there.
When you were cast in A Passage to India , it made news for an Indian to be cast in a British film, rather than an English actor or a British Indian.
Now grabbing a Hollywood project is the rigueur du jour for Indian actors. What is your take on it?
The sad thing is that they’ve got their priorities are all wrong. Their view of Hollywood is just a misspelt Bollywood. They respect Hollywood for all the wrong reasons, and those values you see on the streets, malls and clubs of Bombay.
Their search for Hollywood is really no search for excellence or integrity. They think Hollywood is just a red carpet and a trip to the Oscars. The Oscars is not as aesthetic as it is seen in India.It is a big deal but in a different sort of way. Don’t make it a measure of your quality or how great you are. They have got it all wrong. Their quest for Hollywood is commercial, and an extension of their consumerism here.
