An angel called Charlie Chaplin
SAVITHA GAUTAM
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The strong bond between Adipur’s residents and Charlie Chaplin forms the crux of Kathryn Millard’s ‘The Boot Cake.’
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Impact of Chaplin: The Boot Cake.
Adipur is a sleepy desert town in Kutch, Gujarat, complete with cows blocking the narrow streets, and bicycles and scooters being the main mode of transport. What’s so special about this town, you’d ask. Nothing much… except that most people here worship an unusual icon… Charlie Chaplin.
Yes, Charlie Chaplin is to Adipur what Bob Dylan is to Shillong. Ask Dr. Aswani, who heads Charlie Circle, a club with members who range from doctors to rickshaw pullers and electricians to school children. “He’s my God… he’s in my blood,” declares the cheerful Dr. Aswani, sitting in his dingy clinic, where a white statuette of the comic genius stands tall amidst photographs of the Hindu gods. In fact, Dr. Aswani prescribes a DVD or two of Chaplin’s films to his patients, and they come back happy and healthy! This connection between Chaplin and his followers forms the crux of award winning Australian filmmaker Kathryn Millard’s documentary, ‘The Boot Cake,’ to be telecast in two parts on NDTV’s Documentary 24x7.
The actor.
For Kathryn, an Associate Professor in the Department of Media at Macquarie University, Australia, it was her love for cinema that led her to the dusty lanes of Adipur.
Originally, ‘The Boot Cake’ was to be a full-length feature that would travel from Mexico to China and beyond, chronicling the impact of Chaplin on people’s lives. When Kathryn stumbled upon Charlie Circle in Adipur, she discovered a strange connection between the actor and the residents. That lent itself to a documentary in itself.
As the film opens, we see vast paddy fields separated by a highway. A single bus moves slowly and atop it sits Kishore Parmar, singing a Gujarati folk song that sings praises of Chaplin. It’s Chaplin’s 116th birthday and the residents of Adipur are gearing up for the event. An artist uses deft strokes to paint a poster of ‘The Gold Rush,’ to be screened that evening at the town square, and children are rehearsing for a parade of Charlie look-alikes complete with the toothbrush moustache and cane stick. Kathryn joins the celebrations. Her contribution? The birthday cake in the shape of Charlie’s boot, as homage to the scene in ‘The Gold Rush,’ where the starving Tramp boils and eats his own boot.
More such arresting images move the film forward. Finally, ‘The Boot Cake,’ which includes film clips (Kamal Haasan’s act in ‘Punnagai Mannan’ and the Rajesh Puri ad for Cherry Blossom shoe polish) and interviews, is a story of resilience, hope and ultimately, the power of cinema.
Telecast time: As two parts on Documentary 24x7 on July 4, 3 p.m. (repeat on July 5, 1 p.m.) and July 11, 3 p.m. (repeat on July 12, 1 p.m.).
A touching story
Kathryn Millard
Kathryn Millard, who gave Cate Blanchett her first film role in ‘Parklands,’ started researching Charlie Chaplin several years ago with the intention of making a feature on the timeless appeal of the comic genius. But she was sidetracked by the beguiling Charlie Circle of Adipur. The result is ‘The Boot Cake.’ Excerpts from an interview:
On discovering the Charlie Circle in Adipur…
I first met Dr. Aswani and the Charlie Circle in 2005. I had been researching the ghosts and reincarnations of Charlie Chaplin’s Tramp in a number of places including the U.S., Australia, Japan and India.
When a friend told me that he had found a group of Chaplin fans in Kutch, I went to Adipur for Charlie Chaplin’s birthday celebrations. We were expecting to film a sequence or two for the documentary. However, we soon found ourselves completely immersed in the Charlie Circle.
I was touched by the way they had drawn on the spirit of Charlie Chaplin in rebuilding their lives after the devastating earthquake in 2001.
When we returned to Sydney and looked at our footage, it was clear that their story deserved a bigger place in our film.
‘The Boot Cake’ was shot over several trips to India between 2005 and 2007 and completed in 2008.
Later, I filmed with two more ‘Charlies’ in Mumbai – Prevan and Viswajeet.
On Adipur…
Adipur felt surprisingly like home! I grew up in a hot, dry part of Australia: Adelaide. The landscapes are similar.
As an independent filmmaker, I find that making films always involves many challenges. However, working on this project, I not only had engaging subjects but a skilled team of collaborators – so the rewards of making the film far outweighed any difficulties. Making this film, too, reconnected me with my love of cinema. Dr. Aswani says that ‘Chaplin is in his blood.’ I feel the same way now and consider it a great honour to be the patron of the Charlie Circle of Adipur. Sometime in the future, I will make another film about The Tramp and his influence with more of the stories I have collected in different countries.
On Charlie Chaplin…
I have always liked Charlie Chaplin’s films. I think he was an extraordinary performer and filmmaker. His films have a wonderful mix of pathos and humour, are funny and touching. No matter how down on his luck, Charlie can always see hope.
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