The Black Cat , a short film (19 minutes, 56 seconds) directed by Bhargav Saikia, is a cocktail of fantasy and mystery. Replete with old world charm, it stars late actor Tom Alter as Ruskin Bond and Shernaz Patel as Miss Bellows, the witch.
The charming film opens in an artfully messy store that stocks everything from clocks to books, and ceramics to broomstick. There’s a cat in the vicinity, which Ruskin Bond refers to as an “obstinate, perverse creature” before he buys a broomstick that he feels “has a lot of character”. At home, as he tries to keep the words flowing through his typewriter, a black cat disturbs his focus and eventually brings the mysterious Miss Bellows to his doorstep. What’s striking about the short film, apart from its established lead actors, is the sure-footedness with which Bhargav narrates the story and the technical finesse that backs the production.
‘The Black Cat’ story has been a part of several anthologies of Ruskin Bond stories. Bhargav Saikia was in boarding school, in Class VI when he read it first. A fan of Ruskin Bond’s writings, he remembered this tale of a black cat, a broomstick, an author and a witch, when he was looking for stories that can translate to a cinematic experience.
Bhargav Saikia and Ruskin Bond
Bhargav earlier directed the horror short Awakenings, and while taking it to international film festivals, observed the scope for genre films internationally. He wanted to do another short in the fantasy-horror genre. “This story had it all, from outlandish characters to an old world setting and the quintessential Ruskin Bond humour,” he reasons.
Bhargav wanted it to be a technically superior film. “I was lucky that some of the crew worked for free because of their love for the genre film and the actors also charged next to nothing. So I used all the funds to make this film,” he says. He was particular that the visual effects shouldn’t come across as tacky. He sought the help of Phantom-FX.
The film was shot in Mumbai and Uttarkhand in April this year and is the last film to star actor Tom Alter in the lead. “We had worked together in plays in the late 80s and early 90s. Shooting together brought back old memories; he was so full of energy,” remembers Shernaz.
For her, the role of a witch was the clincher. “Bhargav’s meticulous and ambitious approach was inspiring and I felt I should support him. The team didn’t cut corners. So we could arrive at the right make-up, costumes, accessories that added to the witch’s look,” she says.
While supporting “a filmmaker with clarity”, Shernaz was also enthused to do something more in the digital medium. “I had worked with Naseer (Naseeruddin Shah) in the short Interior Café Night and I’ve been amazed at how people come up and talk to me about the film. Some of these people haven’t watched my plays, but saw this film thanks to the reach of the digital medium.”
Shernaz Patel as Miss Bellows
Bhargav was conscious of making a film that’s befitting of Ruskin Bond’s story. “Tom Alter was one of Bond’s close friends. He didn’t carry a phone, so I emailed him and he responded. He was intrigued by the film’s format.” Bhargava was subconsciously inspired by Harry Potter series and Tim Burton films, among other works, “For the witch part, we wanted a look on the lines of Hocus Pocus or Meryl Streep from Into the Woods .”
Bhargav hails from Assam and one of the first films he remembers watching is Mani Ratnam’s Anjali , which left him moved. During the insurgency period in Assam, he was at a boarding school where he had access to cinema and the interest grew. “My dad is a gynaecologist, so initially I thought I should become a director. Clichéd it may sound, but I became fascinated by cinema.”
He is now working on his first feature film in the horror genre. But Bhargav will continue making short films because “I don’t want to treat short films as a stepping stone to feature films.”
Watch online: ‘The Black Cat’ is available for viewing on Lorien Motion Pictures’ YouTube channel from November 14. The film was also screened at the 20th International Children’s Film Festival India in Hyderabad. Starring Tom Alter, Shernaz Patel and Uday Chandra, and directed by Bhargav Saikia, the film has production design by Pooja Ramesh, music by Advait Nemlekar and cinematography by A Vasanth.
