[ Indu Chukhu ]
ITANAGAR, 17 Oct: Tai Gungte, the director of the 2015 hit movie Itanagar 0 Km, which continues to influence Arunachalee households even today, will be releasing his next movie, a comedy thriller titled Bodmash, on 19 October at DK Convention Centre here.
Speaking with The Arunachal Times, Tai explained why the title reads Bodmash and not Badmaash.
“In Arunachal, we pronounce certain words in our own style. We usually use bodmas in place of badmaash in our state.
I strongly believe that our version of Hindi is the lingua franca of our state.”
“Arunachal Pradesh is a state with many tribes, and we do not have a common language. With time, Hindi has evolved as our lingua franca, which we do not acknowledge officially,” he said, adding that “the fact is that, from press conferences to speeches by our legislators or in the market, we only communicate in this version of Hindi. It is a part of our culture in modern-day Arunachal, which we usually do not accept.”
He said that “Arunachali Hindi has evolved to be our identity, and we must accept it along with our tribal dialects. It is called Bodmash to localise it.”
On being asked why it took the team four years to complete the filming, Gungte said that it was initially not his idea to make the movie. “I am really happy to be surrounded by like-minded people who are passionate about movies. A group of youngsters came to me to make a movie for them. I and my brother Tai Tugung (who has acted in the film) started working on it. We came up with an initial idea, based on one of the actors. Interestingly, the protagonist of the film is a three-time Class 3 fail student.”
“The struggle of a not-so-educated youth and his survival in the society hit my mind. And I started scripting to dramatise the whole struggle and at the same time make it engaging for the audience,” Gungte said.
He also blamed Covid-19 for the delay, and further informed that “we shot it at leisure, ensuring that our crew members were free from their personal engagements.”
He informed that the lead actress is Nabam Ashu, who will be debuting in the movie, along with actor Tarh Alung.
On being asked whether the audience would accept Tai Tugung as a cop in Bodmash as much they had accepted his role as Chima in Itanagar 0 Km, Gungte said, “Chima’s character has found a place in people’s hearts. It is really tough for an actor to come out from an image that he has created in people’s minds as a character. He has already proved his calibre as an actor, and he is in fact one of the finest actors in Arunachal Pradesh today. He has done his part really well and I believe that this character of his as a police inspector also will be accepted.”
Gungte also reflected on how marketing a film in Arunachal has always been difficult. “We are selling tickets both offline and online. The response so far has been very good, despite very little publicity.”
“We will be having two shows on 19 October, at 6:30 pm and 8:30 pm, at DK Convention Centre. We are in talks with theatre owners in the city. National Cinema Hall in Naharlagun and Chotu Maharaj cinema hall in Itanagar have confirmed to give us slots for our movie. We are planning to have a theatrical release by 20 October, Sunday, at both the theatres,” he said.
Indu Chukhu: In a nutshell, what will Bodmash offer? Do you think people outside Arunachal will enjoy and connect with Bodmash, since the storytelling is different?
Tai Gungte: It is a comedy thriller in our raw Arunachali Hindi version. A first of its kind, but the movie mirrors the present-day capital region and how our youths are surviving. The youths have dreams, but some merely survive, while others feel lost. We are weaving tales that blur the line between reality and illusion.
