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What’s in a name

Confident comeback Actor Sharbani Mukherjee in a still from the film

“Whenever you take a step, think of how it will affect the weakest man.” So said the Father of the Nation, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, and so begins the movie “Mohandas — A Man Lost In His Own Nation”.

“Other than Gandhi’s concerns for the weaker section compared to the reality in India today and the name, there is nothing common between the film and the biography on Gandhiji. It is a comment on the situation today, the rising corruption…,” says director Mazhar Kamran. This is his debut film that was screened recently at Osian’s Cinefan film festival held in New Delhi.

The cinematographer of “Satya”, “Kaun”, “Jhankaar Beats”, “Masti” and “Tarkeib”, Mazhar believes in doing meaningful cinema.

“With ‘Mohandas’ we are trying to evoke audience reaction towards the present scenario in India. It might anger or sadden you but anyhow you would relate to the character who investigates his lost identity. There is irony and satire and enough rural vistas to feast on,” says the director.

According to Nakul Vaid, who plays the protagonist in the film, “Mohandas is a bright boy from a poor family, who weaves baskets. He struggles to make his place in the society. Tragedy begins when his expectations crash in the wake of harsh realities. Mohandas has to even fight a legal battle and with the help of the media he locates that ‘someone’ who is living with his name.

Sharbani Mukherjee who is back on the screen after a long gap, plays a village girl and Mohandas’ wife, said, “I had to observe how women in rural areas speak, their body language and routine. It was tough but all the same a fulfilling experience.”

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