“I am not putting a gun on people's head telling them not to kill baby girl”- Manish 
By IndiaFM News Bureau, July 2, 2005 - 03:04 IST
He is a Cannes winner for his maiden venture a short film called ' A Very Very Silent Film'. Manish Jha has a different take on women's issues and his films convey the same. His film Matrubhoomi, yet to release in India has garnered rave reviews across the globe at various film festivals. Dealing with Female infanticide the film depicts a nation without women. Manish speaks to IndiaFM about the film, the protagonist kalki and the portrayal of women in Hindi films.
Female infanticide, a pertinent issue that's not been addressed, how did you think about it?
Definitely this is a very serious issue and not only in Bollywood otherwise also not much has been discussed about this even in the print media. I was looking for a script for my first feature film and it was very important for me to make a socially relevant film and entertaining at the same time. This women's issue has always fascinated me, my first short film also talked about it, it spoke about homeless women and I wanted to expand that 5 minute short film, that's when I decided to make Matrubhoomi. When I made the film and we started having screenings only then did I realize that there was so much buzz about it a lot of write ups were being written about it and people started discussing the topic itself. It feels great that I have been able to achieve what I had intended.
Your first movie 'A Very Very Silent Film' was also based on women…
Yes, there are so many issues close to my heart and anything related to women always fascinates me. I feel there is a strong woman inside me and I feel much more comfortable talking about issues related to women. But definitely as a filmmaker I cant keep making films that are women oriented there are lot of issues and topics that I would be talking about in my future films. But this was something that I had to make and that's when you can make an honest film when you are desperate enough to say something.
Tell us about Kalki, the protagonist of your film?
Kalki's character has to be understood in the context of the film. Though she is a protagonist of the film she is no Phoolan Devi who will take a rifle and shoot everybody because then the film would not look logical, in that context, she tries in her own little way to fight this community. There are two rifles in her room all the time she could have easily picked them up and killed these 4-5 brothers but then she knows that there is a bigger jungle out there. But then she in her own way by falling in love with the younger brother, refusing other brothers, by running away from her house, by writing to her father even these small little things are efforts you know in her context. And she survives the whole thing so she is strong internally I think the way.
With just one film old, what is it about her that made you want her for the role?
While I was auditioning for this movie Tulip came across as a very normal simple girl. Because of her body language I could see Kalki in her, she was calm quite and unlike the other actors I was meeting and auditioning who were too loud. What happens is these actresses start living in a make believe world an their body language and make up becomes too loud, so I as a director would have had to work too hard on a girl born and brought up in Bombay for this subdued character. So I knew if I work with her it would be easier for me and also she is a very hard working girl and it worked.
Issue centric films have almost got buried…
It's not the question of issue alone, how you handle the film also matters. It's the question of the sensibilities of the director and the writer, how a particular issue is handled. Lets say a film like Chandni Bar could have been made into a B grade film but because of the sensibilities of Madhur Bhandarkar it was made into a very sensible film. Similarly if you see a film that deals with an issue in a nice way it always works, be it Black, be it Page 3.
How do you react to people who say that the first and only duty of films is to entertain?
In a country like India where people work to get their basic needs fulfilled it's very important to get entertained. And cinema being so cheap is their best option. The way women are portrayed even today in majority of Hindi films depict that they are still here to only dance. Their roles are not sketched out properly and that gives a very wrong impression about women outside. Till date a heroine is not shown smoking or drinking, it's still the bad woman who does that. So people get scandalized when they see women smoking on the streets. In small villages people watch these movies on Cd's and from there they form impressions about the cities and the world outside. Cinema being the strongest medium should become mature, entertainment is important but it should also become more responsible.
Audiences of today are almost allergic to sermonizing; do you think your film has the entertainment value in its narrative to get its message through?
Look its very simple if you tell people not to do something they land up doing that. So there is a very thin line between educating and sermonizing, it all depends on how you are putting it across. Matrubhoomi has all the elements of a nicely told story. I am not putting a gun on people's head and telling them not to kill baby girl, I am just showing them the consequences of what is happening, using a lot of black humour and the whole idea was to give them a very bitter film quoted with sugar.
Finally, does the film only point out the problem or dish out possible solution too?
There is no fixed solution for this problem, like chemistry everyone has to find their own solutions. Like even the government can at the most pass the law against sex tests but they cannot go to every house and stop people because we are a billion. Everyone has to understand on their own.
Your next venture would be…
I have written a couple of scripts, next I am planning a love story it's quite a crazy love story, where everyone has a parallel love story and the central character in the movie also becomes the most wanted terrorist in the world.
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Sushmita Sen is promoting Matrubhoomi
