08112024-LSTC-01.qxd 11/7/2024 9:14 PM Page 1 c m y b TRIBUNE THE PHANTOM’S INDIA DEBUT Almost two years since the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre opened its doors to the world, the cultural destination is set to add yet another historic first to its repertoire with the opening of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera. The show has won over 70 major theatre awards. Nonika Singh A sequel can barely keep up with the spirit and beauty of the first outing, let alone be worthy of laurels. But celebrated filmmaker Rima Das’ Village Rockstars 2 has not only captured the previous film’s true essence but also won Kim Jiseok Award for Best Film at Busan Film Festival. Sequel to her National Award winning Village Rockstars, India’s official entry for the 2019 Academy Awards, was always on her mind. The last scene in the prequel when Dhunu gets a guitar from her mother and begins to play it stayed with her. And even while she was making Bulbul Can Sing, the story was developing deep down within her. But if you think the sequel has Dhunu, her lead, turning into a big pop star you couldn’t be more wrong. Das says, “This is a story of talent from the marginalised, under-privileged society that go unnoticed; a girl who can dream, who loves nature. Success is not always what is visible.” If her film is about Dhunu facing challenges of adulthood, she recalls her own while growing up in Assam. She says, “I was a rebel, a force of nature, much like Dhunu, who loved to climb trees. For my tomboyish ways I was often reprimanded by my mother.” Today, the once stern mom is her biggest cheerleader and ace marketing agent. She laughs, “If she has any news about my work you don’t know where it will land. So, I have to be very discreet about what I tell her. ” Her family anyway is an integral part of her cinema. If Torah’s Husband featured her brother Abhijit Das, Bhanita Das playing Dhunu happens to be her cousin. A family that works together stays together… Well, she says, “It’s more like ghar ki murgi dal barbar.” Jokes apart, she lauds them for their steadfast commitment as she takes her own sweet time to make her films. Indeed, it’s a mutual ‘taking each other for granted’ family dynamics. For her mother, however, winning is everything. “Awards,’ she admits, “are important for they are validation of your work, grant the film visibility.” On the flip side, it is indeed a bit sad that in India, indie films gain traction only when they make noise at big film festivals. Nevertheless, as her films create suitable buzz at international film festivals, including Toronto International Film Festival, she finds the audiences at Busan International film Festival very keen and eager, who invariably stay back for the Q and A round. Dharamshala International Film Festi- New role Ananya Panday is set to star in the upcoming film, Chand Mera Dil, backed by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions. CHANDIGARH | FRIDAY | 8 NOVEMBER 2024 Rima rocks A STILL FROM VILLAGE ROCKSTARS 2 MY DHUNU IN VILLAGE ROCKSTARS 2 IS A GIRL WHO CAN DREAM, LOVES NATURE, FALLS IN LOVE WITH THE MOON. SHE IS NOT GOING TO WIN A COMPETITION OR BECOME A STAR. IN INDIA, THERE ARE SO MANY TALENTED PEOPLE WHO DON’T ACHIEVE FAME AND SUCCESS. THEIR STORIES ARE UNTOLD AND SUCH CHARACTERS INSPIRE ME. RIMA DAS val where Village Rockstars 2 shall be screened comes in for fulsome praise too. Beyond film festivals, she finds hope Rima Das, whose film Village Rockstars 2 won Kim Jiseok Award for Best Film at Busan Film Festival, says success is not always what is visible among the youth, who thanks to the OTT boom and access to social media keep track of films other than Bollywood masala. Nevertheless, the challenges of making a film are endless. She adds, “Once the film is made, there is publicity to be taken care of.” As it is under her production house, she is one woman army — director, editor, cinematographer and of course writer. Oh, hold it, she actually doesn’t write, ‘everything is written on the mind’. But for anthology My Melbourne, which also features shorts by Imtiaz Ali and Kabir Khan, she had to come up with a bound script. Directing for outside production houses doesn’t change her approach except she has to finish her film within the prescribed deadline. Under her banner, Flying River Films, the village girl in her remains in the languorous mood, reshooting, reediting. Born on May 13, which she says is a karmic number, she compares herself to the industrious ant, forever in the ‘work mode’ constantly on the go, never stopping. Hence, she has never been able to sit back and enjoy her incredible journey en route which she has taken Assamese cinema places. Coming from a state which is still remote for the rest of India, her biggest concern is, “to project my land and my people in the right way, how sensitively I can do it, not gloss over the bad but balance the light and dark.” Her persona, despite stellar achievements, has the lightness of touch. And that easy laugh has an infectious ring making you smile, just as her films do, without offering easy solutions. RIMA DAS AND BHANITA DAS Bad guys have all the fun until the end: Denzel Washington Bad guys have all the fun, says Denzel Washington who turns antagonist for Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II and took the conscious decision to not watch the first Russel Crowestarrer because he didn’t want to be connected to it. The veteran Hollywood star plays Macrinus, a former slave-turned-wealthy, conniving arms dealer, in the sequel to the blockbuster 2000 original. “I didn’t go back to watch the first film. I didn’t want to be connected to that. I watched the first film years ago. So, I didn’t want to look at it,” Washington said in a virtual interview from London. In Gladiator II, Scott brings back the epic gladiatorial battles made famous in Gladiator, the classic that bagged five Oscars, including for best picture and best actor for Crowe. Washington, had TAYLOR SWIFT ROBERT DOWNEY JR Hollywood witnesses collective meltdown after Kamala Harris’ poll defeat Reaction! for democracy. He posted, “There’s a sign you can see in many shops that sell beautiful but fragile items: Lovely to look at, delightful to hold, but once you break it, then it’s sold. You can say the same about democracy.” Singer-songwriter Ariana Grande, who is set to star in the film adaptation of Wicked, wrote, “Holding the hand of every person who is feeling the immeasurable heaviness of this outcome today.” Viola Davis posted a photo of Harris and thanked her for “loving America’s promise,” adding, “I am and will forever be proud.” Many Hollywood stars campaigned for Harris including superstars like Robert Downey Jr. and Taylor Swift. —IANS CARDI B ARIANA GRANDE Macrinus earlier worked with Scott in Gangster. “Ridley Scott first, last and always,” Washington said. “He called and I said yes. He’s one of my favourite if not my favourite directors that I work with… he and his brother (Tony Scott). But when he called, I said yes. It’s as simple as that,” the actor said. Asked if he had fun playing a bad guy again after his Oscar-winning role in Training Day (2001), where he plays a corrupt narcotics officer, Washington said, “Absolutely. You know bad guys have all the fun, until the end.” Gladiator II will be released in India by Paramount Pictures India on November 15 . — PTI PHOTO: PTI The victory of former US President Donald Trump, and his return to the US President Office following the US Presidential Elections of 2024, has ruffled many feathers in Hollywood. Several Hollywood celebrities who rallied behind Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris, reacted strongly to Trump’s win. Singer-songwriter Billie Eilish took to the Stories section of Instagram, and wrote, “It’s a war on women”. Rapper Cardi B posted a video of herself watching the results of the 2024 Elections. She said in the video, “I hate y’all bad”. She also trashed Trump supporters. Author Stephen King took to X and expressed concern Meet VIOLA DAVIS STEPHEN KING PHOTOS: REUTERS c m y b