Shot in the arm for Santali short films

Shot in the arm for Santali short films

Short is not always sweet. At least that was the case with Santali short films in Odisha. They were mostly shot for fun, shared among friends and families, and uploaded on You Tube to be forgotten finally.

But things are finally looking up with an exclusive festival for indigenous short films taking off in Odisha last year. Going by the name Baripada Indigenous Short Films Festival (BISFF), the carnival is organized under the auspices of the Santali Film and Art Development Association Odisha (SAFADAO).

The festival offers a platform for producers and directors not only from Odisha, but also from Jharkhand and West Bengal to debate and discuss ideas, share experiences and expertise.

“At present, we are focusing on short films and kept the entry of feature films in abeyance. The technical skill required for making a feature film is more creative and complex. But it can have its required prune-up, if the film crews gather experience after making three to four short films. Till then the entry of feature films can wait for this festival,” said BISFF chairman Ashish S Marandi.

Before BISFF became an annual feature, no festivals, neither major nor minor, were ever held for Santali short films from Odisha. Left with no option, these filmmakers usually flocked to other states to showcase their works, particularly to Dumka in Jharkhand, where the All India Santali Film Association (AISFA) organizes its annual festival exclusively for Santali short films.

“Odisha’s producers regularly take part in our annual short film festival, which was flagged off three years ago. Out of the 16 entries screened at the festival last year, four were from Odisha,” AISFA’s general secretary Surendra Tudu informed.

In West Bengal, which is believed to churn out the maximum number of short films in the region, no festival of importance has yet screened a Santali film. “The Santali Engineering Students’ Welfare Association (SESWA) had organised a festival exclusively for Santali films in Kolkata last year. Unfortunately, it was a onetime affair and it was not held this year,” said Santali director Ram Murmu from West Bengal.

Murmu’s film ‘Jitkar’ (Victory) had bagged the jury award and ‘Khilon’ (Game) was adjudged the best short film at BISFF last year. His ‘Mid Bita Kar Khatir’ (For the Sake of Empty Stomach) again won the jury award this year.

Several producers and directors do not have knowledge about such festivals because of lack of communication. Even the annual Samvaad National Short Film Festival, which has been organised in Jamshedpur since 2014 by Tata Steel’s Tribal Cultural Society, screens films in tribal languages. However, the entries of Santali short films from Odisha are few and far between, according to Santali film producer and director Deepak Beshra, who is also the SAFADAO president.

“Among the nearly 75 entries, our ‘Dular Darha’ (Love Indefinite) was the lone entry in the festival last year. It bagged the Best Short Film award in the ‘Community Category’,” Deepak claimed. “The participation of Santali filmmakers in the festivals is rare, as most of them are not aware of them,” he added.

Filmmaker Jeeebandhan Marandi of Rairangour in Mayurbhanj district lent credence to Deepak’s view. “When I was visiting Kolkata last year, I got to know about the festival organized at Rabindra Sadan by SESWA. Fortunately, my short film ‘Aayo’ (Mother) was ready at that time. So I could take part in the festival,” said Marandi, who is now a final year student of computer science at Modern Institute of Technology and Management. His ‘Aam Tangire’ (Waiting for You) was screened at BISFF this year.

However, the fledgling SAFADAO, which took shape in 2016, tries to plug the gap between the producers and festival organizers through press conferences, advertisements in newspapers and phone calls, despite the fact that it has to run the annual BISFF with a shoe string budget of about Rs 2 lakh.

“We have to manage the BISFF show with the entry fees of Rs 500 from each festival participant, contributions of our members and well-wishers, and the aid of nearly Rs 1 lakh from the Mayurbhanj district administration,” Deepak said.

“We wish to raise the amount of cash prize to a substantial level. For example, the cash prize for ‘Best Short Film’ is Rs 5000 which is too small an amount. We also want to finance participation of our winners in noted fetes like Goa Short Film Festival. But crash crunch poses a hindrance,” he added.