‘Why should women filmmakers only tell stories of women?’
Strong personality, strong narratives describe Nandita Das. The actorfilmmaker has been synonymous with quality cinema, with films such as Fire (1996), Earth (1998), Bawandar (2000), Kamli (2006), I Am (2011), and her directorial debut Firaaq (2008). Her directorial, Manto, starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, is set for its theatrical release. Nandita talks about the film; her father, painter Jatin Das, being the Manto of her life; and her cinema plans.
Your film Manto was received well in international festivals. Ahead
of its India release, what’s going on in your mind?
I’m overwhelmed by the response. Some people may think that this is a festival film as it has been screened in some of the best festivals first. People often want to label things. I would say it’s a film for all, across nationality, age and gender. It is a film that celebrates what I call the ‘Mantoiyat’ in all of us. By Mantoiyat, I mean the freespiritedness, the will to be more honest, more courageous about things we care for. Those who are Mantoesque, live on their own terms. Manto is someone who was misunderstood, even by fellow progressives. The film raises multiple questions. After 71 years of Independence, have we really progressed? Have we really changed? It’s a mirror to our prejudices, fears, morality.
You had said that your father, painter Jatin Das, is the Manto of your life?
When I read Manto, I wondered why he sounded so familiar. I realised that I have grown up with a person like him. My father has a lot of Mantoiyat in him. He has never really been part of the ‘art market’, much like Manto, who was such a progressive writer but never joined the Progressive Writer’s Association. Both of them were never motivated by money. They were both passionate about their work and beyond that, deeply sensitive human beings.
Tell us about the challenges you face as a woman director. After your first directorial Firaaq (2008), you took almost a decade to direct the second?
I’m not a professional director. I make films only when a story compels me to. In these 10 years, I did many things. I was the chairperson of the Children’s Films Society of India, I was a hands-on mother to my son, who is now 8, I wrote a monthly column for 8 years, did a 4 month fellowship at Yale University and I also wrote, directed and acted in a play called Between the Lines… About challenges, I think a woman, in any field that is primarily maledominated, faces stereotypes. Women directors are expected to make a certain type of films. I am asked, why as a strong voice for women, I chose to make a film on a man and not a woman. But isn’t celebrating good sensitive men equally important? In today’s time, it’s difficult to confront sexism as it is very subtle.
There’s a lot of talk about femaleoriented films …
A film is not feminist only if it is a women-oriented film. I am concerned about the way women are portrayed. Do they represent of the diversity that exists in society? People ask how does it feel to be a woman director… I don’t know how it feels to be a male director! When you are directing, you aren’t aware of your gender, you are simply directing. But it’s a fact that you bring with you a female gaze that is based on your life experiences.
I am asked, why I chose to make a film on a man and not a woman. But isn’t celebrating good sensitive men equally important? In today’s time, it’s difficult to confront sexism as it is very subtle.
NANDITA DAS ACTOR
DIRECTOR