26-year-old nominated alongside McCartney at international festival
MUMBAI: Saahil Bhargava, a 26-year-old singer-songwriter, has been nominated for Best Animation and the Best Music Video categories at the LA Shorts International festival.
An animated music video named Kohima by Bhargava, who is currently based in Los Angeles, and a song written and sung by him, have been nominated at the festival, alongside projects by music greats Yo Yo Ma and McCartney.
Bhargava and his Mumbaibased co-director Harmeet Rahal, 25, also the film’s animator, are over the moon. Their passion project was inspired by the masdier,
sive battle of Kohima in presentday Nagaland, which occurred in 1944, towards the end of World War 2. “It was a turning point in the war, but it’s a forgotten battle that rarely gets talked about,” Bhargava says. Rather than focussing on the victory of the Allied forces, the song is written from the perspective of an embattled soljudge fighting physical and emotional trauma and trying to survive it all so he can return home to his family. “When Saahil came to me, he had finished writing the song. It was such a great challenge to bring those emotions to the screen,” Rahal says. “It’s an honour to be nominated alongside such amazing work, and I hope this helps more people learn about this hidden piece of Indian history.”
Incidentally, the McCartney work nominated alongside in both categories is When Winter Comes. The Ma work nominated for Best Music Video is See Me: A Global Concert.
The LA festival is in its 25th year and will be held virtually for the first time this year, starting July 1.