Jonakir Alo, a film by director-artist Khalid Mahmud Mithu is participating in four international film festival, the Tribeca Film Festival, Florida Film Festival, Melbourne Internatinal Film Festival and Jaipur Film Festival.
Dhaka Tribune had the opportunity to catch up with the director recently, who informed that the movie was cleared by the censor board last Thursday, after fifteen months of shooting and post production stage.
Mithu also said: “Right now our political situation is not that good so, I decided to screen it in the International Film Festivals instead. I am very hopeful about the film as I have worked really hard to make it a good and entertaining film, let’s see what happens next.”
After making waves with his debut feature film Gohine Shabdo, the director is to display and address some bold issues in Jonakir Alo.
The National Film Award-winning director is going to portray his criticism on social obstinacy through the eyes of an urban woman. With the backdrop of a “hero dominated” film industry the progressive director is again coming up with a female character as the lead role of his film.
The story develops with a triangular love story and the viewers will experience a couple of melodious songs shot in some fascinating spots of St Martin’s Island and Rangamati. The film revolves around Kabita, who dreams of working for children’s welfare, and is torn between adopting a child and her responsibility as a daughter-in-law of a conservative family. Most interestingly, the protagonist meets the legendary artist SM Sultan and becomes inspired with his philosophy.
Gazi Rakayet has enacted the role of SM Sultan and Bidya Sinha Saha Mim is the lead actress of the movie. Imon and Kalyan play the two lovers of the heroine.
About her role in the film, celebrated actress Mim shares with Dhaka Tribune, “I always like to work in off-track productions. In this film I have enacted such a character which I have never done before. At a point in the movie, the heroine becomes sick and proves to be unable of being a mother. The struggle begins when she decides to adopt a child and her husband and in-laws oppose her decision.”
Mim said that she had to work really hard to carry out such a bold character. “The hardest part was portraying the contrast between the emotion and the boldness of a barren woman,” expresses Mim.