Umesh Shukla on helming the third edition of International Gujarati Film Festival in the US

Director-producer-writer Umesh Shukla is set to promote Gujarati films in America through the 3rd edition of the International Gujarati Film Festival.

The filmmaker, known for helming Bollywood movies like Oh My God and 102 Not Out, is the festival director of the event that will be held from 20 to 22  May in Atlanta.

“There are a lot of Gujaratis in the US. This is not the only place where we will do the festival. Eventually, we will also go to other countries like New Zealand and Australia where a lot of Gujarati population is there,” he says.

He feels that there are a lot of NRIs who are cut off from India.

“The younger generation abroad is not aware of what we are doing here, so we would like to call them and see our films. I’ll be having one masterclass on direction at the festival,” he shares.

The festival organisers also want to invite investors to the event.

“If they want to invest in India and make a Gujarati film, they are most welcome,” says Shukla, who always wanted to take Gujarati cinema from local to global level.

Movies like Last Film Show, 21mu Tiffin, Bharat Maro Desh and Dear Father will be screened at the festival. Interestingly, there’s also a web series section.

“Our idea is not only to showcase films, but also web content. OTT has opened up market for good content. There are a few subjects that you can’t tell in films because they are meant for longer formats. You can’t wrap them up in one or two hours,” he says.

“We want to show investors that we are capable of making web content also. The idea is how we can reach out to a larger audience,” says Shukla, who would also like to turn Gujarati literature into digital content.

The upcoming festival will also have films revolving around Mahatma Gandhi. He hasn’t made a film on the great leader, but he is open to the idea.

“A lot of things have already been told about Gandhi. But if someone comes up with a different story or perspective on Gandhi’s philosophy or highlights his values in a different way then I’d like to make it,” he says.

Sharing an example, he says, “Like what the filmmakers did in _Lage Raho Munna Bha_i. It was very entertaining and at the same time, it gave a message. So if someone comes up with a subject like that, I would like to explore it.”

The director of Modi: Journey of a Common Man is yet to make a film on Gandhi, but he is working on a movie based on true events.

“It is set in the 14th-15 century and is based on facts,” says the filmmaker, who will also make a family-comedy-drama film in Gujarati.

While these films are getting developed, his Bollywood project Aankh Micholi is almost ready for release.

“It is releasing in September. We were planning to release it in May, but some parts in post-production were left, so I pushed the release date,” says Shukla.

The film revolves around a family of misfits, but he promises it will be an entertainer that can be viewed by parents and their children together.

“It’s a Hrishikesh Mukherjee genre film that can be watched by the entire family. There’s humour, but we also talk about bonding in a family,” shares the director.

“The tagline of my film is ’everything is fair in love, war and family’. You can do anything for your family,” he adds.

He is tied up with his interactive Gujarati play, Ek Room Rasodu, as well.

“It will arrive in Gujarat in June. We have used live music in the play. It has a superb concept. The plays means one room kitchen,” he says.

Natalia Ningthoujam is a Manipur-based journalist. She knows how to smoothly switch from being a fan to a writer whenever needed. She tweets at @nattynick.

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