Nonika Singh
It’s an unusual partnership. Whoever could envision an Indo-Vietnamese film? Only well-known writer director Rahat Shah Kazmi’s upcoming flick Love in Vietnam is not just one of its kind for being the first Indo-Vietnamese collaboration but unique in more ways than one.
Helmed by a Kashmiri director, based on a popular Turkish novel Madonna in a Fur Coat by Sabahattin Ali, in its Indian adaptation, it traverses from Punjab to Vietnam. Starring Avneet Kaur, Shantanu Maheshwari and Vietnamese beauty Kha Ngan, it’s indeed a powerful love story which will take Punjabi flavour to the South-East Asian nation and bring the whiff of the picturesque touristy country to us.
The idea of exploring Vietnam through cinema came to Rahat when he was part of India’s Namaste Vietnam Festival in 2023. Back then, he wondered aloud; at a time when we are lapping up content from every corner of the world, how come we are not privy to Vietnamese cinema? “The film industry in Vietnam,” shares Rahat, “may not be as big as the Indian juggernaut but some Vietnamese films like Mai have done roaring business of $20 million.”
As Rahat released the poster of Love in Vietnam at the Cannes Film Festival 2024, we can’t help but quiz — why does Cannes matter so much to Indian filmmakers? He, who has taken his films like Mantostaan and Country of Blind to Cannes, avers, “It is the biggest film festival on earth, a massive market where all big companies are present, indeed the Mecca for Indie makers.”
The glamour, which is a given at the festival, is the icing on the cake. Why his heroine of Country of Blind, Hina Khan, created a flutter on the red carpet in 2022. This year he himself made a fashion statement and turned heads with traditional attire of Kashmiri phiran.
Building cultural bridges is as important for him as dipping into treasure-trove of literary texts. If his films based on Saadat Hasan Manto’s works and Ismat Chugtai’s acclaimed Lihaaf won him much appreciation, Country of Blind, inspired by a short story written by HG Wells, became part of the Academy Film archive. Adapting literature indeed is not easy and while names of literary masters ensure instant visibility, censure quickly follows too. For the bar litterateurs’ storytelling set is already sky high which movies can’t possibly match.
Rahat, however, is unperturbed by what critics say, “At the end of the day it’s one person’s opinion. I don’t think it’s fair to compare movies with original literary works, films sourced in literature should be seen as an independent art form.”
Now as he transplants a Turkish story on to Punjabi-Vietnamese soil, while the soul and essence of the original tale will remain, the flavour will be quintessentially Punjabi. And yes, unlike the novel written in 1943, the film won’t be a period piece but set in contemporary world. Besides, except for the smattering of few Vietnamese words, the film will be made in Hindi. For its release in Vietnamese, the production team is looking at special AI-enabled software, far superior than dubbing and one which will be in sync with lip movements. Working with Vietnamese star Kha Ngan, language barrier could have been an impediment. But Rahat is mighty impressed by her diligence and how she is going an extra mile to not only understand but debate the meaning of every single word (her dialogues are in English though).
Supported by the Consulate General of India in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and the Consulate General of Vietnam in Mumbai, Rahat also has noted Omung Kumar, director of successful films like Mary Kom and Sarabjit, backing Love in Vietnam as a producer. What big names such as producers like Marc Baschet of the Oscar-winning Bosnian film No Man’s Land fame, who coproduced Rahat’s Lihaaf, bring to the table is “their credibility and creativity.”
While a host of offbeat ideas, including a war film, are brewing in the mind of this creative director who is known for his much acclaimed film Identity Card about the Kashmir conflict, currently, Rahat is love struck. And set to make us fall in love, yes with Vietnam, most certainly.
No takers for indie film
A festival regular, as Rahat Shah Kazmi moves into mainstream space, he admits there are two kinds of cinema, one studio backed with crowd pulling elements like stars and the other which falls in world cinema category. He adds, “In a festival movie you can’t add a song for the heck of it. They are sensible, subtle even slow.” Having won many awards at the festivals, including Best Director at the UK Asian Film Festival for Mantostaan, he rues, “Sadly, there are no takers for indie films and you end up giving these almost free.”