Made in Kashmir

Freedom is a relative term in a state that continues to burn, as we understand from actor Aamir Bashir's directorial debut Harud, that is set in Kashmir

Freedom is a relative term in a state that continues to burn, as we understand from actor Aamir Bashir's directorial debut Harud, that is set in Kashmir

Television actor Aamir Bashir made a shift to films in 2003. Two things happened that year - Jammu and Kashmir got hooked onto satellite phones and Bashir found his first film Harud (autumn). As a director that is. The Srinagar-born Bashir left J&K when he was 18 to study History at Delhi's Stephen College. "In most of my dreams the setting still is Kashmir. I used to have a recurring nightmare of being in a gunfight for a few years after I moved to Delhi. Even though I have tried to retain the beautiful memories of treks and climbs in the summer and skiing in the winter and swimming in the lakes. The last few months of 1989 are etched in my mind.

(l-r) Debutant filmmaker Aamir Bashir with Iranian actor Reza Naji on the sets of Harud

I spent most of my time listening to BBC World Service Radio for several hours in a day as there was either a curfew or a shutdown," says Bashir in an email interview when we ask him about his memories of growing up in the valley.

Bashir cast award-winning Iranian actor Reza Naji as his lead. Naji, a favourite with Iranian director Majid Majidi has worked with the acclaimed director on films such as Children of Heaven and Song of Sparrows. In fact, Bashir sought out Majidi when he was in Mumbai for feedback on Harud, a film about a tourist photographer who goes missing, never to be found, and how his family comes to terms with the loss. Excerpts from the email interview with Bashir: u00a0

When did you realise that there's a film in you waiting to be made?
I came up with an outline in literally five minutes around the time the mobile service was started in J&K in 2003. At that time, I happened to be in Srinagar and saw hordes queuing up to apply for mobile phones. All conversation centred around the cell phone. But it made me see the desperation of a people who thought that this gadget will somehow make their lives better and safer. As for why I thought it was a compelling story that I had to tell, I just felt that there was not one authentic story to come out of Kashmir despite the extremely dramatic events taking place there. What came out was mainly the regular formulaic Bollywood fare of good versus evil kind of stuff.

How long did you work on Harud?
I did not put it down on paper till 2005. I am not a writer. I needed somebody to actually do the physical writing other than just bouncing off ideas. So Mahmood Farooqui ( Co-director Peepli [Live]) and Shanker Raman, my Director of Photography helped me put the story into a screenplay. The writing itself took four years. I found it difficult to revisit a draft 6 months after writing it and after a lot of re writing and chopping we came up with a 55-page screenplay, which is wafer thin by Hindi film standards.

How did the Kashmiri actors react to the subject that they've lived with? What were some of the trials that you faced shooting there?
All the Kashmiris in the film are either non-actors or amateur first timers. Unfortunately, due to budget constraints, I could not have a workshop with my cast as time meant money. I had to cast the film single-handedly and my pre-production team had three members including me. No office to work out of, no assistants. Other than that, Kashmir being a politically volatile place, one had to face the mistrust that local people have for anyone coming from outside with a camera. So, there was a lot of negotiating involved on a day to day basis. With just 18 people in the crew, everyone had to multi-task. A lot of the scenes are outdoors on the streets of Srinagar and crowd-control was a big headache. Also, avoiding the mobile phone company advertisements across the city, was a challenge, as the story is set in the period before mobile phones came in. So you can imagine us shooting in a crowded street and someone walks into a our frame talking on a mobile phone. We had no option but to re-shoot and hope that it didn't happen again!

How and why did you choose Reza Naji for your lead?
Casting Reza Naji was an act of desperation just a month before the shoot. Naseeruddin Shah was supposed to play the role but could not due to personal reasons. But in retrospect it made life easier for us because with Naseer bhai, we would have gone nuts trying to control the crowds. Nobody knew who Reza Naji was. In fact a lot of locals would come up to him with queries, taking him for a local traffic cop.u00a0
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What is your opinion on the real sentiment of the state?
Based on the events of the last few weeks the answer seems to be clear. But what the people of Kashmir want depends on the choices given to them. The political discourse is manipulated by those in power, in this case India and Pakistan. That is why you see thousands of people on the streets venting their frustrations and screaming at the top of their voices and yet people ask... "what do they want?"
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What is at the core of Harud?
Harud or Autumn is the thematic base of the film which symbolises the psychological decay due to prolonged violence in Kashmir. The first thing one loses due to violence is dignity. And loss of dignity always leads to psychological trauma. In the film the characters are seeking that elusive dignity.
My intention was to tell a genuine story coming out of Kashmir. If, after watching the film, people get an idea of what a Kashmiri has to live through in these trying times, I would consider that an achievement too.

When is the film due for release?
We are in the process of working out a release plan and we plan to go the festival route. As of now we're going to be at the Rotterdam Film Festival in early 2011 thanks to the Hubert Bals Fund.