A Film From Manipur That You Must See

‘This
story
has
been
always
there
since
my
childhood
because
of
missing
people.’
‘I
remember
a
family
member
who
disappeared
and
I
kept
wondering
what
happened
to
him.’

Manipuri
film-maker

Lakshmipriya
Devi
has
worked
as
an
assistant
director
on
many
Bollywood
projects
including
some
of
Excel
Entertainment
films
like

Lakshya,

Luck
by
Chance,

Talaash,
and
last
year’s
limited
series,Dahaad.

Before
she
made
her
first
feature
film

Boong,
she
had
also
served
as
an
AD
to
Raju
Hirani
(PK)
and
Mira
Nair
(A
Suitable
Boy).

Her
association
with
Excel
led
to
Farhan
Akhtar
and
Ritesh
Sidhwani
produce
her
Manipuri
film.

Boong
just
had
its
world
premiere
at
the
Toronto
International
Film
Festival.

Boong
is
a
sweet
story
about
a
young
boy
raised
by
a
single
mother.
The
mischievous
boy,
played
by
a
charming
first-time
actor
Gugun
Kipgen,
tries
everything
possible
to
find
his
father.
Every
year
he
hopes
his
father
will
return
for
Holi
and
reunite
with
his
mother.

Seeped
in
rich
Manipuri
culture,

Boong
was
shot
before
the
state
was
ravaged
by
the
current
conflict.

Devi
adds
lovely
Manipuri
touches
to
the
film
from
the
daily
lives
of
school
kids
to
folk
music,
dances,
including
a
local
version
of
Madonna’s
hit
song,

Like
a
Virgin.
There
is
also
a
beautiful
homage
to
the
trans
culture
in
Manipuri.

“When
my
father
passed
away,
I
spent
quite
a
bit
of
time
in
Manipur,
and
there
were
so
many
things
that
came
back
to
me.
Initially,
I
wrote
not
to
make
a
film
or
anything.
I
just
wanted
it
out
of
my
system,”
Lakshmipriya
Devi
tells

Aseem
Chhabra
before
heading
to
Toronto
for
her
film’s
world
premiere.

Lakshmipriya,
I
found
the
film
sweet
and
very
well
done.
I
didn’t
know
a
lot
about
how
the
outsiders
were
treated
in
Manipur
prior
to
the
riots
of
last
year
and
the
border
situation
between
India
and
Myanmar.
I
am
glad
you
end
with
a
statement
about
the
conflict
of
Manipur.
But
was
there
any
tension
simmering
while
the
film
was
being
shot?

I
was
actually
not
aware
but
there
was
a

bandh,
a
curfew
that
happened
during
our
shoot.
That
was
in
Moreh
(a
border
town
with
Myanmar
which
figures
prominently
in
the
film),
one
of
the
first
places
where
the
tensions
started.

The
violence
started
because
of
reservations.
And
there
was
a
curfew.

It
was
on
the
day
we
were
filming
the
two
boys
walking
towards
a
post
office.
There
was
nobody
on
the
streets.

We
saw
a
wedding
taking
place
and
we
requested
the
wedding
party
to
join
as
background
actors.
But
they
responded
‘No,
we
have
a
wedding
to
finish.’

Bandhs
and
curfews
are
so
normal
in
Manipur.
I
never
thought
that
it
was
going
to
result
in
such
a
long
drawn
out
conflict.

You
have
worked
with
Excel
for
a
while
and
also
other
Bollywood
production
companies.
You
obviously
know
Ritesh
and
Farhan,
but
how
did
you
convince
them
to
produce
your
film?

Firstly,
I
just
wanted
to
write.
But
when
this
story
happened,
it
became
so
close
to
my
heart,
I
felt
I
had
to
direct
it.

Working
as
an
AD
is
very
different
from
directing.
As
an
AD,
you
only
know
how
to
organise
things
and
make
them
happen
on
time.

So
initially,
I
felt
I
was
not
equipped
to
do
it.
But
I
also
felt
this
was
my
one
chance.

Ritesh,
Farhan
and
the
others
I
narrated
the
story
to,
everybody
said
let’s
do
it.

The
thing
is
every
time
I
was
writing,
it
was
always
a
Manipuri
story.
I
think
it
had
to
do
with
some
things
I
wanted
to
deal
with.
It
was
almost
like
writing
a
diary.

This
must
be
the
first
small
budget
film
that
Ritesh
and
Farhan
have
produced.
Have
they
produced
anything
this
indie
from
a
different
region?

I
think
this
is
their
first
indie,
and
I
hope
they
do
a
lot
more,
especially
films
in
Manipur.
Our
film’s
budget
was
even
below
the
standard
indie.

So
they
seemed
open
to
it?
Because
box
office
is
a
big
aim
for
a
company
like
Excel.
Large
production
houses
look
for
box
office
before
anything
else.

It
is
important
to
note
that
Excel,
as
a
company,
is
always
evolving.

I
think
it
was
one
of
the
first
companies
to
get
into
OTT.
They
wanted
to
tell
the
story
as
much
as
I
did,
and
were
open
to
it.

They
are
very
experimental.

There
are
stories
about
how
they
went
to
shoot

Dil
Chahata
Hai,
without
any
film-making
background.
So
I
think
the
boys
are
quite
risk
takers.

You
said
you
wanted
to
tell
your
own
Manipuri
story.
But
how
exactly
did
you
come
on
to
this
story
about
a
boy
and
his
mother,
and
the
father
who
is
missing?

I
think
this
story
has
been
always
there
since
my
childhood
because
of
missing
people.

People
who
disappeared.

I
remember
a
family
member
who
disappeared
and
I
kept
wondering
what
happened
to
him.

Also,
second
marriages
were
common
in
Manipur.

All
these
ideas
are
literally
collections
from
my
childhood.

It
also
came
from
a
place
of
pain
and
anger.

I
was
in
a
hostel,
and
would
only
go
home
for
my
vacations.

When
my
father
passed
away,
I
spent
quite
a
bit
of
time
in
Manipur,
and
there
were
so
many
things
that
came
back
to
me.
Initially,
I
wrote
not
to
make
a
film
or
anything.
I
just
wanted
it
out
of
my
system.

I
am
sorry
for
prying
into
your
personal
life,
but
did
this
happen
in
your
family
where
someone
was
married
twice?

My
grandfather
had
two
wives.
In
a
sense,
it
was
actually
a
lovely
culture.
The
two
wives
would
call
each
other
sisters.

And
it
was
not
considered
illegal?

It
is
illegal,
obviously.
But
not
before
we
became
part
of
India.
I
took
bits
and
pieces
of
my
memory
and
put
it
in
today’s
context.

I
loved
your
casting.
Are
they
all
non-actors?
The
mother
looks
like
a
professional
actress.

The
mother
is
an
actress.
There
were
four
or
five
people
from
a
film
or
theatre
background.
But
the
boys…
in
fact,
all
the
kids
were
new.

That
move
that
Boong
does
with
the
sling,
the
gulale.
Is
that
something
you
taught
him
or
he
was
doing
it
himself?

I
wanted
him
to
do
martial
arts
steps,
which
are
very
common.

Those
moves
were
used
a
lot
when
the
Burmese
invaded
Manipur.
But
you
can’t
master
it
in
a
day.

So
we
had
a
choreographer
who
made
the
kids
loosen
their
body.
He
came
up
with
a
free
movement.

It
was
my
attempt
to
pay
tribute
to
Manipur,
including
the
defunct
cinema
halls,
where
I
shot
some
of
the
performances.

Do
you
have
performances
with
men
in
drag
and
trans
people
in
Manipur?

It
came
from
the
shaman
culture.

We
have
a
festival
called
Lairaba.
It
is
a
celebration
of
the
gods
and
men
dress
up
as
women.

We
have
a
strong
trans
culture
in
Manipur.

The
amazing
thing
about
the
community
is
that
they
live
with
their
families.

Most
of
them
take
the
name
or
the
surname
of
the
locality
they
live
in.
The
locality
also
helps
them
come
to
terms
with
their
identity.

It
was
a
big
influence
on
me
because
when
I
was
small,
and
even
today,
they
are
such
a
proud
community.

That’s
amazing.
There
are
so
many
lovely
moments
with
the
trans
dancers.
And
all
the
references
to
Madonna.
Did
you
have
to
get
rights
for
Madonna’s

Like
a
Virgin
song?

Yes,
for
the
poster
and
the
song.
I
am
trying
for
her
to
watch
it
and
see
a
Manipuri
version
of
the
song.

And
that
performance
at
the
end,
with
those
dancers
with
the
drums.
Did
it
exist
earlier
or
did
you
create
it
for
the
film?

No,
we
created
it
for
the
film.

The
dances
and
the
drums
are
prevalent
in
every
ritual,
whether
it’s
a
death
ceremony
or
a
wedding.

I
wanted
to
incorporate
that
sound,
not
just
that
of
the
drums,
but
another
instrument
called

pena.

I
can
be
anywhere
in
the
world,
but
I
think
of
the
sound
and
it
reminds
me
of
Manipur.

I
love
when
the
principal
asks
Boong
to
recite
the
Father’s
Prayer,
and
he
starts
to
speak
out
the
lyrics
of

Like
a
Virgin.
The
humour
was
wonderful
and
you
bring
up
Boong’s
association
with
Madonna.
What
are
the
plans
with
this
film
after
Toronto?

Well,
I
definitely
want
to
show
it
in
Manipur.

You
have
movie
theatres
in
Manipur?

Now
there
are,
but
they
don’t
play
Hindi
films.

We
have
two
theatres
which
are
functioning.

Otherwise,
all
the
theatres
were
shut
down.
Some
have
become
churches.

Was
this
even
before
the
current
unrest?

In
2000,
there
was
an
official
ban
on
Hindi
films
and
the
Hindi
language.
These
were
demands
of
separatist
groups.

But
are
there
video
parlours
as
you
show
in
the
film?

Not
video
parlours.
There
was
an
old
lady
near
my
house
who
used
to
sell
sandals
and
other
stuff
smuggled
from
Myanmar
and
Thailand.

She
would
go
to
Guwahati
and
collect
new
films
and
rent
out
DVDs.
I
know
she
got
caught.

It
really
fascinated
me.

But
what
films
are
shown
in
the
two
theatres?
Can
you
watch
Assamese
films?

Mainly
English
films.
They
just
started
in
December
2022
and
now
we
have
had
problems
since
May
2023.
I
doubt
if
those
theatres
are
showing
films.

The
scene
where
one
of
the
trans
performers
is
singing
was
shot
in
an
abandoned
theatre,
once
called
Roop
Mahal
Theatre
and
before
that
Imphal
Talkies.

I
was
so
happy
that
was
one
intact
piece.

The
upper
stall
has
seats
from
a
Japanese
Dakota
plane,
which
was
shot
down
during
World
War
II.
It
was
like
filming
inside
history.