Our cinema culture is driven by stars: Chhello Show director Pan Nalin

Pan Nalin, the director of Chhello Show, notes that India's film industry is star-driven, thus he can relate to the “panic” about his movie, being chosen as India's official Oscar entry. He struggled to understand why people were comparing his film to Cinema Paradiso, though.

“The false allegations, which might drastically harm our chances moving forward, is what is alarming. People have expressed opinions without having seen the movie. It must have been earth-shattering news for folks who love stars and worship them,” Nalin said.

The Gujarati film was chosen as India's official entry to the Best International Feature Film category of the 95th Academy Awards. It is a drama about the attractiveness of the Indian state of Gujarat that is somewhat autobiographical. It also pays homage to classic filmmaking. Vikas Bata, Bhavin Rabari, Richa Meena, Dipen Raval, Bhavesh Shrimali, and Rahul Koli are the actors.

Nalin is best known for directing films such as Samsara, Valley of Flowers, Angry Indian Goddesses and Ayurveda: Art of Being.

Last Film Show, which is slated for a theatrical release on October 14, had its world premiere as the opening film at Robert DeNiro’s Tribeca Film Festival.

It has won several awards including the Golden Spike at the 66th Valladolid Film Festival in Spain.

The most talked-about Indian films up for consideration as the official entry to the Oscars before the announcement were RRR by SS Rajamouli and The Kashmir Files by Vivek Agnihotri. The historical drama directed by Rajamouli was about two Indian friends living under British control. It displayed Indian customs and had the distinctive visual appeal of Rajamouli. Additionally, the movie was well-liked outside of India.

The genocide and evacuation of Kashmiri Pandits from the Indian valley of Kashmir in 1990, on the other hand, were chronicled in Agnihotri's film. The movie didn't have the same production values or budget as RRR, but it gained popularity over time and got praise from critics outside of India.

RRR, in the opinion of many cinema critics and journalists, might have been India's best chance to win an Oscar. The Kashmir Files was the subject of political discussions, but RRR would have been a better choice given its previously established global appeal.

Additionally, Pan Nalin has been charged with plagiarism by the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) and the Indian Film & Television Directors' Association (IFTDA), who claim that Chhello Show is a knockoff of the 1988 Oscar-winning Italian-French movie, Cinema Paradiso.

“'If Chhello Show was a copy, why would so many big studios around the world acquire it? Why would Robert De Niro's festival invite us to the red carpet opening,” Nalin asked.

In a time when cinema is growing more and more reliant on digital technology, Chhello Show serves as both Nalin's love letter to film and a reminder of analogue projectors. Last Film Show is a memory piece on how we interact with cinema as children.

“Movies are going digital. There are too many pixels... manufactured entertainment. I thought it would be nice to go back and talk about the pure magic of cinema,” Nalin said.

India has submitted 55 films to the Oscars as of 2022. Chhello Show is only the second Gujarati film to represent the nation after The Good Road (2013).

Nalin chose to keep Gujarati as the film's language on purpose.

“Because the Kathiawar region has such a distinctive culture and it was crucial to make the movie in Gujarati. I was advised that if I made the movie in Hindi, it would be simple to fund and cast, so it was a difficult choice. But I came to the realisation that probably wouldn't work for the story. It took a while to find the right actor to play Samay, the movie's lead character, in the casting process.”

Nalin engaged six casting assistants to search throughout the Kathiawar region for his Samay, and he also frequently collaborated with Dilip Shankar on this project. Out of the 3,000 kids, 200 were chosen for further consideration, and of those, 60 were invited to a resort in Gir Forest for a workshop. In the end, they discovered their star in Bhavin Rabari, a young man from Vasai, whose father works as a bus driver.

Nalin is aware that stories are constantly evolving, and storytellers must welcome any changes.

“Samay's description of the transformation's organic process reminded me of how I perceive myself. Samsara and Valley of Flowers were two of my earlier 35mm films. I had to accept digital because I could see the transition coming. It's not like I stopped making movies. I used to paint with watercolours until everyone advised me to switch to oil paint. For me, it's a way of expressing that tales will continue to be told, even though the methods may alter.

A recent screening of Chello Show received a standing ovation from the crowd in Chennai. “Each movie is a labour of love and a passion project. I have no idea how other movies are made, but this one took years of effort. The team has put in a tonne of passion, labour, and love while always having faith in the movie, working as a close-knit family.”