12 months, 13 destinations. 3 films and unlimited journeys.
Sounds like a movie title. Yes of course, last year has been like a roller coaster ride. From running errands, walking incessantly, clicking the camera, writing and learning on the screenwriter to managing 3 films – one student, one commercial and one independent.
If that journey is not enough than the physical journeys have made up for them.
May - Sometime around last May, it started with picking up my bags and going to the ISBT bus depot in Delhi. Got a bus for Haridwar and reached at the ghats at around 1 am.
Ek baat sach bolte hain, Ganga maiyya ki kasam - Agar Ganga maiyya ke darshan karne ho – toh sabse best time hai raat 2 se subah 4 ke beech. It’s amazing to sit on the steps of those ghats with your feet immersed in the cold rushing water at midnight. There is hardly a soul around. Maybe one of those junky babas who is one of the “Raat ka Musafirs”. The lights, the water, the flow, and the night – it all adds up to the charm. You feel blessed for that moment. Exchange this scene with day time and am sure half of us would want to run away seeing the public urinal that the river gets converted into.
June – I have never had a wonderful friend who also happens to be the faculty of Jamia. From staying over at his place at weekends, to watching cricket matches with him and now in june – he asked me to join for a trip to Allahbad. In the heat of June, he got behind the Santro steering and I besides him. Some journey it is to get through the heartland of UP to reach to Allahbad. Again happened to meet the river, although she was in a different state of mind here, as compared to what she was in Haridwar. Yamuna meets Ganga here. Went to the Kumbh Mela grounds. The worst part - the whole trip to and fro from Allahbaad was without my wallet. I forgot it at his place on the morning we started.
July – Mumbai-Delhi-Mumbai: Shuffled between editing, vivas and meeting the new film crew.
August – September – Jaisalmer. Couldn’t believe seeing what a movie shoot looks like. On the first day of shoot, 18th Aug – I saw some 25 to 30 vehicles, around 120 people – all of it breaking the morning silence of a sleepy Rajasthan barren land called Khaba. Entering the tent, I made a remark to one of my colleagues – “Socha na tha”. And out came Abhay from his vanity. One of my remarks caught me off guard in front of director Dev Benegal and bas phir toh kheench-taani ka silsila shuru ho gaya…” September end also saw the shoot of Road, Movie going to Jodhpur.
October – ICU of a Hospital. Criti Care. Andheri West. All 2 years of Delhi’s bahar ka khana showed its true colors. Add to it the heat of Rajasthan for 2 months. It had to be hospital.
November – Baroda-Mumbai: took some “forcible” rest at home and joined back on the film on post-production.
December – Kutch, Gujarat. The most amazing landscape that I have seen after the Srinagar-Leh route. Road, Movie continues.
January-Feb-March – Mumbai, Mumbai, Mumbai. The Edit starts and so does my running around. The post-production is where you get the maximum time with the director. Never miss that.
April – Pune, Kolkata, Gangtok, Nathu-la (almost). Was just 10kms away, when the landslide happened and the weather got worse from bad. But alas, the journey was satisfying. China kisi aur din jaake aayenge. Unko jaake kahenge, boss yeh Arunachal toh chhodo. Tibet ki toh tum vaat lagaa chukke ho…
The last year – well, its been a Road, Movie for sure
“chal toh tu pada hai, faasla bada hai…!”
Dekh andhere ke sar pe khoon chadda hai…” Rahul Ram – you are too good in this song
copyrights for the photo: hardik mehta
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