Vanaja (2006 film)
Encyclopedia
Vanaja is a 2006 Indian art house film
written and directed by Rajnesh Domalpalli
on a story that constituted his Master of Fine Arts
thesis at Columbia University
. The film, made in the Telugu language
, was filmed on a meagre budget of $20,000 using a cast of non-professional first-timers for two and a half months.
The film stars Mamatha Bhukya
as the titular character; a 15 year-old daughter of a poor fisherman set in the backdrop of a rustic state of Andhra Pradesh
in Southern India. She plays a girl who learns Kuchipudi
, a classical Indian dance
form, while being employed at a local landlady's house. All seems to be going well for her until sexual chemistry evolves between her and the landlady's son, and this eventually leads her being raped by him. The ensuing pregnancy disrupts her simple life, and she must choose how to deal with the child.
The film was screened at several international film festivals such as the Toronto International Film Festival
and the Berlin International Film Festival
, among others. While it was nominated for the Diesel Discovery Award at the former, it won the Best First Feature award at the latter. Besides this, it won several jury prizes at other film festivals, and was nominated for the Best First Feature and Best Cinematography
awards at the Independent Spirit Awards
. The film found favour with many international critics as well. Roger Ebert
ranked the film among the five best foreign language films of 2007. The film, which runs for 111 minutes in its vernacular Telugu language
along with subtitles in English language
, failed to find any distributors for screening in India.
) is the 15 year-old daughter of a poor, low caste fisherman from rural Andhra Pradesh
. Her father, Somayya (Ramachandriah Marikanti) struggles to support his family despite dwindling catches at sea and mounting debts. One day, Vanaja and her teenage friend, Lacchi (Bhavani Renukunta), watch a theatrical performance by a former Kuchipudi
(a native classical Indian dance
form) great, Rama Devi (Urmila Dammannagari). The sequence of events lead to a soothsayer
predicting to Vanaja that she will be a great dancer one day. With permission from her father, she goes to work in the house of the local landlady Rama Devi with the hope of learning Kuchipudi
. While she is employed as a farmhand, she is entrusted with tending the chickens. When she gets caught while playfully chasing them, she lies to conceal her pranks. Her vivaciousness and spunk soon catch the landlady’s eye. To keep her out of trouble, Rama Devi soon promotes her to a kitchen underhand where she meets Rama Devi’s cook, the old, crusty and extremely loyal Radhamma (Krishnamma Gundimalla).
After settling down at the landlady's house, Vanaja gets invited to play a game of ashta chamma
(a leisurely played game in rural towns of Andhra Pradesh) against the landlady herself. Knowing that losing isn’t the mistress’s forte, she deliberately gives up her game. This gesture, in turn, eventually secures her the landlady’s mentorship, first in music and then in dance. Vanaja excels at these art forms and seems to be on a steadily ascending path until the arrival of Shekhar (Karan Singh), the landlady's 23 year-old son, from the United States. Shekhar is a handsome, muscular young man who is running for an office in the local government. Sexual chemistry is ignited between Shekhar and Vanaja (still a minor at 15) when flirtation and sexual innuendo bloom.
In the meanwhile, her father's fishing boat is taken away by creditors. He sinks into a state of sadness and begins to drink away her savings. On one occasion, Vanaja’s superior intellect pits her against Shekhar in a public incident which ultimately humiliates him in front of his mother. Matters escalate and on one day when Vanaja is raped by Shekhar. She eventually loses her job when she becomes pregnant and gives birth to a boy, much against Rama Devi’s wishes who would have liked her to abort the foetus. Vanaja hopes that the physical evidence of the child will be proof of the rape, and that somehow Shekhar will be brought to justice. However, Shekhar has no desire to marry Vanaja because she is from a lower caste
. In the end Rama Devi and Shekhar gain possession of the child, who will grow up to be an upper caste boy.
in 1984 and 1986 respectively. While working on his Bachelor's degree at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
, he wrote short stories. One of his stories, The Dowry, was twice selected for broadcast by BBC World Service
while he was still in graduate school
. During schooling, he was introduced to south Indian classical music
, especially on the veena
, and followed this up with years of training on the vocals.
While he was working as a software engineer
in Silicon Valley
, California
, he decided to pursue filmmaking, and graduated with a Master of Fine Arts
degree from Columbia University
.
A short synopsis, including a character and a conflict study of Vanaja, was Domalpalli's project submission in his first semester at the Columbia University
in Fall of 2001. The story was inspired by a child's scream upon being separated from her mother in the film Sophie's Choice
(1982). Over the next three semesters, however, the story veered away from its original focus of mother-child separation to what Domalpalli later described as a study of "elements of class distinction
and conflict that continue to infuse our society and culture even today." Referring to its emphasis, he said the film was also about "fading institutions of folk art, old buildings that are collapsing, things which we should be protecting - which are a part of our heritage." Speaking of the need for preservation of Indian culture and heritage, he said that making the film was an opportunity to emphasize the Indian folk arts, too.
He imbibed socio-cultural ethos
from his upbringing in several rural areas of Andhra Pradesh
, and this prompted him to make the movie in Telugu language
. In 2004, he began filming with a meagre sum of USD 20000 provided by his mother Latha Domalpalli, the eventual producer of the film. Referring to filming the burrakatha (a story telling technique used in southern India
) scene at the beginning of the film, Domalpalli said:
The producers faced a stiff challenge in securing a rural bungalow to serve as the landlady's mansion. Even after obtaining a building as the best possible fit in the coastal town of Bobbili
, infestation of snakes and bats posed a problem for the crew. In addition, the building was not strong enough to support the filming equipment. Under these circumstances, the make-shift production designer
s refurbished the building along with space for chicken coops and goat pens as required by the script. To make the space look inhabited, local help was sought for trampling the ground with their livestock. The local people wanted to act as extras in exchange for providing farming tools, bullock carts and other material for filming purposes. As a result, the crew had to ensure that these extras didn't look into the camera during film making.
"Given the rural nature of the story, and the tendency of most local acting to lean towards the theatrical, it was clear that non-actors drawn from hutments, labor camps and the vast Indian middle class were the right choice," said Domalpalli, referring to his choice of casting. In addition, the inclusion of Radhamma's character was to bring a natural feel for the film. Her behavioristics such as the way she "sits, stands, moves, grunts and groans - that is the way people from a village talk and behave... You would immediately recognize a person who served you breakfast... That makes a point."
Referring to the challenges faced in casting, he said that while they were canvassing local people for auditions, they were warding off rumors that they were after the people's kidneys. When placing a newspaper advertisement for the landlady's character did not seem a viable option, they advertised for household help instead. Upon seeing this, Urmila Dammannagari turned up for the interview with Domalpalli. Inadvertently their conversation veered towards the film and the real motive behind the advertisement became evident. Though initially shocked and despite the fact that she had to commute 25 kilometres (15.5 mi) from her house to the filming location, she took up the role. Professionally Krishnamma Gundimalla, who played the role of Radhamma, carried bricks on her head as a construction worker. On the other hand, Ramachandriah Marikanti, who plays Vanaja's fisherman father, was a municipal sweeper and also worked as a security guard.
For casting Vanaja and Lacchi, he said that they met approximately 2500 children, interviewed about 260 and finally selected two from a shortlist of five to play the roles of Vanaja and Lacchi. Parents of these children were distrustful of them because their wards would have to frequently commute to Domalpalli's house for acting lessons for at least a year. Domalpalli felt that "... to convince people to devote so much of their children's time and energy was hard enough, but to find the right combination of intelligence, commitment and talent as well was probably the steepest cliff they had to climb. While visiting schools for identifying the child cast, Mamatha Bhukya
, at first was not selected because her hair was short. But after she sang a song on Mahatma Gandhi
, she was selected for the role. Srinivas Devarakonda, a disciple of well-known Kuchipudi guru
Vempati Chinna Satyam, taught Mamatha the classical dance form for a year in the basement of Domalpalli's house. Due to this sustained effort, she altered her ambitions from becoming a doctor to an actress and a Kuchipudi
dancer. Bhavani Renukunta was chosen for Lacchi's role after an interview at the Hyderabad office of Varija Films, the company that handled the publicity of the film.
Suriname
-born Milton Kam, who had shot 10 feature films and more than 50 short films, was chosen as the director of photography. Since Domalpalli's experience was limited to short video films with a different aspect ratio
, he was shocked to look through the Super 16mm film lens the day they commenced the shoot. However Kam helped him to stay composed during the production.
Domalpalli used Carnatic music
for the background score. This featured the violin-playing of B. S. Narayanan, a student of renowned Carnatic violinist T. N. Krishnan. Narayanan played the popular Jayadeva Ashtapadi "Sa virahe", having retuned it in the mode
or rāga
known as "Behag".
Domalpalli also used "janapada geetalu" in the film; folk songs that are rarely heard. To record these songs for the film, Domalpalli and his crew travelled to towns and villages in rural Andhra.
(MPAA), the body that governs the Oscars
, invited the film's screenplay to be placed in the permanent archives of the Margaret Herrick Library. The DVD, which released on 8 March 2008, has subtitle options in English. Besides interviews with Domalpalli and Bhukya, unedited dance sequences and several short films of Domalpalli, the DVD is available in 16:9 Anamorphic widescreen
, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, widescreen
and NTSC
format. While reviewing the DVD, Jeffrey Kauffman from DVD Talk observed that though most of the film was made utilising natural lighting situations, the color and saturation quality was excellent. Further, the reviewer was quite favourable about the use of exotic sounds right from birds to the instruments.
. The same year, the film won an Honorable Mention for the Golden Starfish Award at the Hamptons International Film Festival
. It also won the Best Narrative Film award at the Indo-American Arts Council
Film Festival. Following that, it was showcased at the International Film Festival of India
and the International Film Festival of Kerala by the end of 2006.
After the film's screening at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival, it won a standing ovation from the audience, bringing Mamatha Bhukya
to tears and emotionally affecting Rajnesh Domalpalli
. The film won the Best First Feature award at this festival. The same year, the film received a special international jury prize at the Cairo International Film Festival
, Best Feature at the Memphis International Film Festival, Best International Film at the Sacramento International Film Festival, and a Platinum award at the WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival. It received a special mention for the grand jury prize at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, the Miloš Macourek Award in special recognition for a feature film for youth at the Zlín International Film Festival, an Achievement Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival
, and a special jury prize for Best Production Design at the RiverRun International Film Festival
. It won the prize for Best Cinematography at the Rhode Island International Film Festival
, the first prize in the live-action feature film category at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival
, and the Camério Meilleur Long Métrage/Starlink Aviation award at the Carrousel international du film de Rimouski
. In addition, the film won also won an award for the best live-action film at the International Young Audience Film Festival. Bhukya won the best actress award at the Asian Festival of First Films
.
's performance. Roger Ebert
described Bhukya as "a natural star, her eyes and smile illuminating a face of freshness and delight." Writing about the film, he added that "there are the glorious colors of saris and room decorations, the dazzle of dance costumes and the dusty landscape that somehow becomes a watercolor by Edward Lear
, with its hills and vistas, its oxen and elephants, its houses that seem part of the land. In this setting, Domalpalli tells his story with tender precision, and never an awkward moment." Ebert listed Vanaja among the top five foreign films of 2007. According to Laura Kern from The New York Times
, the film "is a coming-of-age tale that is engrossing, if slightly overlong, and absolutely timeless, unfolding against an antiquated class system that sadly stands firm in rural areas of India to this day."
A review in Variety
called it "... a film that touches the heartstrings as it brings home the cruel class distinctions that poison Indian society," and "... is more than a children's film, despite revolving around a central character of 14. Its social message, linked to the story of a poor farm girl who aspires to be a dancer, never feels forced, and the moral issues it depicts are realistically complex." Commenting on its commercial feasibility, the review concluded that "while that might not translate into obvious box office potential, art house appeal is there for distributors willing to seek out a market." The Chicago Tribune
wrote:
Speaking of Bhukya's performance, the San Francisco Chronicle
writes - "Bhukya delivers an entrancing and natural performance, deftly balancing both the wide-eyed childishness of a young girl with the dawning awareness of life's darker possibilities. She's also an accomplished dancer, which she proves at several points in the film." It adds - "can this wonder-filled film truly be not only Domalpalli's first feature, but originally part of a thesis submission at Columbia University? Both in the film's writing and direction, Domalpalli displays maturity, wisdom and a loving sense of visual and character detail." Marc Savlov of The Austin Chronicle proclaimed, "director Domalpalli, who, with his debut feature, turned in what may well be the best Columbia University master's thesis ever." The Hartford Courant
also claimed like the Chicago Tribune that the film would remind the Western audience of Charles Dickens
, and further stated that it "... gives a detailed sense of place and shows a mastery of story telling. The themes of fate and class resonate and the work of the amateur players is remarkably moving."
Despite the generally positive reception, some critics differed in their opinion of the film, its content and depiction. The New York Post
criticised the film saying that "there's enough mush in the Indian melodrama Vanaja to fill an entire season of a TV soap opera," adding that towards its ending, the "viewers will be bored stiff by (the) long, tedious film". Though the film's "... narrative meanders ... [it] evokes village life with stark authenticity," said a review by Time Out.
Parallel Cinema
The Indian New Wave, commonly known in India as Art Cinema or Parallel Cinema as an alternative to the mainstream commercial cinema, is a specific movement in Indian cinema, known for its serious content, realism and naturalism, with a keen eye on the sociopolitical climate of the times...
written and directed by Rajnesh Domalpalli
Rajnesh Domalpalli
Rajnesh Domalpalli is a Telugu film director from India. His first directorial venture, Vanaja, won several international awards including the Best First Feature award at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival.-Early life:...
on a story that constituted his Master of Fine Arts
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
thesis at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. The film, made in the Telugu language
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
, was filmed on a meagre budget of $20,000 using a cast of non-professional first-timers for two and a half months.
The film stars Mamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya is an Indian actress. She was the lead actress in the Telugu movie Vanaja.According to the Vanaja website, Bhukya was born in Garjanapalli, Andhra Pradesh to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her...
as the titular character; a 15 year-old daughter of a poor fisherman set in the backdrop of a rustic state of Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
in Southern India. She plays a girl who learns Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi is a Classical Indian dance form Andhra Pradesh, India. It is also popular all over South India. Kuchipudi is the name of a village in the Divi Taluka of Krishna district that borders the Bay of Bengal and with resident Brahmins practicing this traditional dance form, it acquired the...
, a classical Indian dance
Classical Indian dance
Indian classical dance is a relatively new umbrella term for various codified art forms rooted in Natya, the sacred Hindu musical theatre styles, whose theory can be traced back to the Natya Shastra of Bharata Muni .- Definitions :...
form, while being employed at a local landlady's house. All seems to be going well for her until sexual chemistry evolves between her and the landlady's son, and this eventually leads her being raped by him. The ensuing pregnancy disrupts her simple life, and she must choose how to deal with the child.
The film was screened at several international film festivals such as the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
and the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
, among others. While it was nominated for the Diesel Discovery Award at the former, it won the Best First Feature award at the latter. Besides this, it won several jury prizes at other film festivals, and was nominated for the Best First Feature and Best Cinematography
Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography
The Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography is one of the annual awards given by Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers.- 1980s :* 1986: Toyomichi Kurita – Trouble in Mind...
awards at the Independent Spirit Awards
Independent Spirit Awards
The Independent Spirit Awards , founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glass pyramids containing suspended shoestrings representing the paltry budgets of independent films. In 1986, the event was renamed the Independent Spirit...
. The film found favour with many international critics as well. Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
ranked the film among the five best foreign language films of 2007. The film, which runs for 111 minutes in its vernacular Telugu language
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
along with subtitles in English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, failed to find any distributors for screening in India.
Plot
Vanaja (Mamatha BhukyaMamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya is an Indian actress. She was the lead actress in the Telugu movie Vanaja.According to the Vanaja website, Bhukya was born in Garjanapalli, Andhra Pradesh to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her...
) is the 15 year-old daughter of a poor, low caste fisherman from rural Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
. Her father, Somayya (Ramachandriah Marikanti) struggles to support his family despite dwindling catches at sea and mounting debts. One day, Vanaja and her teenage friend, Lacchi (Bhavani Renukunta), watch a theatrical performance by a former Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi is a Classical Indian dance form Andhra Pradesh, India. It is also popular all over South India. Kuchipudi is the name of a village in the Divi Taluka of Krishna district that borders the Bay of Bengal and with resident Brahmins practicing this traditional dance form, it acquired the...
(a native classical Indian dance
Classical Indian dance
Indian classical dance is a relatively new umbrella term for various codified art forms rooted in Natya, the sacred Hindu musical theatre styles, whose theory can be traced back to the Natya Shastra of Bharata Muni .- Definitions :...
form) great, Rama Devi (Urmila Dammannagari). The sequence of events lead to a soothsayer
Fortune-telling
Fortune-telling is the practice of predicting information about a person's life. The scope of fortune-telling is in principle identical with the practice of divination...
predicting to Vanaja that she will be a great dancer one day. With permission from her father, she goes to work in the house of the local landlady Rama Devi with the hope of learning Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi is a Classical Indian dance form Andhra Pradesh, India. It is also popular all over South India. Kuchipudi is the name of a village in the Divi Taluka of Krishna district that borders the Bay of Bengal and with resident Brahmins practicing this traditional dance form, it acquired the...
. While she is employed as a farmhand, she is entrusted with tending the chickens. When she gets caught while playfully chasing them, she lies to conceal her pranks. Her vivaciousness and spunk soon catch the landlady’s eye. To keep her out of trouble, Rama Devi soon promotes her to a kitchen underhand where she meets Rama Devi’s cook, the old, crusty and extremely loyal Radhamma (Krishnamma Gundimalla).
After settling down at the landlady's house, Vanaja gets invited to play a game of ashta chamma
Ashta Chamma (board game)
Ashta Chamma is an board game of India, played during the era of kings. This game was used to improve eye-to-eye coordination, and to teach teenagers war tactics and strategy. This game is divided for Juniors and Seniors...
(a leisurely played game in rural towns of Andhra Pradesh) against the landlady herself. Knowing that losing isn’t the mistress’s forte, she deliberately gives up her game. This gesture, in turn, eventually secures her the landlady’s mentorship, first in music and then in dance. Vanaja excels at these art forms and seems to be on a steadily ascending path until the arrival of Shekhar (Karan Singh), the landlady's 23 year-old son, from the United States. Shekhar is a handsome, muscular young man who is running for an office in the local government. Sexual chemistry is ignited between Shekhar and Vanaja (still a minor at 15) when flirtation and sexual innuendo bloom.
In the meanwhile, her father's fishing boat is taken away by creditors. He sinks into a state of sadness and begins to drink away her savings. On one occasion, Vanaja’s superior intellect pits her against Shekhar in a public incident which ultimately humiliates him in front of his mother. Matters escalate and on one day when Vanaja is raped by Shekhar. She eventually loses her job when she becomes pregnant and gives birth to a boy, much against Rama Devi’s wishes who would have liked her to abort the foetus. Vanaja hopes that the physical evidence of the child will be proof of the rape, and that somehow Shekhar will be brought to justice. However, Shekhar has no desire to marry Vanaja because she is from a lower caste
Caste system in India
The Indian caste system is a system of social stratification and social restriction in India in which communities are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups called Jātis....
. In the end Rama Devi and Shekhar gain possession of the child, who will grow up to be an upper caste boy.
Cast
- Mamatha BhukyaMamatha BhukyaMamatha Bhukya is an Indian actress. She was the lead actress in the Telugu movie Vanaja.According to the Vanaja website, Bhukya was born in Garjanapalli, Andhra Pradesh to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her...
as Vanaja - Urmila Dammannagari as Rama Devi
- Ramachandriah Marikanti as Somayya
- Krishnamma Gundimalla as Radhamma
- Karan Singh as Shekhar
- Bhavani Renukunta as Lacchi
Background
Director Rajnesh Domalpalli graduated with Bachelors and Masters degrees in electrical engineeringElectrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
in 1984 and 1986 respectively. While working on his Bachelor's degree at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay , popularly known as IIT Bombay or IITB, is a public research university located in Powai, Mumbai...
, he wrote short stories. One of his stories, The Dowry, was twice selected for broadcast by BBC World Service
BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is the world's largest international broadcaster, broadcasting in 27 languages to many parts of the world via analogue and digital shortwave, internet streaming and podcasting, satellite, FM and MW relays...
while he was still in graduate school
Graduate school
A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate degree...
. During schooling, he was introduced to south Indian classical music
Indian classical music
The origins of Indian classical music can be found in the Vedas, which are the oldest scriptures in the Hindu tradition. Indian classical music has also been significantly influenced by, or syncretised with, Indian folk music and Persian music. The Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music...
, especially on the veena
Veena
Veena may refer to one of several Indian plucked instruments:With frets*Rudra veena, plucked string instrument used in Hindustani music*Saraswati veena, plucked string instrument used in Carnatic musicFretless...
, and followed this up with years of training on the vocals.
While he was working as a software engineer
Software engineer
A software engineer is an engineer who applies the principles of software engineering to the design, development, testing, and evaluation of the software and systems that make computers or anything containing software, such as computer chips, work.- Overview :...
in Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, he decided to pursue filmmaking, and graduated with a Master of Fine Arts
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
degree from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
A short synopsis, including a character and a conflict study of Vanaja, was Domalpalli's project submission in his first semester at the Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in Fall of 2001. The story was inspired by a child's scream upon being separated from her mother in the film Sophie's Choice
Sophie's Choice (film)
Sophie's Choice is a 1982 American romantic drama film that tells the story of a Polish immigrant, Sophie, and her tempestuous lover who share a boarding house with a young writer in Brooklyn. The film stars Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, and Peter MacNicol. Alan J...
(1982). Over the next three semesters, however, the story veered away from its original focus of mother-child separation to what Domalpalli later described as a study of "elements of class distinction
Caste system in India
The Indian caste system is a system of social stratification and social restriction in India in which communities are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups called Jātis....
and conflict that continue to infuse our society and culture even today." Referring to its emphasis, he said the film was also about "fading institutions of folk art, old buildings that are collapsing, things which we should be protecting - which are a part of our heritage." Speaking of the need for preservation of Indian culture and heritage, he said that making the film was an opportunity to emphasize the Indian folk arts, too.
Filmmaking
With the early version of the script being ready at the end of his fourth semester, Domalpalli's initial intent was to find financing for the film in India and then in the United States. However, he could not find financing. Domalpalli decided to select non-professionals and train them in a year's time. In the United States, producers voiced similar concerns over the marketability of the film and what they referred to as "its lack of cohesion". Besides this, Domalpalli's inexperience in filmmaking added to their concerns. Recalling initial hurdles, Domalpalli later said, "it was only when I showed my professors a rough cut of the film, and they approved, that purse strings finally came loose." The film eventually constituted the thesis for his Master's degree.He imbibed socio-cultural ethos
Ethos
Ethos is a Greek word meaning "character" that is used to describe the guiding beliefs or ideals that characterize a community, nation, or ideology. The Greeks also used this word to refer to the power of music to influence its hearer's emotions, behaviors, and even morals. Early Greek stories of...
from his upbringing in several rural areas of Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, and this prompted him to make the movie in Telugu language
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
. In 2004, he began filming with a meagre sum of USD 20000 provided by his mother Latha Domalpalli, the eventual producer of the film. Referring to filming the burrakatha (a story telling technique used in southern India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
) scene at the beginning of the film, Domalpalli said:
If you talk to people who perform a Burrakatha, you will see a huge difference in the way the older generation performs the art vis-à-vis the way the way the younger generation performs it... This has happened because of the advent of television. Burrakatha is a long-format art form. The point we are making is that if we don't protect these folk arts, they will be on their way out.
The producers faced a stiff challenge in securing a rural bungalow to serve as the landlady's mansion. Even after obtaining a building as the best possible fit in the coastal town of Bobbili
Bobbili
Bobbili is a town, mandal headquarters and a Municipality in Vizianagaram district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.-Geography:Bobbili is located at . It has an average elevation of 103 metres .-History:...
, infestation of snakes and bats posed a problem for the crew. In addition, the building was not strong enough to support the filming equipment. Under these circumstances, the make-shift production designer
Production designer
In film and television, a production designer is the person responsible for the overall look of a filmed event such as films, TV programs, music videos or adverts. Production designers have one of the key creative roles in the creation of motion pictures and television. Working directly with the...
s refurbished the building along with space for chicken coops and goat pens as required by the script. To make the space look inhabited, local help was sought for trampling the ground with their livestock. The local people wanted to act as extras in exchange for providing farming tools, bullock carts and other material for filming purposes. As a result, the crew had to ensure that these extras didn't look into the camera during film making.
"Given the rural nature of the story, and the tendency of most local acting to lean towards the theatrical, it was clear that non-actors drawn from hutments, labor camps and the vast Indian middle class were the right choice," said Domalpalli, referring to his choice of casting. In addition, the inclusion of Radhamma's character was to bring a natural feel for the film. Her behavioristics such as the way she "sits, stands, moves, grunts and groans - that is the way people from a village talk and behave... You would immediately recognize a person who served you breakfast... That makes a point."
Referring to the challenges faced in casting, he said that while they were canvassing local people for auditions, they were warding off rumors that they were after the people's kidneys. When placing a newspaper advertisement for the landlady's character did not seem a viable option, they advertised for household help instead. Upon seeing this, Urmila Dammannagari turned up for the interview with Domalpalli. Inadvertently their conversation veered towards the film and the real motive behind the advertisement became evident. Though initially shocked and despite the fact that she had to commute 25 kilometres (15.5 mi) from her house to the filming location, she took up the role. Professionally Krishnamma Gundimalla, who played the role of Radhamma, carried bricks on her head as a construction worker. On the other hand, Ramachandriah Marikanti, who plays Vanaja's fisherman father, was a municipal sweeper and also worked as a security guard.
For casting Vanaja and Lacchi, he said that they met approximately 2500 children, interviewed about 260 and finally selected two from a shortlist of five to play the roles of Vanaja and Lacchi. Parents of these children were distrustful of them because their wards would have to frequently commute to Domalpalli's house for acting lessons for at least a year. Domalpalli felt that "... to convince people to devote so much of their children's time and energy was hard enough, but to find the right combination of intelligence, commitment and talent as well was probably the steepest cliff they had to climb. While visiting schools for identifying the child cast, Mamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya is an Indian actress. She was the lead actress in the Telugu movie Vanaja.According to the Vanaja website, Bhukya was born in Garjanapalli, Andhra Pradesh to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her...
, at first was not selected because her hair was short. But after she sang a song on Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
, she was selected for the role. Srinivas Devarakonda, a disciple of well-known Kuchipudi guru
Guru
A guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom, and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . Other forms of manifestation of this principle can include parents, school teachers, non-human objects and even one's own intellectual discipline, if the...
Vempati Chinna Satyam, taught Mamatha the classical dance form for a year in the basement of Domalpalli's house. Due to this sustained effort, she altered her ambitions from becoming a doctor to an actress and a Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi is a Classical Indian dance form Andhra Pradesh, India. It is also popular all over South India. Kuchipudi is the name of a village in the Divi Taluka of Krishna district that borders the Bay of Bengal and with resident Brahmins practicing this traditional dance form, it acquired the...
dancer. Bhavani Renukunta was chosen for Lacchi's role after an interview at the Hyderabad office of Varija Films, the company that handled the publicity of the film.
Suriname
Suriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
-born Milton Kam, who had shot 10 feature films and more than 50 short films, was chosen as the director of photography. Since Domalpalli's experience was limited to short video films with a different aspect ratio
Aspect ratio (image)
The aspect ratio of an image is the ratio of the width of the image to its height, expressed as two numbers separated by a colon. That is, for an x:y aspect ratio, no matter how big or small the image is, if the width is divided into x units of equal length and the height is measured using this...
, he was shocked to look through the Super 16mm film lens the day they commenced the shoot. However Kam helped him to stay composed during the production.
Domalpalli used Carnatic music
Carnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
for the background score. This featured the violin-playing of B. S. Narayanan, a student of renowned Carnatic violinist T. N. Krishnan. Narayanan played the popular Jayadeva Ashtapadi "Sa virahe", having retuned it in the mode
Musical mode
In the theory of Western music since the ninth century, mode generally refers to a type of scale. This usage, still the most common in recent years, reflects a tradition dating to the middle ages, itself inspired by the theory of ancient Greek music.The word encompasses several additional...
or rāga
Raga
A raga is one of the melodic modes used in Indian classical music.It is a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is made...
known as "Behag".
Domalpalli also used "janapada geetalu" in the film; folk songs that are rarely heard. To record these songs for the film, Domalpalli and his crew travelled to towns and villages in rural Andhra.
Release and reception
Though, it was released in the United States on 31 August 2007, the film has not found distributors in India. After being screened at over 100 film festivals in 49 countries, the film has won 24 international awards and 2 nominations. Motion Picture Association of AmericaMotion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
(MPAA), the body that governs the Oscars
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
, invited the film's screenplay to be placed in the permanent archives of the Margaret Herrick Library. The DVD, which released on 8 March 2008, has subtitle options in English. Besides interviews with Domalpalli and Bhukya, unedited dance sequences and several short films of Domalpalli, the DVD is available in 16:9 Anamorphic widescreen
Anamorphic widescreen
Anamorphic widescreen, when applied to DVD manufacture, is a video process that horizontally squeezes a widescreen image so that it can be stored in a standard 4:3 aspect ratio DVD image frame. Compatible playback equipment can then re-expand the horizontal dimension to show the original widescreen...
, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, widescreen
Widescreen
Widescreen images are a variety of aspect ratios used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ratio greater than the standard 1.37:1 Academy aspect ratio provided by 35mm film....
and NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
format. While reviewing the DVD, Jeffrey Kauffman from DVD Talk observed that though most of the film was made utilising natural lighting situations, the color and saturation quality was excellent. Further, the reviewer was quite favourable about the use of exotic sounds right from birds to the instruments.
Special screenings and awards
On 11 September 2006, the film first premiered at the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
. The same year, the film won an Honorable Mention for the Golden Starfish Award at the Hamptons International Film Festival
Hamptons International Film Festival
Hamptons International Film Festival was founded to provide a forum for independent filmmakers from around the world to express their vision. The Festival is traditionally held for five days in mid-October in theatre venues from Montauk to Southampton and attracts roughly 15,000 visitors annually...
. It also won the Best Narrative Film award at the Indo-American Arts Council
Indo-American Arts Council
The Indo-American Arts Council is an American non-profit cultural organization that promotes Indian art, theatre, film, fashion, music and dance in the United States. The Council was established in 1998 in New York City...
Film Festival. Following that, it was showcased at the International Film Festival of India
International Film Festival of India
The International Film Festival of India , founded in 1952, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. Held annually in the beach town of Goa, in the Western Coast of the country, the festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excellence of...
and the International Film Festival of Kerala by the end of 2006.
After the film's screening at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival, it won a standing ovation from the audience, bringing Mamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya is an Indian actress. She was the lead actress in the Telugu movie Vanaja.According to the Vanaja website, Bhukya was born in Garjanapalli, Andhra Pradesh to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her...
to tears and emotionally affecting Rajnesh Domalpalli
Rajnesh Domalpalli
Rajnesh Domalpalli is a Telugu film director from India. His first directorial venture, Vanaja, won several international awards including the Best First Feature award at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival.-Early life:...
. The film won the Best First Feature award at this festival. The same year, the film received a special international jury prize at the Cairo International Film Festival
Cairo International Film Festival
The Cairo International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Cairo, Egypt. It was established in 1976 and was the first international film festival held in the Arab world...
, Best Feature at the Memphis International Film Festival, Best International Film at the Sacramento International Film Festival, and a Platinum award at the WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival. It received a special mention for the grand jury prize at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, the Miloš Macourek Award in special recognition for a feature film for youth at the Zlín International Film Festival, an Achievement Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival
Newport Beach Film Festival
The Newport Beach Film Festival is a film festival in the United States held in Newport Beach, California, that showcases more than 350 films to more than 30,000 attendees annually....
, and a special jury prize for Best Production Design at the RiverRun International Film Festival
RiverRun International Film Festival
The RiverRun International Film Festival is a regional film festival held annually each spring in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The festival is a 5013 non-profit organization and presents a variety of feature-length and short films from all genres, and also presents special events, regional...
. It won the prize for Best Cinematography at the Rhode Island International Film Festival
Rhode Island International Film Festival
Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival takes place every year in Providence and Newport, Rhode Island as well as satellite locations throughout the state. Started in 1997, the Festival is produced by Flickers, the Newport Film/Video Society & Arts Collaborative, a 501 non-profit...
, the first prize in the live-action feature film category at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival
Chicago International Children's Film Festival
Founded in 1975, Facets Multi-Media, located at 1517 W. Fullerton Avenue, Chicago, 60614 Facets Multi-Media is the largest conservator dedicated to the exhibition, distribution & education of foreign, independent & classic cinema...
, and the Camério Meilleur Long Métrage/Starlink Aviation award at the Carrousel international du film de Rimouski
Carrousel international du film de Rimouski
Carrousel international du film de Rimouski is a children's film festival taking place each year in Rimouski, Quebec. The jury is composed of children from various countries.- External links :*...
. In addition, the film won also won an award for the best live-action film at the International Young Audience Film Festival. Bhukya won the best actress award at the Asian Festival of First Films
Asian Festival of First Films
The Asian Festival of First Films is an annual festival that celebrates first-time film- and documentary-makers and provides a platform for budding film talent....
.
Reviews
The film received an overall positive response from critics, and was particularly noted for the theme and for Mamatha BhukyaMamatha Bhukya
Mamatha Bhukya is an Indian actress. She was the lead actress in the Telugu movie Vanaja.According to the Vanaja website, Bhukya was born in Garjanapalli, Andhra Pradesh to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her...
's performance. Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
described Bhukya as "a natural star, her eyes and smile illuminating a face of freshness and delight." Writing about the film, he added that "there are the glorious colors of saris and room decorations, the dazzle of dance costumes and the dusty landscape that somehow becomes a watercolor by Edward Lear
Edward Lear
Edward Lear was an English artist, illustrator, author, and poet, renowned today primarily for his literary nonsense, in poetry and prose, and especially his limericks, a form that he popularised.-Biography:...
, with its hills and vistas, its oxen and elephants, its houses that seem part of the land. In this setting, Domalpalli tells his story with tender precision, and never an awkward moment." Ebert listed Vanaja among the top five foreign films of 2007. According to Laura Kern from The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, the film "is a coming-of-age tale that is engrossing, if slightly overlong, and absolutely timeless, unfolding against an antiquated class system that sadly stands firm in rural areas of India to this day."
A review in Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
called it "... a film that touches the heartstrings as it brings home the cruel class distinctions that poison Indian society," and "... is more than a children's film, despite revolving around a central character of 14. Its social message, linked to the story of a poor farm girl who aspires to be a dancer, never feels forced, and the moral issues it depicts are realistically complex." Commenting on its commercial feasibility, the review concluded that "while that might not translate into obvious box office potential, art house appeal is there for distributors willing to seek out a market." The Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
wrote:
It's a touching, believable, often funny but ultimately sad tale of how one class can take advantage of another, even in the guise of patronizing benevolence. Though sometimes shifting abruptly in time, Vanaja is an arresting story of modern-day hardship and class exploitation, recalling Charles Dickens as well as Western fairy-tale lore. Domalpalli's settings are ultra-real in detail and color, from the crude, almost feudal deprivations of Vanaja's dirt-floor background to the stately rituals and autocratic entitlement of the well-to-do.
Speaking of Bhukya's performance, the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
writes - "Bhukya delivers an entrancing and natural performance, deftly balancing both the wide-eyed childishness of a young girl with the dawning awareness of life's darker possibilities. She's also an accomplished dancer, which she proves at several points in the film." It adds - "can this wonder-filled film truly be not only Domalpalli's first feature, but originally part of a thesis submission at Columbia University? Both in the film's writing and direction, Domalpalli displays maturity, wisdom and a loving sense of visual and character detail." Marc Savlov of The Austin Chronicle proclaimed, "director Domalpalli, who, with his debut feature, turned in what may well be the best Columbia University master's thesis ever." The Hartford Courant
The Hartford Courant
The Hartford Courant is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is a morning newspaper for most of the state north of New Haven and east of Waterbury...
also claimed like the Chicago Tribune that the film would remind the Western audience of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
, and further stated that it "... gives a detailed sense of place and shows a mastery of story telling. The themes of fate and class resonate and the work of the amateur players is remarkably moving."
Despite the generally positive reception, some critics differed in their opinion of the film, its content and depiction. The New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
criticised the film saying that "there's enough mush in the Indian melodrama Vanaja to fill an entire season of a TV soap opera," adding that towards its ending, the "viewers will be bored stiff by (the) long, tedious film". Though the film's "... narrative meanders ... [it] evokes village life with stark authenticity," said a review by Time Out.