Hyderabad:
It is a story of caste and love, set in a village before Independence. A 16-year-old girl married off to an elderly Brahmin falls in love with a Dalit boy.
At the 56th National Film Awards, '1940 Lo Oka Gramam' beat 118 Telugu films released in 2008 to win the Best Film (Telugu) Award - for its courageous handling of caste-based prejudices.
Ironically, this is also the reason it hasn't been released commercially - there are no buyers.
"I held over 30 screenings of the film. Each time, the distributors would say the film is extraordinary, but they wouldn't buy it. I was very disappointed," explains director Narasimha Nandi.
"Initially, the subject scared me - both due to the controversial caste aspect and because I had to shave my head. But once I heard the entire story, I knew I couldn't miss this film," recalls Bala Aditya, the film's lead actor who started as a child artiste.
"I wanted to prove myself with a performance-oriented character. It was the best offer I could get," says newcomer Shree, who won the state award for Best Actress for playing the minor bride.
Hopefully, national recognition will bring the film some commercial success too.
At the 56th National Film Awards, '1940 Lo Oka Gramam' beat 118 Telugu films released in 2008 to win the Best Film (Telugu) Award - for its courageous handling of caste-based prejudices.
Ironically, this is also the reason it hasn't been released commercially - there are no buyers.
"I held over 30 screenings of the film. Each time, the distributors would say the film is extraordinary, but they wouldn't buy it. I was very disappointed," explains director Narasimha Nandi.
"Initially, the subject scared me - both due to the controversial caste aspect and because I had to shave my head. But once I heard the entire story, I knew I couldn't miss this film," recalls Bala Aditya, the film's lead actor who started as a child artiste.
"I wanted to prove myself with a performance-oriented character. It was the best offer I could get," says newcomer Shree, who won the state award for Best Actress for playing the minor bride.
Hopefully, national recognition will bring the film some commercial success too.
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