The story of Superboys Of Malegaon is so heartening that the film -- in the hands of an accomplished director like Reema Kagti -- is bound to be a worthy watch, feels Deepa Gahlot.
In 2008, Faiza Ahmad Khan made a wonderful documentary called Supermen Of Malegaon, about the small film industry that sprouted in the nondescript town of Malegaon in Maharashtra.
For a short while, the media glare turned on them but was soon switched off.
The tiny budget films made by dreamers of the town were made for their own theatres and video parlours, they obviously could not compete even with indie films from Mumbai or elsewhere.
Films like Malegaon Ke Sholay, Malegaon Ka Don, Malegaon Ka Rangeela, Malegaon Ki Lagaan were hardly suitable for urban multiplexes but meant something to those who made them and watched them.
Today, anyone with a mobile phone can shoot a film but back then, it was difficult to acquire even the most basic of equipment. However, what they lacked in resources, they made up with ideas and energy.
Still, it took very long for the Hindi film industry to take note of this Malegaon phenomenon.
Now, Reema Kagti has used the true story of Nasir Shaikh and his crazy film ambition that made him a local hero for a while, for her feature film, Superboys Of Malegaon.
They could not make it to Mumbai but they took Mumbai to Malegaon, so that Mollywood actually became an entity.
The talent from Malegaon did not get breaks in the established film industry of Mumbai, and now that video parlours are also a thing of the past, the enterprising filmmakers have shifted to YouTube.
In the trailer of the film, Adarsh Gourav and Shashank Arora are the two financially strapped young men -- one is a weaver and the other is a small shopkeeper.
They collect a bunch of friends and others with showbiz ambitions to make a film.
There are funny auditions, an older brother berating them for their foolishness, but nothing can wipe off the stardust in their eyes.
These two are the most familiar faces in the film, OTT viewers might recognise Muskaan Jaferi and Gyanendra Tripathi.
The actors have to look like they belong to a poor, dusty, backward town, and the casting is spot on.
Written by Kagti and Varun Grover, the scenes chosen for the trailer look a bit overdramatic but the real story is so heartening that the film -- in the hands of an accomplished director like Kagti and a top production company like Excel Entertainment -- is bound to be a worthy watch.
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