Tezpur, Feb. 20: This has been a wait like never before for Pasighat town in Arunachal Pradesh for Friday's release of Bollywood movie Rangoon.

The film, starring Saif Ali Khan, Shahid Kapoor and Kangana Ranaut, is set against the backdrop of World War II where Indian soldiers fought for the British army against Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's Indian National Army in Rangoon, Myanmar (formerly Burma). It was shot in the East Siang district headquarters and the adjoining Murkong Selek across the inter-state border in Assam.

For Tabung Ering, secretary of Adi Bane Kebang, the apex organisation of the Adi community, it will be an unprecedented exposure for residents of this town.

"It is undoubtedly a rare exposure our place and community will get on the big screen. The people here are eagerly waiting for the film's release on Friday. The movie has generated enthusiasm among the local residents as it shows our culture and tradition to the rest of the world. Besides, some local people are also involved in the movie," Ering told The Telegraph. Nalong Mize, a local resident, played a character called Miri, the leader of Ponung Party.

Yeh Ishq Hai, a song in the film composed by Vishal Bharadwaj, written by Gulzar and sung by Arijit Singh, has been a hit in East Siang since it was released on January 19. The song features Kangana Ranaut dancing ponung (an Adi folk dance) with local Adi women from Pasighat along the bank of the Siang.

A major portion of the film was shot in Komsing, Rottung and Kebang villages and Partung and Komlighat areas of East Siang district. Although there was no direct impact of World War II in East Siang, the filmmaker chose the district as it fell in the zone of the war.

The film was shot for 22 days in East Siang and for four days in Assam's Murkong Selek railway station. Apart from the involvement of people from Pasighat, Rottung, Kebang and a Ponung troupe from Rottung village, NCC cadets from J.N. College were cast as Japanese soldiers in the film.

Army commandos also feature in the film. The local residents believe that tourism sector of the district will get a boost after the film's release as very few people are aware of the naturally endowed eastern part of Arunachal.

This is not the first time that Arunachal Pradesh was chosen as the location for a Bollywood film. In 1997, Koyla, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit, was the first Hindi movie to be shot in the state. The film gave a boost to the tourism potential of Shungetser, a sacred lake for the Monpa tribe of Tawang.