Bhubaneswar, April 7: Things are not looking good for the Odia film industry. Despite eight films being in the running for the Best Odia Film category, none were found eligible for the coveted National Film Awards that were announced today.
However, the only silver lining at 64th edition of the awards ceremony were Odisha-born film-makers.
Filmmaker Nila Madhab Panda won the special mention award for his film Kadvi Hawa based on climate change.
In the non-feature film category, Odia girl Lipika Singh Darai's film The Waterfall won the Best Educational Film Award and another film-maker Shibu Prusty bagged the Best Arts/Cultural Film Award for The Lord of the Universe.
In the past two years, Pahada Ra Luha and Adim Vichar, both by Sabyasachi Mohapatra, won the award in 2016 and 2015, respectively. Prior to that, no Odia movies had been nominated in any category of the national awards for seven years.
Popular Odia filmmaker Raju Mishra, who was a jury member for the awards, said Odia films stood nowhere near the winners.
"The filmmakers should think and work deeply. What is important is that Odia films should touch the heart but this is not there," said the filmmaker.
Author and lyricist, Devdas Chotray, who was also a jury member, said all the films were chucked out in the initial screening round. "I personally feel sad because the films were not up to the mark. This should be a wake-up call for the filmmakers, who should come up with better scripts and good films," he said.
He further said that if Nila Madhab Panda had made Kadvi Hawa in Odia, it could have won the best regional film award.
Kadvi Hawa, based on true stories from drought prone Bundelkhand region and the vanishing villages from coastal Odisha, aims to create awareness on the devastating impact of climate change on regions of the world that are often ignored or unseen. The film narrates the tale of a visually impaired old man and a young bank loan recovery agent. The roles of the two protagonists are played by Bollywood actors Sanjay Mishra and Ranvir Shorey.
The film was produced by Panda and Akshay Kumar Parija, who runs a production house in Dubai. The film will be released in Indian theatres in October.
Panda's upcoming film Halka promotes the concept of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan through a child who constructs a toilet for himself.
"Cinema is the best way to entertain people and give a social message at the same time. My aim has always been to sensitise people through my films," Panda said.
Speaking about the current scenario of Odia films, Panda said: "We have very good technicians in Odisha but we do not have original scripts. Copying from the southern film industry will never help."
Lipika, who has earlier won the National Award for her films, said, "I cannot express my gratitude enough for the hard work and patience shown by the entire team. I am thankful to everyone who worked and took part in the process of converting personal ideas into films."
