Actress Manishita and actor Satyajyoti at the mahurat of Lal Odhani at CRP Hanuman temple in Bhubaneswar. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, Sept. 6: A team of debutantes are cast in the upcoming film Lal Odhani, the mahurat or launch ceremony of which was conducted on Wednesday.

The crew of the movie was seen at the CRP Square Hanuman temple for the event.

National Award winning short film and documentary director Kapilas Bhuiyan for the first time is making a feature film.

The excited director said the film was based on a serious theme, but was definitely a commercial venture and was not particularly of the parallel cinema genre.

“The subject of the film is definitely grave, but it will still be made for a large audience who love watching commercial cinema. The title, that means a red scarf, hints at the various aspects of the story. Just like red denotes wedding bells, blood and even Naxalism, our film also touches all these aspects,” said Bhuiyan.

He said the film was set in Keonjhar and showcased the life of ordinary people.

“The protagonist of my story is an old school headmaster who is in search of his son. The police suspecting his links with the Naxals have taken the youngster away. But whether the lively youth, who is a footballer as well as a flute player, is actually involved in these activities is for the audience to find out,” he said.

Veteran theatre actor Tapan Kanungo is making a debut as the retired headmaster, while the male lead is young software engineer Satyajyoti who will play his son. Actress Anita Das plays the mother of the youth, while Manishita, a theatre actress, is also stepping into filmdom and plays Satyajyoti’s love interest. Among other actors are Sweta Acharya, Sanjay Patnaik and Saroj Kumar Sethi.

“This is my first film and I am really excited. I will definitely give my best. In fact, the character I play loves football as well as music, both of which I am actually crazy about. So it should be easy to essay the role of a present generation youngster,” said Satyajyoti.

For Saroj, the film is very precious since it marks the end of his long struggle to get a role.

“I have been struggling for five years to get a chance in a film. I had played a small character in a recent film. In Lal Odhani, I may not be the lead but the character I play has substance and is important for the story,” he said.

Father of Manishita, veteran actor Ajit Das and producer Soumya Ranjan Patnaik attended the muhurat ceremony.

Well-known flautist Jai Gandhi, a disciple of Hari Prasad Chaurasia, has scored the music for the film. The shooting will be done in Bhubaneswar, Puri, Cuttack and Keonjhar.

“We might be ready for release by January 2013,” said Bhuiyan.