Filmmaker Mani C. Kappen speaks at the new conference on his film, Borolar Ghar, in Guwahati on Friday. Picture by UB Photos

Guwahati, Aug. 10: A Malayali filmmaker has come forward to make entertaining Assamese films.

Mani C. Kappen, a tea planter and filmmaker from Kerala, told reporters today that production of his first Assamese film, Borolar Ghar (The Bachelor’s House), would start tomorrow and shooting and post-production would be completed fast so that it could be released in October. Kappen is also the director of the film.

The film will be a meeting ground for actors from Assam, Bengal and Kerala and around 40 per cent of the dialogues are in Bengali, keeping in mind the requirements of the script.

“The culture and climate of Assam and Kerala are almost similar. I have heard that the number of productions in Assam has come down to three to four a year from 60 to 70 a few years ago. We will deliver a variety of subjects in the film and I know people will enjoy it,” Kappen said.

Kappen has plantations in Meghalaya, because of which he spends some time every month in Assam. That is how he got to know of the condition of the Assamese film industry. What encouraged him was the commercial viability of entertaining Assamese films. “I have observed the commercial aspects of Assamese filmmaking. I know if a film has variety, people will enjoy it and money will flow in.”

He said he had already produced 11 Malayalam films and would now be producing at least two Assamese films a year under the banner of Okay Productions. He said Manju Borah would be directing one of his films.

“A youth from a village in Assam marries a girl from another state while working in Bengal. As his two elder brothers are still bachelors and his father has an orthodox outlook, the youth does not dare to introduce his wife to his family and instead, keeps her as a maid at his home. This is the story of the film in brief,” Prabhat Goswami, the scriptwriter, said.

Photographer Jiban Dawka and Manju Borah are respectively the associate director and adviser of the film.

The film’s cast includes Nipon Goswami, Purnima Saikia, Bishnu Khargharia, Mani C. Kappen, Sreelekha Mukherji, Utpal Das, Debasmita Banerjee, Sibnath Acharya, Biki, Lakhi Borthakur, Jyoti Bhuyan, Julen Bhuyan, Pabitra Barua, Dilip Barua, Deepa Goswami and Siddhartha Mukherjee.

“The producer is looking to develop the Assamese film industry by trying to bring something new to Assamese films. He said he would make more Assamese films, which is a good gesture,” actor Nipon Goswami said.