Was difficult to believe Sthalpuran was selected for Berlin International Film Festival, says director Akshay Indikar

Akshay Indikar’s Marathi movie Sthalpuran will have its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival, which starts later this month. The film will be shown in the Generation K-plus category where films about children and teenagers are featured. 

The film stars newcomers Neel Deshmukh (Dighu) and Anushree Wani in the role of a child and his single mother. The film is about the experience of Dighu when he has to shift from an urban city like Pune, Maharashtra to a village in Konkan because of his mother’s transfer. Dighu doesn’t have a good feeling about the move. 

While speaking exclusively to us, Indikar said that they couldn’t believe the news about their film being selected for Berlinale. “We have grown up watching films of master filmmakers who have shown their films in this festival. It was difficult to believe that now our film will be seen over there with such respect and dignity in the same festival. But slowly it sunk in. We have worked hard for two years behind this film,” he said. 

Indikar further said that he and his team got a new zeal with the news. “We were surely happy. But we also got anxious as to how we would go about it because a bit of our post-production was still remaining,” he said. “During the making of the film, there is no way to know whether the film you are making will work or not. But this news gave us the boost to complete the remaining work.” 

Apart from Sthalpuran, which is produced by Sanjay Shetye, Indikar has also made another Marathi film titled Trijya. When asked about the release of both the films, he said, “We are looking at online platforms to release the film rather than theatrical distribution.” 

The Berlin International Film Festival will be held from 20 February to 1 March.