Click to play videoMumbai: Finally, a film that relives the struggle that the Father of Indian Cinema went through to realize his first film - Raja Harishchandra in 1913.
Director Paresh Mokashi's debut in Marathi Harishchandrachi Factory is not only the first feature film to capture the life and times of Dadasaheb Phalke but is also India's official entry to the Oscars this year.
With no funding initially it was Paresh's determination - after having to mortgage his house that helped this biopic finally see the light of day.
“It was very difficult because it was my first film so people were quite wary about my abilities, even I was. But when I completed the script, confidence started building up and people started believing in me. Then again for two years, the magical hunt for money went on, but nothing happened, so we raised money on our own and completed the film in 2008,” says Paresh Mokashi.
With the buzz around Harishchandrachi Factory growing - UTV Motion Pictures has now bought the film and is planning a year end worldwide release - probably the biggest ever for a Marathi film.
The studio is also ensuring that Dadasaheb Phalke's story gets it's fair share of eyeballs before the Oscar fever starts.
CEO UTV Motion Pictures Siddharth Roy Kapoor says, “We're looking at a much broader theatrical release than any other regional movie would get because we believe that this is a film that has the potential to reach out to a much wider audience. We are doing all we can so that the academy is made aware of the movie, comes for the movie and screenings will be held for the foreign language committee and we will work with publications like the Variety and the Hollywood Reporter to ensure that we talk about the film.
With a Hindi dubbed print also in the pipeline - and the guarantee of being tagged Tax Free, Harishchandrachi Factory sure looks on it's way to make history already.
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