Sapna Bhavnani is a celebrity hairstylist and an equally good filmmaker. Her debut independent film Sindhustan, which has travelled across different film festivals, has started streaming on Amazon Prime. The critically acclaimed film is a fascinating exploration of the Sindhi migration, which is narrated through Madhubani and Ajrak tattoos on her legs.
The feature documentary which, Sapna has directed and produced under her film’s production banner, Akbar Pains, premiered on Amazon Prime in the USA and on MovieSaints across India and the rest of the world on May 12.
FINDING A PLATFORM
“I am so excited because it’s been a year since we had our world premiere and one year, travelling to 20+ plus festivals, winning eight awards. Also, to have it on a platform which reaches across the world, I couldn’t have asked for anything better,” says Sapna, adding that indie filmmakers are constantly looking for platforms.
“You make a film, then what? It’s difficult for filmmakers like us to find a platform because everyone wants a big star nowadays,” she adds. Sindhustan had its world premiere at New York Indian Film Festival 2019.
BEYOND GOOGLE INFO
She adds, “I am a Sindhi and I, myself do not know much about my roots. The world too doesn’t know much about them. They are just known for their food (Sindhi Kadhi, Dal Pakhwan) and how they are kanjoos (misers). This film is not for the older generation, who already know our history but the younger ones, who know nothing about it. They can learn, but I did not want to make it sound like an educational documentary. I did not want to give information that Google can offer but tapped into personal lives and memories, which were unique in their own ways.
GOING BACK TO THE ROOTS
The inspiration for the film emerged after a conversation between Sapna and her grandmother. “When I was living in America, I had come to visit my nani in India. I was pretty shy about my tattoos so I was trying to cover them up and she called me old fashioned. But I always thought of myself as a rebel. She told me that in the ancient world there were no villages or countries, and people were recognised by their marking. I had started getting inked, and she was happy that I was going back to the roots of civilisation,” she shares.
REVIVING DYING ARTS
Ask her why she thought of narrating the story through Madhubani and Ajrak tattoos on her legs, and she replies, “I wanted to use artwork from Sindh and India because they are quite popular. Madhubani is one of the well-known arts, but it is dying. I wanted to put it on a wider platform so that the world can appreciate. Ajrak also has very beautiful patterns so I thought it will be interesting to look at them. Also, not too many art forms from this side of the world is explored.”
Citing an example, she says that if one looks at the tattoo culture, a lot of it is inspired by Japanese, Middle Eastern, Mandala art but there isn’t much coming from India. “Being a tattoo lover myself, if tomorrow someone sees my art, they would want a Madhubani tattoo on their body,” she adds.
INKING THE STORIES
But did it require a lot of leg work getting the two together? Sapna says that it wasn’t that challenging because she had already interviewed people, and based on their stories, she got her tattoos. “They were so taken aback just to see their story on someone’s body,” she says, adding, “The difficult part was the inking process because it was very painful. But it was decided from the beginning that the story would be told through ink. I am glad I achieved my goal.”
INDIE PROJECTS ARE TOUGH BUT FUN
Making an indie project requires immense passion. “It took me eight years to make Sindhustan, and after making it, you want to send it to festivals, which is a full-time job because you have to fill forms etc. It also involves a lot of expenses because half the time you are flying around to festivals. My hair career was pretty much over because I had to make a choice and go with the film. The whole of last year went into travelling with the film. We had to cancel our UK and Texas premieres because of COVID-19.
After that we had to release and promote the film. Every step of filmmaking is sheer hard work, especially if you are personally putting in the time and money,” says Sapna.
But she isn’t complaining because they had a fabulous run at the festivals. “It really had taken it out of me. But we also had a great team, and some of them have been with me since the beginning,” says Sapna, who is working on another project, about a couple in isolation. She says that the film has nothing to do with the current situation as it was shot before the lockdown.
