2014 British film
| Shongram |
|---|
 Promotional poster |
| Directed by | Munsur Ali |
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| Screenplay by | Munsur Ali
Billy Mackinnon |
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| Story by | Munsur Ali |
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| Produced by | Munsur Ali
Amir Ahmed
Charlene Campbell |
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| Starring | Aman Khan
Dilruba Yasmeen Ruhee
Anupam Kher
Asia Argento |
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| Cinematography | Lorenzo Levrini |
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| Edited by | Richard Gordon-Colebrooke |
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| Music by | Armeen Musa |
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Production
company | Shongram Motion Pictures |
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Release dates |
- 19 March 2014 (2014-03-19) (Bangladesh)
- 22 June 2014 (2014-06-22) (United Kingdom)
|
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Running time | 118 minutes |
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| Country | United Kingdom |
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| Languages | Bengali
English
Urdu |
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| Budget | £400,000 (estimated) /
7 Crores |
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Shongram ([সংগ্রাম] Error: ((Lang-xx)): text has italic markup (help); English; Struggle; classified under the name 71 er Shongram in Bangladesh) is a 2014 British romantic drama film written, directed and produced by Munsur Ali, and stars Aman Khan, Dilruba Yasmeen Ruhee, Anupam Kher and Asia Argento. The film depicts an English reporter speaking to an old freedom fighter, who reveals his past and involvement during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
Plot
Set against the backdrop of present time in the UK, the storyline of the film shows the memories of an ailing British-Bangladeshi Muslim man Karim (Anupam Kher) recalling his horrific experiences during the war of independence in an interview with a British journalist Sarah (Asia Argento).
The story focuses on flashback scenes of the war from the perspective of a young Karim (Amaan Reza) who falls in love with a Hindu woman Asha (Dilruba Yasmin Ruhee). His world is then torn apart when his peaceful village suddenly becomes a war zone and he is separated from his girlfriend. He is soon forced to join an underground band of freedom fighters after the genocide and abduction of innocent Bangladeshi's and his girlfriend.
In a destructive whirlwind of mass murder, abductions, rape, and arson, Karim attempts to serve his country and fight for his freedom before he can finally search for and save Asha.
Production
The film is Munsur Ali's first feature film,[1] who wrote, directed and produced it. It was the first time a British film was simultaneously written, produced and directed by a British Bangladeshi.[2] He learned about Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 from a young age, having heard a lot of stories. He viewed archive footage and read testimonials from both Bangladeshi and Pakistani points of view. He also spoke to eye witnesses, including an Englishman who was in Dhaka on the night of 25 March 1971. He avoided disputed issues such as how many were killed during the genocide, but accepted that there was genocide.[1]
Although it is fiction, the film is loosely based around key events and dates, such as Sheikh Mujibur Rahman after the war speech on the 7 March 1971, just before his arrest, the first day of attack on the Bengali civilian population on 25 March 1971, while also explaining the atrocities that took place.[3]
Ali had a team in Bangladesh that arranged the pre-selection cast for him to choose from.[1] The film is aimed at an international audience,[4] so Ali selected actors from Hollywood and Bollywood for the international exposure. When he approached Anupam Kher and Asia Argento, they agreed to act in the film for its "beautiful story". Ali had personal contact with the actors and crews.[5] A few British actors, as well as British and American technical crews worked on the film.[5]
On 18 December 2011, shooting began for the film.[3] During the six weeks of shooting there were regular power cuts while filming so they had to take breaks, which meant losing time and money.[1] In summer 2013, UK phase was shot after the the majority of the film was shooting and in post-production was already complete.[1][5] Ali worked on the project for three years.[4]
The film starts and finishes in English and the flashback period is in Bengali and Urdu with subtitles.[4] The film is the most expensive war film ever made in Bangladesh, with a budget of 7 Crores.[6]
Release
On 10 February 2014, the film had its first private screening at the East London's Rich Mix Cinema.[4] On 19 March 2014, the film is due to premier in Dhaka, Bangladesh,[5] before heading for Cannes and a UK release later in June 2014.[7]
The title of the film in Bangladesh will be 71 er Shongram.[5]
