'Udaan' takes forward message of '3 Idiots'

New Delhi, July 13 (IANS) Like "3 Idiots", debutant director Vikramaditya Motwane's "Udaan" that releases Friday also tells a story about charting one's own course but through a tumultuous father-son relationship.

Co-produced by Anurag Kashyap, Sanjay Singh and UTV Motion Pictures, the small budget drama features 17-year-old Rajat Barmecha along with popular TV stars Ronit Roy and Ram Kapoor.

"What '3 Idiots' has said, this film will take that forward. The perception of people is changing in society. 'Udaan' has a good story to tell," Kashyap had said.

Kashyap's first independent production, "Udaan" was selected for the Un Certain Regard category at the 63rd Cannes International Film Festival this year.

Set in Jamshedpur, "Udaan" is the story of Rohan (Rajat), a teenage boy, who returns home after being abandoned for eight years in a boarding school. He finds himself closeted with an authoritarian father and a younger half brother, who he didn't even know existed.

A story about a father-son relationship, "Udaan" is Rohan's journey, who is forced to work in his father's steel factory and study engineering against his wishes, as he strives to forge his own life out of his given circumstances to pursue his dream of becoming a writer and leaves his house to chart his own course.

Motwane describes his directorial venture as "a very simple, straightforward film... more than that it's a very emotional film. It's about a boy's journey".

"The father wants the son to do something and the son wants something different and what happens at the end of the film is the culmination of that relationship."

Not many know that the movie also has elements of Kashyap's life, who left his parent's home in 1993 to pursue his dreams.

Adding a rebellious zing to the movie is its soundtrack by Amit Trivedi which is already a hit among the youth.

"Udaan" might have got international acclaim post Cannes, but Motwane had to wait for over five years to get a producer.

"My script was ready in 2003. It took five years to take the picture off the ground. It took so long to get producers, as no one was ready to take the film. It might be because in 2003, multiplexes were not in existence. Today it has become easier...," he said.

And that is when Kashyap stepped in. Motwane had hired him to write the dialogues for the movie in 2003, but when he failed to find a producer, Kashyap decided to take charge.

Considering Kashyap's penchant for contemporary stories rooted in an individual's consciousness, it seems like he has just another hit to add to his credits.

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Udaan