Goa: To beat lockdown blues, artistes make Konkani short films, post them online

Inspiration struck Ryan Mark while he was awaiting his turn at the checkout counter of a grocery store recently and saw the owner’s wife watching a film on YouTube. The Mapusa-based singer-songwriter who, like many other artistes, has been grappling with the lockdown, knew exactly what he had to do.

He phoned a friend in Bahrain for help with scriptwriting and narration, and rallied a few more in Goa for shooting, acting and work on a musical score. It took the eight-member team a little over a week to release ‘Day 40’, a 17-minute production. It is the latest in a string of zero-budget Konkani short films that have the lockdown as their central theme and are being posted online for free public viewing.

Ryan relied on virtual tutorials to help him direct and edit his maiden short film and said he never would have felt motivated to improvise if it wasn’t for the lockdown.

“There has been no live entertainment since March, prompting people to rely on their computers and mobile phones to unwind. I wanted to put some quality content out there, while also doing my bit to promote our mother tongue,” the artiste said.

Early in April, when restrictions were more stringent, Joywin Fernandes of Colva decided to produce a Konkani short film that was shot gratis by each of his cast members on their mobile phones and in their own homes, in just one day.

After some hours of conscientious editing, his eight-minute production, ‘Lockdown’, went online.

“As I had worked with most of the actors before, I was able to tell them exactly how I wanted each shot taken. The challenge was ensuring that their eye movements were correct, because although it seems like two of them are in the same setting, they were actually miles apart,” the filmmaker said. “One of the actors sent in her clip from Pune while the other shots came in from Calangute, Mapusa, Panaji and Curtorim.”

Joywin peppered the film with real-life situations, such as the ‘sari challenge’ that became a rave on virtual photo-sharing platforms when people were confined to their homes. “I wanted the film to resonate with audiences, and I am glad it has successfully done so,” he said.

In Nuvem, Jerson Fernandes had ideas of his own. Keen on getting people to snap out of their apathy towards the Covid-19 situation, the actor and musician chose to the tap the power of film. ‘Amcho Salute Tumkam’ (We salute you) was uploaded on April 11 and highlighted the contribution of the police force in implementing lockdown restrictions.

Barely 14 days later, Jerson released another short film, ‘Na Tuka, Na Mhaka, Konnak Nirminaka’ (Do not wish this for you, me or anyone). At 12 minutes, it was double the time of his earlier production but managed to garner over 22,000 views because of its “meaningful message”, according to some reviews.

“The film was made in three days with the sole purpose of promoting the efforts of the police and medical fraternity in Goa in battling Covid-19,” he said. “It was my way of paying it forward.”