National Award-winning filmmaker Suman Ghosh says his next, "Aadhaar" celebrates the contradictions of India, a country interestingly dubbed both a "superpower" and a "village" nation.
Ghosh is making his Hindi directorial debut with "Aadhaar", featuring "Mukkabaaz" star Viineet Kumar Singh.
The filmmaker, whose directorial debut 2008 Bengali film "Podokkhep" earned him a National Award in the Best Feature Film category, said the movie is not based on the Aadhaar card per se.
"The card is rather a motive through which I explore current India. I love the canvas of the country. There are so many variations and contradictions that are present in the digital world... projecting India as a superpower but at the same time, there is a village India.
"Eighty per cent of people live in the villages. India is currently going through an interesting phase. My film celebrates this phase, where there is a push and pull. This is what makes the country fascinating," Ghosh told PTI in an interview.
The Aadhaar scheme received polarising reactions from civil and political society and the film will look into both the perspectives through the story of a common man (Singh) as he is caught in the bureaucratic red tape in the process of enrolling his name in the initiative.
The director said he is aware the film centres around a sensitive topic and promised he has dealt with it carefully.
"I know people will ask me whether it is a pro- or anti-Aadhaar film. I have tried to be as objective as possible. Who am I to make a statement on whether Aadhaar is good or bad?
"According to me, Aadhaar is a wonderful idea and necessary for any country. But there are some implementation issues that are being corrected and that gave rise to debates and discussions. But it is a good thing about a functioning democracy."
"When we had the script ready in early 2018. 'Mukkabaaz' had released that time. My producer Manish Mundra and I saw the film and felt Viineet was the apt choice."