Goutam Ghose's son Ishaan's debut directorial on Dhapa to release on Nov 11

Not once did Goutam Ghose visit the set of his son Ishaan Ghose's debut Bengali directorial, 'Jhilli' ('Discards') when he was shooting at Dhapa's dumping ground in Kolkata for three years at the beginning of 2017. But once he watched 'Jhilli', he knew Ishaan had made a film that should be watched only in theatres.

'Jhilli' made enough noise at the 27th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) when it won the 'Best Film Award' for the 'International Competition on Innovation in Moving Images'. Ishaan also earned Rs 51 lakh as prize money at KIFF for 'Jhilli'. At a time when it is an uphill struggle for indie directors to accumulate funds to make films, Ishaan is ready with 'Jhilli' to hit big screens on November 11, courtesy of SVF. Now, Ishaan is surely making a lot of independent filmmakers in the city go green.

"We had to go through a lot of struggles to make 'Jhilli'. But when a big production house like SVF steps in to distribute your film, it seems we are in a dream. It's a huge risk for them too. But if indie directors get a huge platform like this, then it will give them a huge boost. Maybe, this will encourage other production houses in Bengal to back indie filmmakers," said Ishaan.

Directed and written by Ishaan, 'Jhilli' narrates the story of Bokul and his companions living in the middle of Kolkata's largest city dump, as the world outside is rapidly changing.

Goutam Ghose, who was the producer of the film, is a proud father. Elated that his son has tried to find a new language in 'Jhilli', the 'Moner Manush' director, said, "These kinds of films are made for big screens and I am thankful to SVF that they have agreed to back Ishaan's debut directorial venture. This will encourage a lot of young independent filmmakers in the future."

Actor Bitan Biswas, who plays a pivotal character in 'Jhilli', is on cloud nine that their labour of love is finally releasing in theatres on November 11.

" 'Jhilli' has received an 'A' certificate and it wouldn't be an easy watch. But we are looking forward to seeing the reaction of the general audience. A lot goes on behind Dhapa's dumping ground. This is Kolkata, which we aren't aware of," said Biswas.

Come December and Ishaan is all set to start assisting his father in the camera department of the long-planned Indo-Italian film. The Italian portions have been shot, but Goutam Ghose will start shooting the Indian portions in Madhya Pradesh and Mumbai in December.