Documentary on Nabakalebara festival
Its time for the biggest festival od Odisha and Odia film-maker Nila Madhab Panda is ready to present the uniqueness of the great Jagannath culture across the world through a documentary on the Nabakalebara festival and the various traditions related to the deities.The domentary aims at promoting the culture of Lord Jagannath across the globe. The documentary would show the rituals such as Banajaga yatra, selection of daru (neem wood for idols), Bramha parivartan etc.The film has been shot at various places of Koraput, Sonepur and Nayagarh. “Every district has a connection with the Lord and we are showing an all-Odisha view of the culture in the documentary. We shot at Patali Srikhetra in Kotsamalei village of Sonepur district. It is known to be the place where the idol of Lord Jagannath was concealed from Muslim invaders for 144 years,” said Panda.
Panda said that a lot of research has gone into making the film. “Around 50 of my crew members are working for this project. We have divided them into 14 teams. They are interacting with national and international experts who have studied the various aspects of the Jagannath culture. We are also meeting servitors and other veteran cultural personalities to know more about the culture,” said Panda.
“During our research, we noticed that there is no proper video footage of the last Nabakalebar festival. There are just a few photographs. We would shoot the entire festival and include important parts of it in the documentary,” Panda said.
The state tourism department collaborated with Panda and started the production of the 90-min film in last June. It will finish by this September. The film will be sent to various national and international film festivals. It will also be screened at various theatres of the state in March next year.
“We want the film to get maximum exposure especially among the youngsters. It will help the upcoming generations experience the Nabakalebara festival and get a clear understanding of the culture of Lord Jagannath,” said Panda.
Article Courtesy : The Telegraph
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