This was the 18th day since the team of 'Purano Dunga' first commenced shooting in Lekhnath municipality for the past couple of days. The film was being shot in the village of Majhikuna which is situated in the south of the lake.The actor was ferrying his director Ram Babu Gurung, costar Maotse Gurung as well as cinematographer Shailendra D Karki, and other technicians in the paddle boat. Unlike fishermen whose attentions are centered on the water, the film team was focused on the banks of the lake and the surroundings from where they would later draw inspiration to capture beautiful shots.
Another boat was ferrying cameras and sound equipments across the lake. After they reached the bank, they shot a scene between Maotse Gurung and Bishnu Maya Gurung, an elderly village woman who is playing Maotse's aunt in the film. During a break in the shooting, she relayed a disturbing incident from the past: "Two of my relatives drowned when their boats collapsed. Since then I haven't kept any boats."
For those who live close to the lake, boats are an integral part of their lives. Without a boat to help you cross the lake quickly, it takes up a lot of time if it were to be done by walking on the banks.
The 'Purano Dunga' team has hired two paddle boats and three smaller boats while buying another small boat. Initially, the local 'majhis' rowed the boats for them but the cast and crew have learnt how to do it themselves. So now whenever they're required for the shoot, they can reach the location by rowing the boats across Begnas Taal.
After 'Kabaddi Kabaddi 2' also became a hit, it was on everyone's minds that the director would head off to Mustang to shoot the third installment of the film. But instead, he left for Begnas to start work on 'Purano Dunga.'
"I'm taking a break from 'Kabaddi.' 'Purano Dunga' will surely take me and my audiences out of the 'Kabaddi' zone. Of course, I will make another sequel to 'Kabaddi,' but that won't happen before one and a half years," he said.
Around 12 years ago, singer Karna Das had come out with an album titled 'Purano Dunga.' Both the title song and the video were very popular, and people may recognize Maotse Gurung from the video.
It was then that the actor fell in love with 'Purano Dunga.' The theater artist from Pokhara has been actively involved in Gurung films where he has polished his acting, writing, and directing skills. Having already made a name for himself in the Gurung community, he has decided he now wants to expand his work sphere. Maotse feels that the stories of his community and his hometown should reach the maximum number of people.
Ram Babu Gurung and Upendra Subba have expanded on the story shown in the 'Purano Dunga' music video more than a decade ago. It tells the story of two Bhujel brothers being portrayed by Maotse and Dayahang. Bhakta Bahadur, the elder brother played by Maotse, makes his living by rowing his boat across Begnas while Dayahang as Batas is idling away his life in the city. One day, Dayahang asks for his share of the family fortune wherein he asks for the boat. The story unfolds as Maotse is forced to give up the boat to his brother and the story gets complicated.
Maotse has directed seven Gurung films and with this film he is experimenting with the Nepali film industry, also as a producer. He says, "It takes approximately Rs 1.5 million to make a Gurung film. But the investment for 'Purano Dunga' is coming close to Rs 10 million. I'm figuring out how to raise the money. Ram Babu knows the market, that's why I'm working with him."
Director Ram Babu has been preparing for this film for a year now. After doing the location recce for 'Kabaddi Kabaddi', he immediately set to doing the same for 'Purano Dunga.' Last May, he was in Begnas with Maotse, Dayahang, and Shailendra D Karki to survey the site.
'Purano Dunga' is set to release around November-December this year. "It will definitely be better and different than my earlier films. The audiences will also find my personal work to have improved," promised the director.
This film will also be a turning point for actor Dayahang who was in the danger of being trapped in the popular character of Kaji no matter the kind of roles he plays. He's hopeful that with 'Purano Dunga' the audiences will forget Kaji for a while. He stated, "Batas is different from Kaji because he is in turmoil while Kaji is very relaxed."
Cameraman Shailendra is using products that he ordered from the US to shoot underwater scenes. He expressed a new eagerness to experiment with new kinds of shots ever since the team's arrival in Begnas. Director Ram Babu said of him, "Shailendra is the type of cameraman who shoots the story and not the scene."
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