Vikramaditya Motwane takes flight in Un Certain Regard

Vikramaditya Motwane
For his first film and visit to Cannes, the Indian Vikramaditya Motwane presents Udaan in Un Certain Regard. The film of this director who was a long time assistant of Sanjay Leela Bhansali will be screened in the Salle Debussy at 14.00 and 22.00.
Udaan tells the story of Rohan, a young teenager who is coming back to live with his father after eight years at boarding school. At home, he discovers a new family: his remarried father mistreats him and he has a half-brother he never knew about. Rohan is obliged to work at his father’s factory and study to become an engineer. He dreams of becoming a writer.
Udaan resembles Vikramaditya Motwane’s own story. It’s not the father figure who links the director to his character, or the boarding school or the new family, although this is becoming more commonplace in India today, and is an important theme of the film. What binds Rohan and the director is their determination, the will and tenacity to achieve their dream: that of becoming an artist and producing a first personal work. “In March 2009, after years spent looking for a producer, Anurag Kashyap and his friend Sanjay Singh [both directors] had got together enough money to make a film out of my script. They sent me off to shoot it and supported me to make the film that I had always wanted to make. The result is Udaan, the journey of a teenager who wants to throw off his chains. No surprise if it tips a nod to part of my life. » In Indian, Udaan means ‘to take flight’. The film is competing for the Caméra d’or.