Teaser, song of upcoming movie Khoonta released
A second teaser and song of Himachal’s first upcoming Hindi feature film Khoonta was released in the presence of the full cast in Solan on Wednesday. Vidyanand Sarek, a Padma Shri awardee known for his contribution to literature and folk, was chief guest on the occasion. He described the film as an apt tribute to the culture of Sirmaur where Khoonta defines the boundary. Sarek, who hails from Sirmaur, traced the history of popular nati dance to the district while dwelling upon its historical significance.
“Sirmaur’s culture is a vibrant tapestry rooted in ancient Pahari traditions, unique tribal customs and profound spiritual devotion. These come alive in Khoonta,” he added.
The spiritual fabric of Sirmaur is dominated by deep faith in local deities or devtas, who act as the ultimate socio-religious authorities in village life even today. The film centres around the revered Mahasu Devta while its Pahari music rolls out various nuances of hill culture.
Sarek said, “In the original Sirmauri dialect, it is referred to as a khunda, a noose put around cattle and other animals to confine them and deter them from straying.” He defined its mythological nuances and observed that “it defined a boundary protected by the devta”. He lauded the writer for encapsulating the rich vibrant Sirmauri culture in one word ‘Khoonta’ and highlighting the burning environmental issues like the erosion of fragile hills triggered by an indiscriminate use of machines.
Anushi Sharma, film’s writer, director and lead actor, gave an insight into the struggle the crew encountered in making it with limited finances. The film production was at one stage halted in 2022 until Mukesh Modi stepped in as producer and provided the requisite funds.
The film explores the unseen Himachal while it vociferously weaves the message of saving the environment for the posterity. The soul-stirring music composed by local nati star Ajay Chauhan, Kuwar Thakur, besides Rohit Modka and Rahul Roshan takes the audience into the traditionally-rich hill culture celebrating age-old unique festivities like Budi Diwali.
The powerful music in the form of three songs using the local Sirmauri dialect provide the much-needed punch to this movie, which has been created using an ensemble of Himachali actors.
Modi appealed to people to support the film, as it captures their own traditions, culture that had hitherto remained amiss from the glitter of the silver screen. He also expressed a desire to delve more into the Pahari culture as the world was unaware of its unique and divine values.
