Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, May 29:

Better quality of films on the Janajatis can enhance its charm both in the country as well abroad.

Participants of an interaction on ‘Challenges and prospects of Janajati movies’ organised by the Association of Nepalese Indigenous Journalists (ANIJ) today stressed the need to enhance quality of such films on the issues of indigenous nationalities.

“Most of the movies are made without any home work and basic know-how of production. Such movies are far from standared quality which in turn incurs loss,” said Shova Khoju, a filmmaker.

Actress of the first Limbu language film Tareba Khoju said the continuity of production of films on the Janajatis was the only satisfaction she got from her film.

“In whatever situation we are today, it’s just because of our own personal endeavour. The government should also think about it,” said Jayananda Lama, a popular actor and folk singer involved in films.

“I have experienced a lot of problems during my journey.”

Presenting his paper on ‘Indigenous Nationalities and Nepali Film - Relations and Possibilities’, Deependra Lama, a film journalist said the Nepali cinema and many Indian films have been depicting indigenous nationalities as rude and uncivilised people and their costumes have been misused to show nudity.

While all other participants involved in the film industry stressed the need to commercialise the films on the Janajatis, Lama opined that the producers should not to be too commercial in their approach as these films promote culture and traditions of various communities.

“Training is needed for those involved in film-making. The government film agencies should nurture the Janajati films,” he said.

“How long can we request our relatives for charity shows,” said Pritam Gurung, an actor and filmmaker. There are over 25 films made in the Gurung language alone. Most of the films are not able to recover even half of their cost due to lack of viewers.