This Malaysian Film That Took 10 Years To Make Is Now Receiving International Acclaim

Local Tamil film Jagat which has been getting positive reviews since its release two weeks ago, is a 10-year-long tale of accomplishment for its director, Shanjhey Kumar Perumal.

themalaymailonline.com

Director Shanjhey Kumar Perumal said curators from European and Asian film festivals have contacted him after the film was nominated by several critics as well as upon them reading the film reviews. “We can’t reveal where the invitations are from just yet, not until we get confirmation from the curators — possibly sometime next month,” said Shanjhey

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The University Sains Malaysia graduate and winner of the 2009 BMW Shorties Award for his production Machai (The Apprentice) juggled scriptwriting, talent casting, acting instructor and even designed the movie’s posters due to the financial shortage.

“We were severely limited in all aspects but we took it as a challenge… every time we look at someone who complains that they don’t have enough resources, we decided to not do the same. We pushed aside our complaints and thought about how to best do our work. So we doubled our efforts because of the limitation we faced,” he told Malay Mail Online in a recent interview.

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The search for Appoi took years, Shanjhey said and then one day, he got a lucky break. He was shooting a documentary on school dropouts in a rough neighbourhood in the city and one of the young boys caught his eye.

“I spotted this boy in a Melawati school… he was fighting with some boys, running around displaying so much energy and I liked that very much because in acting, you need a lot of that,” he said.

And that was how Shanjhey got 12-year-old Harvin Raj, who came from a rough background but who demonstrated a spark that immediately made the director think of his main character.

“If you see his face, there is innocence and he is also capable of bringing out a wild character and balance characters,” he said.

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But it was not easy getting Harvind to star in Jagat. Shanjhey said it took several attempts to convince the school – which is Harvind’s guardian at a children’s home where he is placed – and his family to get the boy’s involvement in the movie.

The approval for Harvind to join the cast came three days before production was scheduled to start. The director revealed that he never had a Plan B if Harvind couldn’t star in his movie.

Over the years, however, the script went through numerous changes. Shanjhey no longer wanted to make a comedy.

“Life was hard but I have beautiful memories growing up in a small town. As I grew older, I began to look at things differently and realised that maybe, things are not what they seem.”

Jagat evolved into a solemn drama which touches on subjects like poverty, quality of education system and gangsterism. If Shanjhey had to sum up the movie in one line, it’s about how the education system, family unit and societal expectations affect a child’s upbringing.

Apart from the cast, Shajhey also paid close attention to the location of the shoot. Faced with a limited budget, he knew that nailing the right cast and perfect location would make or break his film. He wanted a village set in a valley surrounded by mountains to be the main setting for Jagat.

“I couldn’t find it. I spent several years trying to find a place like that. Then, finally, I found Klian Intan in Pengkalan Hulu, Perak. It was deja vu for me because it reminded me of the place that I grew up in.”

“We had about 25 crew members and all the shoots were planned precisely. For example, we’d only shoot at a certain location for its sunset. It was chaotic to get from one place to another! And with a small budget, we couldn’t afford to waste any time.”