English Vinglish cinematographer Laxman Utekar turns director

After being the cinematographer for Bollywood biggies like Blue, English Vinglish, Boss, Lekar Hum Deewana Dil and upcoming film Tevar – Laxman Utekar has added another feather to his cap as he turns director for Marathi film, Tapaal.

Talking about his journey of becoming a director, he says, "I used to get a lot of offers to shoot Marathi films, but I didn’t want to shoot them. I always felt that if I shoot a Marathi film, it will also be directed by me. I didn’t want to shoot for somebody else. Because I was already shooting for people in Hindi films."

He further adds, "After completing Mangesh Hadawale’s Dekh Indian Circus, I narrated a thought to him about the culture and people of my own village. I asked him whether he could weave a story for me and he did that beautifully. The film is the result of our experiences."

Ask him whether he always wanted to become a director and he says, "I always wanted to make a film but I wasn’t in a hurry. When I was shooting for others, I couldn’t narrate my own experiences. So to express the same I took up direction."

Produced by Maitreya Mass Media and distributed by Pickle Entertainment, starring the likes of Milind Gunaji, Nandu Madhav, Veena Jamkar, Urmila Kanetkar and introducing Rohit Utekar, Tapaal is all set to release on 26^th September 2014.

Tapaal is National & International Award winning Marathi film set in a small village in the year 1977. It dwells with sympathy, concern and understanding on the bond between a little boy and a childless couple, and the social discrimination that they face.

Even before its release, Laxman Utekar's directorial debut is creating the right buzz. It has been critically acclaimed and has even won various accolades & awards at different film festivals for its sterling performances. Tapaal had its World Premiere at 18th Busan International Film Festival 2013, South Korea. It was selected in Indian Panorama Section at 44th IFFI (International Film festival 2013) and 9 other International Film Festivals as well. It was also screened at 3rd Eye Asian Film Festival and Pune Film Festival. That’s not all. Veena Jamkar bagged the best actress award at South Africa Film Festival. While Rohit Utekar won Best Child Actor Award, Prakash Holkar got the best lyricist award for his emotional composition 'don disanchi sawali ' at the Maharashtra state film Awards.