Rasika Dugal is making a case for small films with big ideas. Her new movie, Little Thomas, puts a kid's questions at the heart of a family tale, and the actress thinks Hindi cinema could use more of that.
For Dugal, movie budgets and fancy tech are not the whole deal. Sure, directors have more tools than ever to make grand scenes. Yet she thinks a plain, honest tale can still grab an audience without all the extra fuss.
Kaushal Oza gets that balance right, in her view. His calm approach lets the plot do its job without loud drama or grand sets. And she likes how he trusts small moments that people can relate to in daily life.
Little Thomas takes that idea and gives it a neat twist. Thomas, a seven-year-old kid in Goa, wants a baby brother or sister. But first, he has some very blunt questions about how babies are made. His quest soon brings out the joys and strains of life at home, as well as the state of India after economic reforms.
Dugal also thinks adults tend to brush off kids when they ask tough or odd things. Big mistake, in her view. Their questions deserve real thought, and films can gain a lot by letting young minds lead the plot.
The cast features Gulshan Devaiah and Hridansh Parekh, while Anurag Kashyap helped fund the project. Set against Goa in the 1990s, the movie shares a gentle tone with Malgudi Days and the works of Ruskin Bond.
And that is the kind of cinema Dugal wants more of. Films that put faith in good ideas, even when the plot deals with plain old daily life.
For Dugal, movie budgets and fancy tech are not the whole deal. Sure, directors have more tools than ever to make grand scenes. Yet she thinks a plain, honest tale can still grab an audience without all the extra fuss.
Kaushal Oza gets that balance right, in her view. His calm approach lets the plot do its job without loud drama or grand sets. And she likes how he trusts small moments that people can relate to in daily life.
Little Thomas takes that idea and gives it a neat twist. Thomas, a seven-year-old kid in Goa, wants a baby brother or sister. But first, he has some very blunt questions about how babies are made. His quest soon brings out the joys and strains of life at home, as well as the state of India after economic reforms.
Dugal also thinks adults tend to brush off kids when they ask tough or odd things. Big mistake, in her view. Their questions deserve real thought, and films can gain a lot by letting young minds lead the plot.
The cast features Gulshan Devaiah and Hridansh Parekh, while Anurag Kashyap helped fund the project. Set against Goa in the 1990s, the movie shares a gentle tone with Malgudi Days and the works of Ruskin Bond.
And that is the kind of cinema Dugal wants more of. Films that put faith in good ideas, even when the plot deals with plain old daily life.
