Indian films in English language are being made quite often nowadays. We had Aparna Sen's 15TH PARK AVENUE recently that got a critical acclaim. But there is still not a huge market for the films in India, despite the fact that most of the English language movies are well crafted and combine fresh subjects and innovative execution.
THE LAST MONK is the latest to be made in the genre that takes a look at cultural Buddhism and has been extensively shot at the picturesque landscapes of Ladakh on the Indo-Tibetan plateau. The film has been written and directed by National Award winning director Sudipto Sen, who makes his feature film debut with THE LAST MONK. The film has been produced by N.Shiva Rao and co-producer is Nakul Kushwa.
Swapna, the protagonist, a consummated girl in her mid-twenties, belongs to Delhi the capital city of India. She is contended, fulfilled... she reached out to get what life has to offer... quite like Delhi's revolutionized working middle class living in the fast lane modernity. Her fifteen days old marriage with Pushkar completes her cycle of jaunt. Life for her is an extended honeymoon and she seems to be sensually basking in it. Pushkar is a successful IT professional and a caring husband. But this perfect life pauses when she has to leave for Ladakh to complete her doctoral dissertation in cultural Buddhism.
Sonic, a local Khempo becomes her guide on this trip. She travels all over Ladakh and Sonic goes beyond just being an academic guide for Swapna. He is a storehouse of knowledge and passion for life. He helps her enter a new world full of ethereal sensitivities and sensibilities. The breath-taking landscape of Ladakh, the color, the graphics in the rock structure, its mystic culture, its heritage, simplicity... mesmerizes Swapna, as much as the awakening that Sonic has lead her to. She is so overwhelmed with the mystique aura of nature and the gamut of emotions inside her that she wants to be a part of his rhapsody... she wants to be in sync with her surroundings... to be one with nature... and Sonic's body becomes the medium for her journey. She becomes the extension of the creator, mother of the civilization. Whatever happened was her way of reaching out-way beyond any perceivable relationship- and evolving to attain a new lieu. A position where expression in form of sexuality has nothing to do with love or faithfulness, it's rather a medium of experiencing a zenith of emotions.
The film stars Rachna Shah, Jimeesh Gandhi, Sonam Stobgias Gorky, Dheeraj Kushwa, Sibilla Martin, Samsthan Lden, O.P Dimri and Narendra Joshi. The film's music has been scored by Papon, who also makes a special appearance in the film along with Vikrant Chandola.
THE LAST MONK will be participating in all the major international movie festivals and will be released in the metropolises around the globe. A DVD and home video would also be released in addition to putting it on the Internet as a streaming video.