Triumph of the Local

KINEMA-CINEMA

In Kenny Basumatary's films, the plot is not important but the progression is. The way his films go about unfolding a series of situations one after another in great rhythm and flair while having comic moments embedded in their narratives (like hidden treasures), invariably translate to unbridled laughter.

When Kenny Basumatary first appeared in Assam's cinema scenario with his debut offering Local Kung Fu in the year 2013, the initial response of people was of awe and astonishment. People responded to the film with a lot of interest and curiosity, albeit a little apprehension. After Bruce Lee's celebrated Enter the Dragon, the martial arts film genre had become a fad, particularly amongst the youth.

So young and old, men and women, all thronged to the cinema halls to found themselves awash with a stream of hilarity with the occasional dose of martial arts, which looked entirely natural compared to the films in which wires are used to perform such scenes. In fact, the unpretentious action sequences were executed with such bravura playfulness that the audience was bound to be hooked. Moreover, since the action scenes are done by the cast member themselves, (and all supposedly unprofessional), it compounds the film's authenticity.

We live in a time when excruciating stress, misery and despair are our constant psychological woes. Long ago, renowned psychologist Sigmund Freud held that laughter allows people to let off steam or release pent-up "nervous energy" and that, this process explains why tabooed scatological and sexual themes and jokes that broach thorny social and ethnic topics can amuse us. That is why when the punch line comes in a comic situation, the energy required to suppress inappropriate emotions, such as desire or hostility, is no longer needed and is released as laughter, he adds. It is because of such interpretations, we can study the popularity of Kenny's entertaining and sensible cinema, which, for audiences appear to be very relieving as well as energizing.

As such the Local Kung Fu came as a whiff of fresh air, in which comic scenes were intelligently brought to life with appropriately subtle and obvious puns and sarcasm (in its entire duration), without ever resorting to exaggeration, body or local diction-shaming or racist overtones. It also filled a void of the truly hilarious yet well-meaning film occasionally hitting hard on thorny socio-political issues or maladies. Indeed, Kenny's films are not aesthetically satisfying and also not technically suave or lustrous, however, what is admirable in all his films is their seamless, smooth sailing narrative, something that seemingly comes naturally to Kenny Basumatary, the novelist.

Local Kung Fu, therefore, declares the arrival of the genre of comic martial arts films that rely on a measured blend of slapstick, out of turn humour, colloquialism and neologism- all of these were hitherto absent in Assam's cinema scenario. Interestingly Local Kung Fu became the third Assamese film ever to get a countrywide release as it was picked up by PVR Director's RARE. Local Kung Fu became one of the remarkable films which redefined the independent cinema of Assam and also brought Assamese cinema under the spotlight.

For Kenny, Local Kung Fu's success at the box office was inspiring as well as reassuring. It made him confident and resolute to continue with his journey. So after almost five years, having the requisite funds gathered from crowd-funding and individual producers, he had made the sophomore, a sequel, titled Local King Fu-2 in 2016, despite the latter having little to do with the earlier film. Since expectedly Local Kung Fu-2 was equally successful, Kenny immediately churned out the next one titled Suspended Inspector Bodo in 2017 and completed the shooting of the latest offering Local Utpat just before the Covid-19 outbreak in 2019. The ensuing situation and two phases of lockdowns delayed its release to 13th May 2022, however despite the apprehensions in the post-covid scenario; the film has already earned its first one crore-rupee revenue within a short span from its pan-India release.

All of Kenny's films are essentially a comedy of errors and they often reflect on a range of social maladies like alcoholism, drug addiction, organ trading, unemployment, pollution, destruction of nature etc.

Local Utpat portrays the story of seven youngsters including Kenny who plays the role of 'Rabinda', the elder brother of Amit (Bonny Deuri). Rabinda suffers from occasional memory loss following a head injury. Bonny is already deeply in love with a martial arts trainer Maya (Poonam Gurung) and desperately looking for a job to get settled urgently. However, the quest for a job leads Amit to a broker who demands a hefty amount for a job. Besides, two other obstacles complicate the situation for Amit. One, Maya's father's objection (Bibhuti Bhushan Hazarika) about their union and secondly, the ploy of Maya's past lover (Kaushik Nath), who engages a Break up-Guru (Tony Deori Basumatary) to stop their marriage. A freely moving gang of goons is one challenge that they often deal with. Amidst the pulls and pressures of all these impediments and conflict of good and evils, some lay defeated, and some turn victorious.

In Kenny Basumatary's film, the plot is not important but the progression is. The way his films go about unfolding a series of situations one after another in great rhythm and flair while having comic moments embedded in their narratives (like hidden treasures), invariably translate to unbridled laughter.

On the other hand, the sharp and incisive hilarious single liners notwithstanding, Kenny's films very often highlight the ills or woes of society or mankind like a conscience shaker which indeed keeps him in good stead. In his films, on the other hand, the word 'local' evokes lots of expressions altogether, because, mostly they portray commonplace stories about common people who represent different segments of society. Besides, the major chunk of unprofessional actors mostly picked up from different tribal or other ethnic groups and communities of Assam like Bodo, Mishing, Nepali, Ahom, Koch, Kalita etc. also gives his films an ethnological significance, which is also reflective of the multi-ethnic and multifarious society of Assam.

By: Bitopan Borborah

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