Deepa Mehta’s tales from behind the scenes were what really stole the show at the screening of her film Midnight’s Children during the Writers Festival Oct. 24.
The film is an adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s novel by the same name.
The Midnight’s Children are a group who obtain superpowers at birth in the wake of India’s independence August 15, 1947. Their stories are told through Saleem who has the power to bring the children together.
The film follows his growth with the backdrop of a post-British colonial India.
“This is a coming of age story of a young man and a young country,” the Indian-born Canadian director Mehta said. The production of the film was a story in and of itself.
“This was a four-year sojourn, we had many stories,” Mehta said.
In one of the most large-scale scenes, a colourful parade celebrating the formation of Bangladesh floods the streets of the new republic.
“I lost an elephant and I never did find it,” Mehta laughed. “We lost a couple of cobras too.”
However, she seemed to be mum about one of the film’s most controversial backstories.
When asked about challenges Mehta faced — undoubtedly referring to when the Sri Lankan government shut down production — she didn’t go into details.
“We did and it was very brief,” she said. “This was a political one.”
Mehta deferred to the film’s producer, David Hamilton, who is also her husband.
He explained that the Sri Lankan government took away filming permission, bowing to pressure from Iran which he noted supplies 80 per cent of Sri Lanka’s oil.
This story goes back to before production had even begun. Rushdie received death threats for writing “The Satanic Verses,” a story inspired by Muhammad. When the Iranian government heard one of Rushdie’s novels were being adapted, they took action in protest.
After going straight to Sri-Lankan officials and appealing to the Canadian government, Hamilton said they were able to resume filming at all 64 locations with their crew of 124 actors.
Without spoiling anything, the film has a happy ending too. Mehta has been very vocal about the film’s message of optimism and hope. That’s not to say it skips out on the darker side of Saleem and India’s growth over their forming years. The film is critical throughout and demonstrates the disparity of wealth that persists even after independence.
Mehta’s direction and Rushdie’s writing contrast the “rich boy” Saleem and his poor neighbor Shiva. Both are Midnight’s Children but lead drastically different lives, pursuing radical and peaceful approaches to equality in the country.
Mehta has filmed extensively about India regarding issues of poverty but this film was still a departure from usual her female point of view stories about more personal struggles.
The film has been critiqued for leaving out much of the personalized elements found in the Midnight’s Children novel in favour of telling the historical tale of India. But if the Ottawa premiere is any indication, the film should have a positive reception in theatres Nov. 2.
The 350 tickets for the evening screening had sold out a month in advance, according to festival co-founder Neil Wilson. Organizers even added a matinee “overflow’ screening.
“We were extremely lucky to get Deepa Mehta to come,” Wilson said. “It was like a mini Toronto International Film Festival.”
