Naach Bhikhari Naach
Directed by Jainendra Dost & Shilpi Gulati
Bhojpuri with English Subtitles
72 min/Colour
PSBT/Doordarshan
About the film:
Naach is a form of traditional folk theatre from Bihar, India. In this tradition, male artists often cross dress as women on stage and are referred to as ‘laundas’. The most legendary name in this tradition is Bhikari Thakur’s— who was an actor, playwright, and a social reformer popularly known as the ‘Shakespeare of Bhojpuri.’ The film follows the last four Naach performers to have worked him and creates a visual archive of their performance tradition. As they share their plays, songs ad a lifetime of memories of performance, they immerse us into the world of folk theatre where we begin to see a glimpse of budhau – the old man, himself.

About the filmmakers:
Jainendra is a doctoral scholar at the School of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University. His work examines the social and political realities of Launda Nach and Bhikhari Thakur's folk theatre in Bihar. His theoretical inquiry closely ties into his experience as a theatre practitioner over the 18 years where he has directed 11 stage productions and acted in more than 15 national and international theatre presentations. Jainendra is also the Director of Bhikhari Thakur Repertory Training and Research Centre which is working towards the revival of folk theatre in Bihar. In the past, his work has been supported by India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) and Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India.

Shilpi Gulati is a filmmaker and researcher based out of New Delhi. Her body of work largely engages with themes of gender, performance and oral traditions in India. Her last documentary ‘Qissa-e Parsi’ (2014) won the National Award for the Best Ethnographic Film and her other works, ‘Inside Out’ (2010), ‘Dere to Delhi’ (2012) and ‘Lock and Key’ (2017) have been screened at various festivals in Asia, Europe and the US. Shilpi is also a Fulbright scholar and is currently pursuing her PhD at Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Primary Crew:
Director: Jainendra Dost & Shilpi Gulati
Producer: Rajiv Mehrotra
Executive Producers: Ridhima Verma and Tulika Srivastava
Director of Photography: Udit Khurana
Editor: Shilpi Gulati
Sound: Varun Venugopal
Research: Jainendra Dost
Music: Bhikhari Thakur Repertory
Assistant Director: Vishwa Gulati
Translations: Lourdes Mary Supriya & Jainendra Dost

Review Excerpts:
“A tender homage to the legendary Bihari folk artist and singer Bhikhari Thakur” - Scroll
“A little-known folk art form is sweeping away barriers of caste and gender, one Launda at a time”- Hindustan Times
“Archiving, documentation and a new kind of storytelling” – Cinestaan
“A research scholar and a National Award-winning filmmaker join forces to explore the history and relevance of a folk theatre form from Bihar” - Indian Express

*Gold Award, Jakarta International Film & Art Festival
*Jecheon International Music & Film Festival, Seoul
*Best Documentary, Film Festival of Boston, Burlington
*International Film Festival of India, Goa
*Echo BRICS Film Festival, Moscow
*Woodpecker International Film Festival, New Delhi
*Jagran Film Festival, Varanasi, Allahabad, Patna
*11th Dialogues  International LGBT Film & Video Festival, Kolkata
*Habitat Film Festival, Delhi, India
*8th International Folk Music Film Festival, Kathmandu, Nepal
*Patna Film Festival, Patna, India.
*Banglore Queer Film Festival, Banglore, India.
*Cinema of Resistance Film Festival
*Gorakhpur Film Festival, Gorakhpur, India
*Saran Film Festival, Chapra, India.