I may make film on Vidarbha agrarian crisis: Bhandarkar

Nagpur, Sep 6 (UNI) Noted film director Madhur Bhandarkar has said that although he was moved by the plight of the distressed farmers in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, he has no plans to make a film on the issue right away.

Talking to mediapersons here today, Bhandarkar said he did not want to make a film on the issue as some other filmmakers were already producing a movie on the same theme. However, it did not mean that he would never make a film on the issue himself, he said.

''I want to wait and see if the film now under production is completed. I would definitely like to make a film on the farmer suicides in Vidarbha if I come across a story that is suitable to be made into a film,'' Bhandarkar said.

The director was in the city to hand over the prize money that he received with the National Award for Best Director for his film 'Traffic Signal', to the widows of three debt-ridden farmers of Vidarbha.

Speaking on the gesture, Bhandarkar said it was his own little personal contribution to alleviate the sufferings of the farmers.

Admitting that this was a one-time deed, Bhandarkar said that he also wanted to do something in the long-term for the distressed families.

The acclaimed filmmaker said, ''I was born in a poor family and have come up the hard way. That is why the troubles and tribulations of the poor and downtrodden move me, and I make films that reflect these realities,'' he said.

Earlier, at a brief and sombre ceremony, Bhandarkar handed over the prize money of Rs 2.5 lakh to Kamal Kashinath Waghmare of Buldhana, and Sangita Prakash Darane and Sugandha Shyam Kannake of Yavatmal.

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