By Brij Khandelwal, IANS
Agra : Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati will soon be immortalised on celluloid with an ambitious commercial film being produced on her life.
Titled "Bahenji The Great Sister," the film is set to be released in January 2008.
"The film's shooting will start next month. It will be shot in Noida, Bijnaur, Saharanpur, Lucknow and Agra. The script is based on Mayawati's own book which chronicles all her struggles and tribulations right from her childhood to her sweeping victory in the last Uttar Pradesh polls," Govind Agarwal, the film's music director, told IANS:
Agarwal said Mayawati's role is to be essayed by Pratibha Kannan, who has acted in films like "Gadar", "Dushman" and "Bunty aur Babli".
"The best thing about Pratibha is her close resemblance with Mayawati," Govind added.
Directed by Kailash Kumar Masoom, who comes from a village near Mayawati's birthplace in Gautam Buddha Nagar, the film will have seven songs.
"I have given a completely local flavour to the music using Indian instruments. It is bound to be a hit. My songs focus on social injustices and struggles of both (Dr. B.R.) Ambedkar and Mayawati. The message will hit the right chord among the Dalits," said Agarwal.
The song "UP chaman hoga" has the following lines set to high crescendo score — "Andhiara jayega, bahina ke sashan mein ujiara aayega," (Darkness will be dispelled, there will be light in sister's reign). It could easily become the anthem of the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP).
"I think Mayawati should be the new role model for aspiring young women. Coming from a non-descript village of a highly caste ridden society, she charted her own destiny without any political inheritance," he added.