Odisha On The Rise short film by Ravi Varman, Nila Madhab Panda

Odisha-born filmmaker Nila Madhab Panda has produced “Odisha On The Rise”, a series of three short films, which was recently screened in Delhi.

Ravi Varman, who has shot films like ‘Sanju’, ‘Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela’ and ‘Barfi’, spent 20 days in Odisha for the shoot. He is the cinematographer and director of ‘Odisha On The Rise’ short film.

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Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik released the video and tweeted, “Thank you ace cinematographer, filmmaker S Ravi Varman, and Padma Shri @nilamadhabpanda for beautifully chronicling Odisha’s march from despair to hope since catastrophic super cyclone. Appreciate your effort to highlight #Odisha’s transformational journey. #OdishaOnTheRise.”

Nila Madhab Panda said, “Through these videos, I wanted to show the transformation of the state. Around 18-20 years back, Odisha was only known for its poverty and calamities, but now it has changed. I wanted to capture the transformation and beauty of Odisha in these videos. Go to Odisha, you will feel like you are in Scotland!”

Ravi Varman said, “Last year, I went to Odisha to shoot for the hockey anthem. Odisha is cinematically beautiful and I really liked how clean the state is. It was then that I thought that let me shoot whatever I can during my stay. I travelled across the state – from Bhitarkanika to Satkosia – for shooting. But we couldn’t use all those clips in these videos due to time constraint.”

Odisha On The Rise short film also shows several dance forms, and Ravi says, “I have also used tracks of the Odia musicians in these videos because I wanted to keep the flavour of the state. I showed my videos to Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, and he liked them. They can use these videos for tourism purposes if they wish to.”