EXCLUSIVE: 'June' directors Suhrud Godbole, Vaibhav Khisti on why the film is so different

June is an upcoming Marathi film written by Nikhil Mahajan, starring Nehha Pendse and Siddharth Menon in lead roles and is directed by two debutant directors, Suhrud Godbole and Vaibhav Khisti. The duo has already been earning praises as their first directorial venture has fared extremely well at Film festivals in India and overseas. In this exclusive conversation with the two directors, they reveal what makes June so special and different.

June is about the struggles that people face in a small town. Director Suhrud Godbole, said "It's a very tense film. It's a very emotional, intense and hard-hitting film and so I think emotionally, all of us were drained by the end of it. We were drained because of the intensity of the topic we were dealing with that got to us at one point and that has thankfully translated on-screen also. I hope that people connect with it because what we're trying to talk about has not been dealt with in Marathi in the past few years and it's going to be a very different experience for the people when they watch the film."

What is at the crux of June the film?

Director Godbole hinted at brokenness and healing. "We all break at points. We all are wounded inside at different points in our lives. The film deals with how people deal with being broken, being wounded, being hurt and reaching a point of no return and then coming back from that. So I think that whoever has lost hope in their life and whoever is trying to get out of it, they will find that healing can be really beautiful if you allow it to happen," he expressed.  When asked about audience expectations, director Vaibhav Khisti said, "What we've shown here (in the film) is more than just love and romance. It hits you at the most intimate corner in your subconscious leaving you with nothing but the feeling of healing." Considering the fact that the movie has travelled at various film festivals and earned accolades even before its release, the filmmakers are quite upbeat about the movie.

A never-seen-before June cast

The film will see a fresh new pairing of Nehha Pendse and Siddharth Menon. On their lead actors, the directors seemed to have made some amazing revelations. Director Khisti said, "We had a bunch of people who knew what they were supposed to do. With Nehha and Siddharth, especially. Sid, of course, I knew the way he has worked in films and plays, but Nehha was a big surprise for me because of the kind of body of work that I've seen of hers; this is completely going to change the way people look at her. She was amazing." 

Another revelation from the June cast came in the form of actor Resham for the directors who think will be a "surprise package" of the film. "Not many people are talking about her right now but that will completely change once the film is out because she had a very difficult role to play. Especially for a girl to voice and to speak freely about issues that young girls today face in small-towns, I think Resham has done a fantastic job." June releases on June 30, 2021, on Planet Marathi. 

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