Music maestro A R Rahman unveiled the first look of his latest production venture, a musical documentary on the Naga tribe, at the Bharat Pavilion of the 77th Cannes Film Festival.
'Headhunting to Beatboxing' is about how the tribe, engulfed in the depths of violence and bloodshed, resurrects itself through the healing power of music and emerges through a musical renaissance.
“Fresh from Cannes! We're thrilled to unveil the first look of our documentary, 'Headhunting to Beatboxing,' now in post-production. Stay tuned for more updates,” the Oscar and BAFTA-winning music composer wrote on the X platform. He also shared a poster of the project on his social media handles.
In an interview with Variety magazine, Rahman said he was "blown away" by the story that "we’ve been hearing for years, decades, and suddenly the transformation of young people taking to music and they’re all out in the streets. It was like a dreamland for me. I said, ‘Oh, my God, this exists and nobody knows about it".
He added that Mahatma Gandhi's non-violence was the philosophy behind the film, which is now headed to international festivals. The Cannes launch event was attended by Rahman, director Rohit Gupta, executive producer Abu Metha, Chairman of Task Force for Music & Arts Theja Meru, and other guests and dignitaries.
Described as a 'musical renaissance', the film, celebrating Nagaland’s musicians and cultural heritage, has been in the making for five years. It is Rahman's second foray into filmmaking as a producer, with his earlier production being '99 Songs'.
