It was a special evening that witnessed the trailer of upcoming Marathi thriller Chhabi which unfolded songs and dance and culminated into the biggest riddle of who is the girl in the pictures clicked by a photographer with the intent to enter his creative pictures into the photography contest. Does she really exist?
The mystery of the photo will be revealed in the Marathi film Chhabi that is directed by Advait Masurkar and features Sameer Dharmadhikari, Makarand Deshpande, Shubhangi Gokhale along with debutante Dhruv Chheda.
A young photographer has to send photos for a photography competition. For this, he goes to Konkan. He goes to Konkan and takes photos of a girl. In reality, no one is seen in that photo. But that photographer sees a girl in that photo. What is the story behind this photo? Who is that girl? The answers to these questions will be seen on the big screen. A mysterious story set against the backdrop of the nature-rich Konkan region has been presented in the film Chhabi.
Paresh B. Mehta, Editor of Filmytown.com has one on one chat with the lead players of this unusual Marathi film. Makarand Deshpande reveals about his role in the film, “I am the photographer and what I have captured in my picture is CHHABI. The photographer is so overwhelmed with his pictures that the delusion of the nature’s beautiful image deranges him. The film is about what one’s eyes can’t see, but you can see it through your heart is captured in camera, then where is it?”
“Photography is the art of capturing a moment in time—freezing emotion, light, and perspective into a single frame. It’s the cameraman who seizes that fleeting instant, turning it into something timeless. Through my journey as an actor, I’ve come to appreciate the subtle intricacies of photography, thanks to my photographer friends. Their craft has taught me how framing, lighting, and timing can transform a simple shot into a powerful story,” Makarand Deshpande responds with heartfelt sincerity.
It is the debut film for Dhruv Chheda who plays the young photographer Parth who clicks photos of a girl in Konkan. He gets a strange experience from those photos. The story of what is really the mystery behind those photos will be seen in the film Chhabi. “It was so beautiful to shoot this film in Konkan as it is very close to my heart. The youth would surely connect to the narrative of the film.”
So is the film a debut directorial venture for Advait Masurkar who has done several Marathi Television serials and commercial ad films. “I believe that camera can be made as a medium that is pivotal to the story. This initial thought ignited the idea of writing and directing this feature film. In the past few years, various stories set against the backdrop of Konkan have been coming to the fore in films. The nature of Konkan, its people, customs, and language have been depicted in them,” summed up the director.
Produced by Jaya Talakshi Chheda of KK Films Creation in collaboration with Ups Digital Entertainment, Chhabi is written and directed by Advait Masurkar. The film features experienced actors like Sameer Dharmadhikari, Makarand Deshpande, Shubhangi Gokhale, Rajan Bhise, Sanjay Kulkarni, Leena Pandit along with new actors like Dhruv Chheda, Srushti Bhakkar, Anagha Atul, Rohit Lad, Gyanesh Kadam. The songs written by Mangesh Kangane, Prashant Madpuwar have been composed by Rohan-Rohan and Abhay Jodhpurkar, lyrics by Rohan-Rohan and the cinematography is by Rohan Madkaikar. Chhabi, the Marathi Suspense thriller film will be released all over Maharashtra on September 25.
