Village Rockstars 2 Explained

Village Rockstars 2 is a 2024 Indian-Singapore Assamese language coming-of-age drama film written, edited, produced and directed by Rima Das. Sequel to Village Rockstars (2017), revisits the life of Dhunu, seven years after the events of the last film.^[1]

The film premiered at the 29th Busan International Film Festival on 4 October 2024 competing in the Kim Jiseok section,^[2] where it won Kim Jiseok Award.

Synopsis

Dhunu, now in her late teens, still climbs trees, swims, and most importantly, dreams of continuing her childhood life as a guitarist in her rock band. However, life does not unfold as Dhunu wishes. As she faces the bitter and sour moments of life, she stands on the threshold of leaving her once-happy childhood behind.

Cast

• Bhanita Das as Dhunu
• Basanti Das
• Manabendra Das as Dhunu's elder brother
• Boloram Das
• Bhaskar Das
• Junumoni Das

Release

Village Rockstars 2 had its world premiere at 29th Busan International Film Festival on 4 October 2024.^[3] It was also selected for the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2024, where it competed in the South Asia Competition section.^[4]

Reception

Nikki Baughan reviewing the film for ScreenDaily praised Bhanita Das for giving "a low-key, naturalistic performance conveying Dhunu’s deep connection to this land and her family". Baughan felt that the Rima Das has given "subtle approach" to the film which "extends to every element of Village Rockstars 2, giving it the feeling of a documentary." Baughan opined that "Rima Das has used the narrative as a way of amplifying the struggles of the people of Assam, which is bearing the effects of climate change and cut-throat battle for land and resources."^[5]

Accolades

The film competed for Kim Jiseok award at Busan International Film Festival, which is given to 2 films from the selected 10 films in the competition category for the Asian directors who have directed more than 3 feature films, and present their new film for premiere in the festival.

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result
Busan International Film Festival	11 October 2024	Kim Jiseok Award	Rima Das		[6] [7]
MAMI Mumbai Film Festival	24 October 2024	South Asia Competition	Rima Das

Notes and References

1. Web site: Village Rockstars 2 . Busan International Film Festival. September 12, 2024. September 13, 2024. en.
2. Web site: Busan Competition Titles Include Films By Brillante Mendoza, Rima Das & Tom Lin. Sara . Merican . 27 August 2024. 29 August 2024 . . en.
3. Web site: Rima Das' 'Village Rockstars 2' to compete for Kim Jiseok Award at Busan International Film Festival. 27 August 2024. The Hindu. 13 September 2024.
4. Web site: Scroll Staff . 2024-10-09 . MAMI Mumbai Film Festival will open with Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine as Light’ . 2024-10-11 . Scroll.in . en.
5. Web site: ‘Village Rockstars 2’: Busan Review . Nikki. Baughan . 4 October 2024 . 5 October 2024 . ScreenDaily. en.
6. Web site: Korea’s ‘The Land Of Morning Calm’, Myanmar’s ‘MA Cry Of Silence’ Win New Currents Awards At Busan. Liz. Shackleton . October 10, 2024. October 11, 2024 . . en.
7. Web site: 'Village Rockstars 2' by Rima Das only Indian feature in Jiseok Competition at 29th Busan International Film Festival. Abdul . Gani . 27 August 2024. 13 September 2024 . . en.