'Supermen of Malegaon' releases after four years

'Supermen of Malegaon' will take on 'The Amazing Spiderman' at the box office next week.

'Supermen of Malegaon' will take on 'The Amazing Spiderman' at the box office next week.

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Four years after it was made, Faiza Ahmad Khan's award-winning documentary will be released across theatres on June 29. The film, which put Malegaon's unique film industry in the spotlight, will compete for audiences with the latest Spiderman flick.

The winner of Best Documentary at the Asiatica Film Mediale in Rome, among others, Khan's documentary follows the journey of director Shaikh Nasir and his team, a group of cinema buffs from Malegaon, as they go about making 'Yeh Hai Malegaon ka Superman'.

Located less than 300 km from Mumbai, Malegaon is driven by its power loom industry and is also known for its unique film industry, Mollywood, which churns out small-budget rip-offs of Bollywood hits. Nasir, who has made 'Malegaon ka Sholay' and 'Malegaon ka Ghajini', took the first leap to remake a Hollywood movie with 'Yeh Hai Malegaon ka Superman'.

Shaikh Shafique, a mill worker who played Mollywood's red-caped superhero, died of cancer last year. He was the keenest about the documentary's theatrical release, said Khan.

Though it is rare for documentaries to get a commercial release, the 64-minute documentary is being released as part of PVR Director's Rare, an initiative launched by PVR Cinemas to support critically acclaimed independent films from across the globe.

"The films haven't been selected with just a 'niche' audience in mind. We make sure that they have engaging value besides their unique take on a particular subject. Moreover, 'Supermen of Malegaon' already has a cult following," said Shiladitya Bora, who heads PVR Director's Rare.

"The documentary has a universal theme - everyone's rooting for the underdog," said Khan, an alumna of Sophia Polytechnic.