Mumbai: Valu, or “bull” in Marathi is what debutant director Umesh Kulkarni's film is all about.

The story revolves around a wild bull and how villagers discover various problems in their life, from village politics to family tensions, as they struggle to catch the bull.

The film, which released last Friday, is being premiered at the ongoing Rotterdam International Film Festival.

“I found the potential of juxtaposition of a free bull and all the other bulls in the village which are bound, not free,” said Kulkarni.

“In a way, it was like allegory for me being an artist and wanting to do something which is different and am not really comfortable with the rules and regulations of the society.”

It’s not only the film's subject which is interesting, but also the way it got made.

After his diploma film Girni got the National Award, Kulkarni believed that finding funding for his debut feature would be easy. But after meeting some 40 different producers, Umesh decided to produce it himself, taking loan from friends and family.

Impressed with the film's rushes, the Rotterdam Film Festival granted him the Hubert Bal Funds of €20,000 to complete his film.

“This fund was really necessary because we wanted to use DI, and wanted to use several things in post-production,” Kulkarni explained. “Otherwise we were almost out of funds at the time of the final mixing and the print stage.”

Kulkarni’s gamble paid off when Mukta Arts picked up the film for distribution, making it their first Marathi venture.