Indian film ‘‘The Tree full of parrots’’ (2021, Malayalam language) directed by Jayaraj talks about compassion which is vanishing from society © Mr.Lalit Rao (FIPRESCI) 27.05.2022  Cinema as an art form is important in India as more than 1000 films are made annually. Indian cinema is one of those rare national cinemas which has challenged the hegemony of Hollywood. Cinema as an industry gives numerous opportunities to various indigenous film industries to mak...

IFFI 52, 021: Sainbari massacres missing from history books Why is the battle of Sainbari not in our history books, where 15,000 people were killed in just one night, was the question posed by the director of IFFI 52 Indian Panorama Non Feature Film Sainbari to Sandeshkhali. “If Jallianwala Bagh, Battle of Panipat and Battle of Buxar appear in our history books, why not Battle of Sainbari?” This is the rather incontestable question raised by Sanghamitra Chaudhuri, director of th...

IFFI 52, 02: Entries close on 31 August There is still time to enter your films for the 52nd International Film Festival of India, which will be held in a hybrid format during November 20-28, 2021, in Panaji, Goa, Western India. The last date for submission of Online Application is 31st August, 2021. International entries are accepted if they conform to the following rules: NOTE: Classroom and advertising films are not eligible for participation in any section. NOTE: Final screening ma...

IFFI 51, 48: Prawaas exhorts people to embrace minimalism “Earlier, we used to regard the whole world as one family: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. But now, even the family is not regarded as family. We have to stop running the rat race; we have to stay happy and realise that we can be happy only by helping others.” This is the heartfelt message conveyed by Shashank Udapurkar, Director of the Marathi film Prawaas, which has been screened at the 51st International Film Festival of India, i...

IFFI 51, 45: Aavartan is an attempt to showcase kathak in the time of item dances Renuka, a disciple of Kathak maestro Bhawna Saraswati, begins to add a new dimension to the dance form she inherited from her. This puts Bhawna in a state of insecurity and identity crisis. Not knowing how to deal with her emotional self, she starts dejecting Renuka, making it painful for Renuka. Renowned Kathak Dancer Padma Shri Shovana Narayan has played the role of Bhawna Saraswati in the film Aavartan, whic...

RIFF 7, 05: Pride of Rajasthan Award to go to producer Om Chhangani The 7th edition of the Rajasthan International Film Festival (RIFF), accredited by the Federation of Film Societies of India (FFSI-North Region) will be organised by the RIFF Film Club, in a Hybrid Format, from 20 to 24th March 2021 in Jaipur and Jodhpur, Rajasthan - India. This year, the theme for the RIFF 2021 is "Music in Cinema". RIFF 2021 will also celebrate the Pre Foundation Day of Rajasthan. The Founder, Di...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 43: Malayalam film Thahira; struggles of a partially deaf woman and a visually impaired man “Thahira’s never-give-up attitude towards life helped in taking care of her sisters’ education and marriages. She also constructed a house with her hard-earned money, after her family lost everything due to her father's debts”. The Malayalam feature film ‘Thahira’, under IFFI 51 Indian Panorama Feature Film section, tells the story of a r...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 36: Gandhi and the power of the powerless The IFFI 51 Indian Panorama Non Feature film 'Ahimsa - Gandhi: The Power of the Powerless' decodes the power of non-violence and why it remains relevant to this day. It brings to the fore the global impact of the Gandhian message of non-violence: how it inspired several world leaders, the Civil Rights Movement in the United States; the Solidarity Movement in Poland as well as Nelson Mandela and the anti-apartheid strugg...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 34: Six hours to school; picking Prithviraj Das Gupta’s Green Blackberries “They had to walk first, and then row the boat, and, later on, they will have to take some other vehicles to reach the school, which meant six hours of journey for them to get education. In the schools, we found out that there was only one room and each bench was a class. Yet, it was inspiring to meet the kids and adults with whatever knowledge they have, who knew the value of educat...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 32: June is the tale of a troubled boy and a mysterious woman “Healing is Beautiful. Through our film, we want to show that if there is a part of you that's broken, if there is a part of you which needs healing, that process will happen. Be open and have a conversation.” This is the message conveyed by Directors Suhrud Godbole and Vaibhav Khisti of the Marathi film June, which has been screened in the Indian Panorama Feature Film section of the 51st edi...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 28: Onkar Diwadkar’s Still Alive, a psycho-drama on suicide “My film tells the story of a young protagonist who reaches the verge of suicide, leading to a psychological realisation. The protagonist wants more to run away from her life situation, than she wants to commit suicide; but we cannot escape our situation, we need to go through our situation and overcome it, with the help of a realisation.” Director and Producer Onkar Diwadkar was sharing the ...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 25: PCs of Kripal Kalita, Blessy Ipe Thomas Kripal Kalita’s Assamese language film, ‘The Bridge’, throws light on the devastations and hardships that floods bring to Assam villages every year. “There is no solution in sight for this problem. I, being a farmer’s son, hailing from rural Assam, have faced this,” said Kalita, while addressing a press conference, at the 51st International Film Festival of India (IFFI), held in Goa, on the...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 23: John Mathew Matthan talks about Sarfarosh-2 “I have travelled all over India in search of content for my films”. “It is important for any film-maker to understand the elements of sociology and politics”. “I think a writer or director should be sensitive about the society. You can put across your point without being offensive to anyone”. These are the words of John Mathew Matthan, Chairperson of IFFI 51 Indian Panorama Jury, an...

IFFI 51, 16-24 January, 2021, 19: PC of director Sharan Venugopal and actor Bhargava Poludasu A mother accidentally finds a nude video of her daughter in her laptop – Oru Paathira Swapnam Pole (Indian Panorama Non-feature film) by Sharan Venugopal. A person who lost his memory in an accident and gets trapped in a house with a psychopath – Gatham (Indian Panorama Feature Film) by Kiran Kondamadugula. Debutant film-maker Sharan Venugopal and Actor/Producer Bhargava Poludasu, addre...

IFFI Goa 2017, VIII: Message of Sunit Tandon, Festival Director In the run-up to the International Film Festival of India, Panaji, Goa, November 20-28, I continue to monitor the news and developments. Here’s one link I found: http://iffigoa.org/indian-cinema-catalogue-2017/ At the bottom is a button called Download. When you click on it, you get: Sorry! Page not Found Back To Home However, on the second link, found right next to the above link, http://iffigoa.org/international-cin...

IFFI Goa 2017, VI: Sexy Durga and Nude--two films you will not see Since the first screening as a work in progress film in the NFDC Film Bazaar, held in Goa, 2016, Sexy Durga (Malayalam) received good reviews from the viewers. Also talked about ever since it was launched was the Marathi film, Nude. Both were selected by the selections juries to be shown at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) Goa 2017, which begins in a week from now. Both have since been removed from the list, an...

IFFI Goa 2017, IV: No Director, no Jt. Director, but the Indian film lists are out Press Information Bureau (PIB), Mumbai, is largely invested with managing the media at International Film Festival of India (IFFI). Their home page has the following address: http://pibmumbai.gov.in/# On this home page, you are greeted with a pop up about the government’s cleanliness drive. Click on the cross at the top right hand corner there, and the pop-up closes. Now you are led to a site whose addr...

IFFI Goa 2015, Festival Diary, II To be held from November 20th to 30 2015 in Panaji, Goa, Goa, the 46th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will showcase movies across several sections, including World Cinema, Indian Panorama, Country Focus, International Competition, Retrospectives, Tributes, First Cut, Workshops, Master Classes,  and more. IFFI is organised by the Directorate of Film Festivals, Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Government of India, in association with the...