Curated by Bina Paul
Schedule
Friday, 31 August 2018:
15:00: Prakasan, (Director: Basheer Mohammad, 2017, colour, 84min, Malayalam, English subtitles)
17:30: To Let (Director: Chezhiyan Ra, 2017, colour, 99min, Tamil, English subtitles) | Followed by a discussion with the director, Chezhiyan Ra
Saturday, 1 September 2018:
11:00: Ishu (Director: Utpal Borpujari, 2017, colour, 91min, Assamese, English subtitles)
14:00: Mercury (Director: Karthik Subbaraj, 2018, colour, 108min, No Dialogue)
17:30: Gali Guliyan / In the Shadows (Director: Dipesh Jain, 2017, colour, 117min, Hindi) | Followed by a discussion with the director, Dipesh Jain and Manoj Bajpai
Sunday, 2 September 2018:
11:00: Ajji (Director: Devashish Makhija, 2017, colour, 104 min, Marathi)
14:00: Teen Aur Aadha / Three and a Half (Director: Dar Gai, 2018, colour, 119min, Hindi/Marathi/English)
17:30: Chitra / Nude (Director: Ravi Jadhav, 2018, colour, 110min, Marathi) | Followed by a discussion with the director, Ravi Jadhav
While Bollywood dominates the discourse on Indian Cinema, there is also a new genre of the “good, middle road cinema” that is emerging in Hindi language films. These films are efficiently made and are almost always favourites in film festival circuits. Regional cinema continues to flourish, catering to its own audiences, occasionally being screened outside. Due to the commercial interests of distribution, often these very innovative, cinematic and rooted films hardly get to be seen outside the language regions. The films in this selection are those that are heard about, but not easy to access. Spanning the last two years, they introduce filmmakers working in regional languages who also have a need to meet audiences from newer constituencies, to build the profile of an “Indian Cinema”.
© Bina Paul
Bina Paul graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) with a specialisation in editing. She has edited over 40 feature films and has worked with illustrious directors like G Aravindan, John Abraham and P N Menon. She is a recipient of two National Awards and numerous State Awards for editing. She has been the Artistic Director of the International Film Festival of Kerala for seventeen years and has been instrumental in shaping it into an important international event. She has served on the juries of various international film festivals including those held in Locarno, Durban, Morocco and Berlin. Bina is a regular faculty at the FTII and CDIT (Science & Development Documentary Course). She is currently the Vice Chairperson of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy and Vice President NETPAC.
______________________________
© Feelreel Cinemas
Prakasan
(Director: Basheer Mohammad, 2017, colour, 84min, Malayalam, English subtitles)
The film centres on Prakasan, a carefree and guileless tribal youth. He lives a secluded, pampered life with family and friends in the luscious forest land of Chamakudy, Kerala, who survive on the pittance they earn off their rich forest produce. But Prakasan’s dream of leaving for a big city is coming true. Amazingly, he has found a job in bustling industrial Kochi, some distance away. His mother, sister, girlfriend and friends are all sad at his departure, but the undaunted man takes off the next day.
© Chezhiyan Ra
To Let
(Director: Chezhiyan Ra, 2017, colour, 99min, Tamil, English subtitles)
To Let is the story of a couple with a child. It takes place in 2007 in the Indian city of Chennai, which is experiencing a real estate boom as a result of an exponential development of the IT sector. The child likes to draw; the mother likes plants and the father tries to break into the world of cinema. Their greedy landlady wants to rent out their apartment to anyone else who can pay more, giving the family only thirty days to find new housing with their modest middle-class income. On their mopeds they start a race against time and all kinds of prejudice.
© Children’s Film Society, India
Ishu
(Director: Utpal Borpujari, 2017, colour, 91min, Assamese, English subtitles)
Happy-go-lucky Ishu’s world in a remote, tribal village in Assam, Northeastern India, revolves around his friends or Bhalu, his pet puppy. His days are spent with them, and with his favourite Ambika “Jethi” (aunt). But one day, Ishu’s happy world turns topsy-turvy as the village “Bej” (quack), in a conspiracy hatched with another of Ishu’s Jethi’s, Bhadreswari, declares Ambika as a witch. Beaten up by the mob and her house burnt down, Ambika vanishes, and no one seems to know where she is. Will Ishu be able to find her? What happened to Ambika?
© Mercury
Mercury (Director: Karthik Subbaraj, 2018, colour, 108min, No Dialogue)
Five long time friends, all of whom are maimed as a result of mercury poisoning, come together for their high school reunion. But, a moment of mischief and misfortune during the after-party puts them on a one way road to hell.
© Extant Motion Pictures
Gali Guliyan / In the Shadows
(Director: Dipesh Jain, 2017, colour, 117min, Hindi)
In the Shadows is a psychological drama about a man who is trapped within the walls of the old city of Delhi and his own mind, who attempts to break free to find a human connection.
© Ajji
Ajji
(Director: Devashish Makhija, 2017, colour, 104 min, Marathi)
Little Manda is found raped and dumped in a trash heap in her slum. Her parents are more concerned with survival than dignity and want to forget and move on. The cops are powerless to help as the rapist is a local politician's son. But Manda's grandmother, Ajji, cannot accept the injustice of it all. Can a frail, arthritic and powerless old woman grapple with the big bad wolf? Is there still hope for justice in a cruel world? Can anything act as a deterrent to rape? Ajji is a parable of our times. There are no easy answers.
© The Jugaad Motion Pictures
Teen Aur Aadha / Three and a Half
(Director: Dar Gai, 2018, colour, 119min, Hindi/Marathi/English)
The story of one house in three different eras. 50 years ago it was divided between a school and an apartment, in which a young boy struggles with the pressures of pre-pubescent school life, coupled with sharing a tiny room with his paralysed, disconsolate grandfather. The grandfather in turn has devious plans for the child’s 12th birthday. 20 years later, the building houses a brothel where a young, unexploited concubine is dealing with her self-proclaimed “first” client. Now, 30 years later these same walls surround a sublime home, which belongs to a 75 year old couple who love, laugh and dance together.
© ZEE Studios & Athaansh Communications
Chitra / Nude
(Director: Ravi Jadhav, 2018, colour, 110min, Marathi)
After her husband abandons her and their 12 year old son for another woman; Yamuna is left with no choice but to move to Mumbai for survival. The job she finds is that of a nude model at an art school. She will do everything to fulfill her dream to help her son lead a successful life in future. But fearing society, she keeps her profession a secret.
To attend the festival, please register by sending an email to: Shweta.Wahi@goethe.de
Back
