Jagran Film Festival, 2026, Mumbai, 03: Lost, but not found
Jagran Film Festival, 2026, Mumbai, 03: Lost, but not found
Making the most of my early arrival (9.30) am) on Wednesday, 28 October, I decided to watch films till the last show, which would end at about 10.30 pm. During the screening of Bombay Stories (an atrocious selection), the last film to be screened in Auditorium 1 that day, I took out my pouch, unzipped it and picked out my medicine, which had to be taken at a particular time. Having located the tablet, in the dark, I zipped the pouch, and put it back in shoulder bag, which was placed on the seat next to mine.
The film was sheer torture, but since I wanted to review it, I sat through the whole film, expecting some twists in the tale. There were, one or two, but the rest of the film had no merit. Very disappointed, I came out of the Cinépolis multiplex, and went to the bus stop, to catch a bus that would take me to Bandra, where I live. I was halfway home, when it was time to take another tablet. I put my hand in my shoulder bag, but the pouch was not to be found. I searched thoroughly, with no luck. Oh no! I must have dropped it while putting it back in my shoulder bag, and left it on my seat, or it must have fallen on the carpeted floor in the cinema.
It was already about 11.00 pm, and there was no point in trying to go back and retrieve it. Multiplex housekeeping staff is used to people leaving things behind, and since this was the last show of the day, there was no possibility of a member of the audience taking it. It was a 22 cm x 14 cm black pouch, with a zip, and NETFLIX printed on it, in red. In it were some things very valuable to me, but worthless to anybody else. But, instead of waiting till the next morning, to go to Cinépolis and inquire about the lost pouch, I thought I should call A, the senior JFF team-member, and tell her to make a call to the multiplex, or to any of her colleagues, so that the pouch is immediately located and kept safely, till the next morning.
At 11.21, I sent a message (I thought it was rather late to make a call) to A, informing her about the pouch being left behind. In the message, I named the auditorium, the approximate position of my seat (it was a free-seating arrangement) and described the pouch. She replied at 11.55 pm, asking me “which audi and which seat”, both things I had mentioned in my message to her, 34 minutes ago. I saw the message as I was going to bed, and, since the information was already in my message, I did not send another message, considering the hour at that time.
The next morning, I searched the Net for the Cinépolis phone number, and found two. One was not functioning, and the other call was received by a Cinépolis staffer, who told me that they were not involved with JFF at all, and that I should follow-up with JFF. Next, I sent three messages to A. In the first one, I repeated the details of the item, the auditorium and my seat. This was sent at 9.30 am. The second was sent at 9.31 am, telling her that the house-keeping/cleaning staff would surely have found it, since it was the last show of the day, and no audience had entered the audi after we left. Surely, the auditorium would be cleaned, either after the show, or before the first show the next morning, or at both times. She did not reply to either message.
As I prepared to leave for the venue, at 11.33 pm, I sent a third message, requesting her to inquire soon, and that I would be reaching at about 1.15 pm. Again there was no reply. I sent a fourth message, at 12.64 pm, informing her that I will reach at 1.30 pm and come to the 5th floor office, to meet her, and, hopefully, collect the pouch from her. I arrived at 1.25 pm. There was a large crowd gathered there, of cameramen and fans, welcoming Pankaj Tripathi, who, now, is clearly a star. Escorting him was A. As soon as I spotted her, I greeted her. She said, “I have some good news for you. Your pouch has been found.” I heaved a sigh of relief, but the next second she was gone, lost in the swarm. I realised that it must be part of her duty to lead Pankaj to a particular room, let a few chosen people chat with him, offer him snacks and drinks and then lead him to the auditorium, where he would participate in an In Conversation session. So, there was no point in chasing her at this time.
After giving her 90 minutes to complete these formalities, I sent her my fifth message of the day, at 2.25 pm, thanking her for retrieving the pouch, and asking her when and from where could I collect it. Again, she did not reply. A reminder was sent at 2.37 pm. Again, no reply. Desperate, I then went and met several team-members of JFF, who knew nothing about A’s whereabouts and nothing about any pouch being found. They asked me to check with the Cinépolis personnel. I went to the security point, and met one man, dressed in a uniform. He said he was a security guard, and would not know anything about things lost and found. He suggested I go to the BookMyShow cabin and inquire. I did. They said I should approach the JFF staff. I had already done that, so I inquired about the location of the Cinépolis office.
There, I met a man named Narendra. He told me that his office was concerned with programming and logistics. But there was another office which might be helpful in recovering my pouch. He escorted me there, and I met a lady called Neha. She checked with a couple of persons on the phone, and told me that no pouch had been found. Nevertheless, she took my number, and told me to come back after 5.30 pm, because they night shift staff arrives around that time, and they would know more about anything lost after the last show. I did, as advised, but the night staff too had not found the pouch.
My sixth message went out to A at 6.36 pm, asking her, “…can I get my pouch back today, please?” No response. I went around inquiring about a, but was told that she had gone back to the hotel. My seventh message to her was sent at 9.17 pm, requesting her to give me the pouch ‘tomorrow’. I also called her thrice, between 9.28 and 9.37 pm. At last, she answered one of my calls. “I sent you a message with the phone number of T, who is the manager for Audi 3. You should have called her and collected it from her.” “Madam, I have not received any message from you at all, and I do not have T’s number. But let me check again and get back.” I checked. There was no message. So, I called her back, and told her that I had not received any message from her, and had not received T’s phone number either. She then sent me a V-Card file, with T’s number.
I called T immediately. She answered. “Madam, I have been given your number by A, and told to collect my pouch, which I had left behind last night in Audi 3, from you.” “What are you talking about? A has said nothing to me about any lost pouch. And I do not think any pouch has been found. We found one jacket. That’s all.” So, why did A tell me that it had been found and that I should collect it from T? Very strange and irresponsible, I thought. The next day, when I met A, she said that she had merely overheard some conversation between volunteers that a pouch had been found, and concluded that it was my pouch. But she did not remember who had made this observation, so she could not help me. Now, I was shocked! This is how senior managers behave at a film festival, when somebody is desperately looking for something valuable to him, and which he 100% left behind in an Auditorium? At 9.52 pm, I sent her a strong message, complaining about what I had been put through. She replied that she was occupied and that I should not complain, because she gave my complaint all due attention. I did not agree. Had the pouch been found, it would have taken anybody not more than 2 seconds. After this, she sent me rude emails, saying that I was telling her how to carry out her responsibilities and she did not need any suggestions or explanations from me. After several to and fro messages, I said in my message at 11.52 pm that she had been imagining things and that I had never given her any explanations or suggestions. It was strange that she had told me my pouch was found, and later refused to answer my calls and messages. She did not like my pursuing the search, which was initiated by her. Anyway, I said that the matter was now closed for me. Obviously, I could not expect to find the pouch any more. Moreover, I decided not to attend the festival on its fourth and last day, to avoid being targeted with humiliations.
To write articles about the JFF, I needed some facts, and as I did not have a single word or picture sent to me, by JFF, before or during the festival, I sent her a questionnaire. This questionnaire, I explained to her, could be answered by her, or by any other concerned person, who would have better knowledge of the question. This would make my report 100% fair and factual. If there was no response, I would have to write a one-sided report, which might not be ideal. The message was sent at 10.45 am on 31 October and the questionnaire at 3.42 pm. Since she did not reply, a reminder message was sent at 11.11 pm. There was still no response. I will now try to write the report without her inputs, or inputs from any JFF team members. Before that, I will check on their website, for some answers, and will include them, if I find them. So far, I have kept the identity of the JFF personnel secret, but, when I write the report, I might have to reveal their names.
The picture you see is not that of the lost pouch but of an identical pouch that I possess.
