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Marathi
Surya, Review: Twilight zone
Giving no clue about its content, Surya is an eponymous title, being the short form of the name of the protagonist. Symbolically, it also stands for the sun, as the dispeller of darkness. While there is no denying that the hero of the film does what all action heroes do, namely dispel darkness by annihilating the baddies, the way he is made to go about it is not only jaded but beaten to death, pun intended. Surya, made in Marathi language, with a generous dose of ...
Third Eye, 2022, 19, 06: Recapitulating the films I saw at the Asian Film Festival
Starting screenings before the inauguration is the norm at the Third Eye Asian Film Festival (TEAFF). Having attended numerous TEAFFs, I should have known about this practice. But it just slipped my mind. As a result, I missed all the films shown between 10 a.m. and 6.45 p.m. The inaugural film was from Srilanka, called The Newspaper, directed by Sarath Kothalawala and Kumara Thirimadura. But before this featur...
Trailer launch of 1st Marathi multilingual film Har Har Mahadev: 300 against 12,000
ZEE Studios' released the trailer of their upcoming film Har Har Mahadev on 10 October at the PVR Cinemas, Juhu, Mumbai. The film is the story of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (King Shivaji), from the point of view of Baji Prabhu Deshpande, who was initially an opponent, but joined ranks with Shivaji later on. The trailer is trending high in the Tamil and Telugu versions. Har Har Mahadev (a battle cry among ...
Prime Video’s first original film, Maja Ma, Trailer launch: Mad about Madhuri
One afternoon in 1984, I was invited to the Natraj Hotel, Marine Drive, Bombay, to the release get-together of Rajshri Productions’ Abodh. My benefactor, writer-director Gobind Moonis, who had wanted to cast me as the blind boy in Dosti, had now discovered a girl with a very pretty face who had learnt kathak too. But the star of the day was Gyan Shivpuri, an actor who came with a reputation. When I trie...
Bhirkit, Review: Two deaths, one funeral, one election and three greedy inheritors
Bhirkit (Marathi for ‘greed’, an approximate translation), has its heart in the right place. It deals with a subject with which millions of Indians will identify, both city-dwellers and villagers. The team gets the setting, the casting and the milieu right. The emotions are palpable and real. And yet, the film fails to knit all these elements together into a tight narrative. Inspired by his own memo...
Adrushya, Review: Invisible man meets blind twins
In the last two decades, Marathi films have thrown-up some real gems. They have also not fought shy of experimenting with both form and content. We have been treated to some films that were rooted deeply in Marathi culture and ethos, while there were others with more universal themes. Non-Marathi speaking producers, directors and writers have made their way towards Marathi filmdom, with varying degrees of success. Directed and co-written by a ...
Pushpa-The Rise – Part 1, Review: Cross your legs
Having steadfastly kept away from the staple diet of Telugu dubbed in Hindi dished out on a few TV channels 24 x 7, one was not aware of what one was in for when one went to see the press preview of Pushpa at the invitation of a major, local PR agency, albeit with a notice of 11 hours. Firstly, an eponymous film, the title is an abbreviation of PushpaRaj. Pushpa, by itself, means a flower, and is feminine. You might be pardoned for recal...
IFFI 52, 03: Call for entries in the special Goan section
The Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG), which co-organises IFFI Goa, has announced a special Goan section Konkani/Marathi feature and non-feature films, for the 52nd International Film Festival of India(IFFI), Goa which is scheduled to be held in Panaji-Goa from 20th to 28th November 2021. The aim of the Special Goan Première and Non-Première Sections Konkani/Marathi Feature and Non-Feature Films for the 52nd IFFI is to s...
Oh My Ghost, Review: The suicidal man and the four selfish ghosts who want him to live
Different in many ways from the usual horror ghost dramas, both international and Indian, and even dissimilar to Casper, the Friendly Ghost, Oh My Ghost is a Marathi language film that is interesting in parts, but does not have enough to leave a lasting impression. It uses not one but four ghosts, two each from either gender and with vast differences in ages. At its heart is the tragi-comedy of a luckless, ...
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...
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, 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, 2021, Goa, 16-24 January, 03: Minister Javadekar announces the selection of films in the Indian Panorama
Information and Broadcasting Minister of the Government of India, Prakash Javadekar has announced the selection of 23 Feature and 20 non-feature films in Indian Panorama for the 51st International Film Festival of India, IFFI. The I&B Ministry organises the annual festival, through its Directorate of Film Festivals, along with the Government of Goa, in Panaji Goa. The annual ...
P se Pyaar F se Farraar, Review: On a killing
Alarming statistics at the end of the film reveal that killing of young men and women who elope or marry into other castes or religions increased by 769% last year. Reports of such barbaric brutality, called ‘honour killing’, appear in the newspapers and on TV channels regularly. States in the North, North-west and central parts of India are most severely affected. So, in the footsteps of Sairaat (Marathi) and Dhadak (Hindi), we have a...
16th Third Eye Asian Film Festival: XI
Sixteen years is a long time in the life of a film festival. It seems an even bigger achievement when you consider the upheavals that the Third Eye Asian Film Festival has undergone during its tenure. In fact, it is a miracle that it has continued, against all odds. Asian Film Foundation, headed by Kiran Shantaram, son of late V. Shantaram, remains the driving force, as does Sudhir Nandgaonkar, journalist and a bunch of teenage students pool in their res...
16th Third Eye Asian Film Festival: VIII
Besides Marathi, Bengali language films saw fair representation at TEAFF. There were two Assamese films as well. Internationally, of course, we had a strong Iranian contingent. The festival was organised in December 2017 by the Asian Film Foundation and P.L. Deshpande Maharashtra Kala Academy, and co-organised by Prabhat Chitra Mandal and Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Chitrapat Mahamandal. An annual event, it is supported by Department of Culture, Government...
16th Third Eye Asian Film Festival: V
Open Forum, a festival tradition, was held at the 16th Third Eye Asian Film Festival too, on six of the eight days. It was thoughtfully scheduled between 2 and 3 pm, December 22-27, a slot when no films were being screened. Santosh Pathare of Prabhat Film Society moderated. Compared to the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Open Forum here was confined to an interaction with the cast/directors/producers of films screened on earlier day(s). Santo...
16th Third Eye Asian Film Festival opens in Mumbai on 21 December
Prabhat Chitra Mandal, one of India’s oldest and most active film societies that is celebrating its golden jubilee this year, in collaboration with P.L. Deshpande Maharashtra Kala Academy, is holding its 16th Third Eye Asian Film Festival in Mumbai, supported by the Department of Culture, Government of Maharashtra. The festival will be inaugurated on Thursday, the 21st of December, 2117. The inauguration will be followed ...
IFFI Goa 2017, XII: Winners’ List, and a few regrets
It was an evening of regret. At the closing ceremony of the 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), which concluded in Panaji, Goa on November 28, six films/directors made it to the top, of which I had seen only 30% of one, the only one to win two prizes. Why I did not see the others, and why only 30% of a particular one will be explained below. But first, the LIST.
Films
(In absentia)
1. Morocco-born French Directo...
Poster Boys, Review by Siraj Syed: The Half Monty
Actor Shreyas Talpade’s directorial debut vehicle Poster Boys is a remake of his Marathi hit, Poshter Boyz. It also carries an elaborate scene towards the climax which reminds you of the British cult movie, The Full Monty (1997), wherein three unemployed men decide to strip on stage to earn some much needed money. Well, an Indian movie has a chance and a half of pulling off such show of skin on screen, either sex, so they decided to meet...
Kaay Raav Tumhi, Review: Come off it, you three
Three here means three old men, out to have one sexual encounter with a young woman as vindication of their ‘old is gold’ brand of virility. Sounds bold for an Indian film, and bolder for a film made in the regional Marathi language, spoken mainly in Maharashtra. Roughly translated, the title would read ‘Come off it, Sir’. Can’t help it if it sounds like a double-meaning line. Incidentally, the film is full of doubl...
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