Regional Films Showcased at the 40th IFFI, Goa

Maestro M S Sathyu, Shaji Karun, Rituparno Ghosh visit Goa to promote their films with key cast. Indian regional cinema is big! And perhaps, nowhere is it as evident as at Reliance BIG Pictures.

Four films Ijjodu, Janala, Kutty Shrank and Shob Charitro Kalponik, directed by the masters in their field and produced by Reliance Big Pictures are part of the Indian Panorama section at the 40th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) held at Goa. Today at a press conference the creative teams behind these films interacted with the press at Goa. M S Sathyu representing his Kannda film Ijjodu, Shaji Karun showcased his Malayam film Kutty Shrank and Rituparno Ghosh with his Bengali film Shob Charitro Kalponik along with the Reliance Big Pictures team interacted with press.

“We are committed to producing great regional cinema,” says Sanjeev Lamba, CEO BIG Pictures. “India has a great reservoir of creative talent. Every state, every region has something very special to offer and we are working with an array of very talented film makers.”

Filmmakers have made all four Reliance Big Pictures films that will be screened at the IFFI Goa known for their nuanced craftsmanship and deft handling of subjects and themes. They have been feted across the globe and have received international acclaim.

For Ijjodu the prolific director Padamshri M .S. Sathyu with lead actor Aniruddha Jatkar along with cameraman G. Bhaskar were present. Ijjodu talks about the responsibilities involved in helping the less privileged when Ananda, an urban young photo journalist meets Chenni, a ‘Basavi’ girl, pledged to the village deity. “Mostly people expect me to make something political,” says MS Sathyu, the filmmaker who gave us Garam Hawa, which marked a milestone in Indian cinema. “But this film has more to do with social problems rather than political issues. Also, Ijjodu features a very experimental, contemporary dance number set against traditional, devotional architecture.”

Buddhadev Dasgupta’s Bengali creation Janala starring Tapas Paul, Swastika Mukherjee and Indraneil Sengupta is the journey of a solitary man against the wrath of circumstances when he decides to pursue his little impulsive dream. The film has been screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival and the London Film Festival earlier in the year and will be part of the Dubai International Film Festival scheduled in Dec 09.

Kutty Srank’s director Shaji N. Karun, lead actress Padma Priya and cinematographer Anjuli Shukla represented the film at Goa. The police find an unidentified body on the beach, and three women turn up, each claiming it is 'her' Kutty Srank. And all the women stand poles apart in terms of temperament and social stature. “This is the first time in Kerala, probably India, that a woman cinematographer has handled the camera in a feature film,” says Shaji Karun. “Anjali Shukla has done some very good work.” After being screened at the Montreal World Film Festival and Pusan International Film Festival earlier in the year the film will travel to the Dubai International film festival in Dec 2009.

Rituparno Ghosh, actors Jisshu Sengupta and cameraman Shomik Haldar represented Shob Charitro Kalponik. The film has received a lot of critical and box office acclaim during its released in India this August; the film completed 50 days at the box office in West Bengal. The film is about a young woman’s recollection of her marriage post her poet-husband’s death. It stars Bipasha Basu who’s given a stellar performance while Prosenjit the veteran Bengali actor has excelled himself as the exasperating yet adorable husband. The film was screened at the Durban International Film Festival earlier in the year.