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Image: Artist Parul Thacker
Dystopia and Urban Imagination (21st to 25th January 2013), Studio X, Bombay.
Luminous Matter is stunning steampunk stop motion in which two species of luminescent insectoid creatures must find each other and in a dark dystopian world. They scuttle around in the mechanical darkness bearing a unique luminous character that unites them and will enable them to evolve.
“Science Fiction film has always presented us with extraordinary images of our living environments whether traveling to the past, present or future. In this series of film screenings we explore the dialectic between contemporary urbanity and the seemingly disparate or frighteningly real images that these films present in terms of their conceptual representation of urban life. On the last day, there will be a film screening of Luminous Matter along with an interactive session discussing the intersections between the science fiction film genre and the urban condition.”
Directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh 30 minutes | 2012 A land where the soil has started to breathe againA village that does not exist on the mapA people who celebrate lifeA no-where, no-where land... When a small farming community in South India decided to switch from their decades-old practice of chemical agriculture to organic farming, little did they know that they were planting the seeds of a silent revolution. By showcasing the exemplary efforts of farmers of a tiny village in Andhra Pradesh, Timbaktu explores critical issues of food security and sovereignty. At its heart, Timbaktu looks at the relationship that a farmer shares with her land, her seeds and raises vital questions about food, the very essence of human life.
New Delhi, 1999. The guns at Kargil are still blazing when another one goes off, this time in the nation's capital. Jessica, a young attractive model trying her hand at bartending, is shot dead at a celebrity party. Her crime - refusing to serve a drink after closing hours! The culprit Manish, son of a prominent politician, inebriated by a deadly cocktail of alcohol and a sense of entitlement, pulls the trigger in a fit of rage. With 300 of Delhi's swish set present at the party, many of whom are witnesses to the murder, Manish looks all set to go to the gallows. Except, that it doesn't quite turn out that way! Now two women, Jessica's sister, Sabrina and the feisty TV reporter, Meera will have to drum up every resource at their disposal to outwit Manish at his own game, if the truth is to have any chance of prevailing over money and political clout. No One Killed Jessica, a dramatic new thriller from UTV Motion Pictures is inspired by real life events that followed the shocking murder of Jessica Lal in 1999. Directed by Raj Kumar Gupta, the film stars Vidya Balan and Rani Mukherjee and will release on 7th January 2011.
AMIR KHAN's next release is dubbed as an 'art film' category titled 'Dhobi Ghat' which will depict Bombay, its essence and its people. It is a story about four characters in city of Bombay. The movie will introduce fresh aspirants such as Monica Dogra who is part of the Shaair + Func (Electronic Band), Prateik Babbar & Kriti Malhotra. Dhobi Ghat is directed by Aamir's wife Kiran Rao and produced under the banner of Aamir Khan Productions. It is scheduled for release on January 21, 2011 - {MASI Reporting}.
Meaning of Dhobi Ghat:
Dhobi Ghat is a well known washers' area in Mumbai. The washers known locally as Dhobis work in open to wash the cloths from Mumbai's hotels and hospitals. There are row upon row of open-air concrete wash pens, each fitted with its own flogging stone. Termed as the world's largest outdoor laundry Dhobi Ghat is a very popular attraction among foreign tourists.
The word Dhobi Ghat is used all over India to refer to any place where many washers are present.
It is located next to Mahalaxmi Station on Western Railway on Saat Rasta roundabout.It is can be easily seen from flyover bridge of Mahalaxmi station.
Indian model turned actress Freida Pinto debuts into Hollywood with Woody's new release. She is the acclaimed & award winning actress from Slumdog Millionaire. Pinto was born in Mumbai to a Mangalorean Catholic family.
While Woody maintains his classic style of sly cascade of dialogs and glimpses into scenes we can't wait to see how he sketches the beautiful Freida Pinto!
Marathi film "Harishchandrachi Factory", by theatre-veteran Paresh Mokashi has been selected as India's official entry to this year's Oscars in the Foreign Film Category.
The two-hour-long film depicts the struggle of Dadasaheb Phalke, the father of Indian cinema, to make 'Raja Harishchandra' in 1913, India's first feature film.
"Harischandrachi Factory" beat off competition from 15 films including Bollywood movies like "New York" and "Delhi 6" to get selected for the honour.
The nomination of the Marathi film was announced by The FilmFederation of India (FFI) and the jury was headed by noted actress Asha Parekh.
U.K.-based charity Survival International has appealed to James Cameron on behalf of the Dongria Kondh tribe in India’s Orissa state whose story, according to Survival, “is uncannily similar to that of the Na’vi in ‘Avatar.’ “
Survival said, “The Dongria Kondh tribe in India are struggling to defend their land against a mining company hell-bent on destroying their sacred mountain. Please help the Dongria.”
On the evening of November 26, 2008, ten young Pakistani men reached Mumbai in a small hijacked fishing boat, having slaughtered its captain and crew, and glided unnoticed into the teeming Indian port city. Over the next three days, armed with cell phones, machine guns, and fruit and nuts to sustain them, they unleashed coordinated attacks across the city that left at least 170 people dead and more than 300 wounded, sending shockwaves of fear around the world. Narrated by Mumbai-born Fareed Zakaria, CNN host and Newsweek International editor, and directed by award-winning filmmaker Dan Reed (HBO's "Terror in Moscow"), TERROR IN MUMBAI provides a 360-degree view of a terrorist act, recounting in harrowing detail the bloody events of that 60-hour period. Premieres Thursday, November 19 at 8pm (ET/PT).
Dhruv dhavan nurtured his passion for documentary filmmaking, studying cultural anthropology at Duke University and film direction at the new york film academy.
Dhruv employs his skills as a documentary film maker to replicate a credible and emotive fabric in the advertising and corporate work. He has also harnessed the prowess of internet video to create interactive marketing and recruitment tools for his clients website.
His documentary work has garnered critical acclaim from the International Press, Human Rights Groups and the Film Festival Circuit. He is two time nominee for the best international documentary award in New York and Toronto and the recipient of the MIPDOC Co-Pro Challenge Award at the Cannes.
The South Asian International Film Festival came to a close with a bang last night. Featuring the North American premiere of India’s official entry to the Oscars for 2010 ‘Harishchandrachi Factory’ — a beautiful Marathi film which chronicles the struggles of the man who made India’s first motion picture in 1913 — the evening started with the momentous awards ceremony. The event sparkled with the presence of such stars as filmmakers Rajat Kapoor and Saurabh Shukla, producer Anadil Hossain, composer Simon Taufique, actor Samrat Chakrabarti and rhythm queen DJ Rekha.
The night started with a brief but powerful red carpet, which introduced the director responsible for the evening’s feature presentation, Paresh Mokashi, and shined the interview lights on personal favorite director/actor/writer and producer Rajat Kapoor. You will have a chance to watch AVS’ own Jitin Hingorani chat with these two personalities, as well as Saurabh Shukla, ‘Kavi’ filmmaker Gregg Helvey and many, many more on this weekend’s edition of AVS TV.
Rajat Kapoor had not one but two films in the festival — ‘Fatso’, his funny, yet truly poignant, at times sad and always romantic directorial effort and ‘Raat Gayi, Baat Gayi?’ directed by Saurabh Shukla and starring a dashing Kapoor in a role that will leave you re-evaluating the meaning of true love… The film, produced and co-written by Kapoor, took home the Audience Choice Award for Favorite Feature which is, in my view, the only vote that counts. The kind and unbelievably humble Saurabh Shukla accepted the award by saying “The biggest award for me is that I got to see my film with an audience”. I personally believe that making films is about satisfying that audience, allowing them to walk away from the picture inspired and fulfilled by what they saw on the screen. The audience of the jam-packed SVA theater witnessing the World Premiere of ‘Raat Gayi, Baat Gayi?’ on Monday evening obviously felt like their lives had been changed by their viewing experience. I certainly did.
Other awards included Audience Choice for Favorite Short, which went to Gregg Helvey and his film on modern slavery in India ‘Kavi’. The award was presented by Anadil Hossain. Audience Choice for Favorite Documentary went to ‘Made in Pakistan’ and was accepted by the film’s co-producer Ayesha Khan. The film was recently shown to a sold-out audience at the Mumbai Film Festival, which is quite a step in the right direction towards the mutual understanding India and Pakistan must achieve in order to bring the semblance of peace to their interaction. Producer Amelia Hanibelsz presented the Award for Best Documentary to‘Project Kashmir’ while writer Grady Hendrix awarded the Best Narrative Short prize to ‘Boond’.
The Best Music Award went to ‘The Last Thakur’ and Samrat Chakrabarti awarded the Best Acting Performance prize to Suniel Shetty for his role in‘Red Alert: The War Within’. Note to self, must watch the film as I never thought of Shetty as an award-worthy actor, but do admire him as a hunk…
The most — in terms of numbers — awards went to Anjali Menon’s directorial debut‘Manjadikuru’ AKA ‘Lucky Red Seeds’ which took home the Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Narrative Feature - Jury Award - and Best Emerging Talent award - this for the young Vyjayanthi. A film to add to the must-watch list also, I guess…
All in all, everyone present at SAIFF was a winner. From festival founder and director Shilen Amin, who managed great attendances and wonderful world premieres at this year’s edition, to the filmmakers who presented their latest and greatest, to the audiences, who were privy to some fantastic films and got a chance to rub elbows with a few true Indian cinema superstars. If you missed SAIFF this year, don’t worry. There are plenty of great films coming up in the next few weeks, so stay tuned to AVS for all that. And, the South Asian International Film Festival will be back next year, same time, same place, for more fab films and stellar appearances.
The much talked about, highly awaited short films from award winning Indian directors MIRA NAIR, VISHAL BHARDWAJ, SANTOSH SIVAN, and FARHAN AKHTAR that aim to dismantle myths and raise awareness about HIV/AIDS. Unaddressed, AIDS in India will soon reach epidemic proportions.
Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the films were the brainchild of Mira Nair. Forget dreary documentaries, India's finest directors put their individualistic stamp on these films, which use top Indian movie stars to maximize exposure of the films.
From South Indian superstar Prabhudeva, Irrfan Khan (Namesake), the iconic Shabana Azmi, to Bollywood stars Shiney Ahuja, Ayesha Takia, Boman Irani, Raima Sen, Siddharth and Sameera Reddy, Indian stars put their heavyweight audience draw behind the project hoping to change minds and save lives.
The result is 4 beautifully shot, rich stories about the human dimension of the disease.
From a short story by Rabindranath Tagore and with music by Ravi Shankar, master director Tapan Sinha’s early classic was shown at the Berlin International Film Festival, and is fondly remembered by Indians as a tender, moving work of humanism. Afghan fruit seller Rhemat befriends a six-year-old girl, Minie, in Calcutta, because she reminds him of his own daughter. An accidental stabbing then sees him imprisoned for eight years - but when he’s released, he's determined to find the girl.
{Kabuliwalla 1956 cover}
Kabuliwala Bengali: is a story written by Bengali writer Rabindranath Tagore. Two films have been produced based on this story, both named Kabuliwala. The first was filmed in Bengali in 1956 by Tapan Sinha, and the second in Hindi, also titled, Kabuliwala in 1961, directed by Hemen Gupta, produced by Bimal Roy.
Here is the story of Kabuliwalla in Hindi. This story was included in our hindi bal bharti textbook during my high school years in India. Till today the story of Kabuliwalla fills me with joy and endless memories.
काबुलीवाला रवीन्द्रनाथ ठाकुर की कहानी
मेरी पाँच बरस की लड़की मिनी से घड़ीभर भी बोले बिना नहीं रहा जाता। एक दिन वह सवेरे-सवेरे ही बोली, "बाबूजी, रामदयाल दरबान है न, वह ‘काक’ को ‘कौआ’ कहता है। वह कुछ जानता नहीं न, बाबूजी।" मेरे कुछ कहने से पहले ही उसने दूसरी बात छेड़ दी। "देखो, बाबूजी, भोला कहता है – आकाश में हाथी सूँड से पानी फेंकता है, इसी से वर्षा होती है। अच्छा बाबूजी, भोला झूठ बोलता है, है न?" और फिर वह खेल में लग गई।
मेरा घर सड़क के किनारे है। एक दिन मिनी मेरे कमरे में खेल रही थी। अचानक वह खेल छोड़कर खिड़की के पास दौड़ी गई और बड़े ज़ोर से चिल्लाने लगी, "काबुलीवाले, ओ काबुलीवाले!"
कँधे पर मेवों की झोली लटकाए, हाथ में अँगूर की पिटारी लिए एक लंबा सा काबुली धीमी चाल से सड़क पर जा रहा था। जैसे ही वह मकान की ओर आने लगा, मिनी जान लेकर भीतर भाग गई। उसे डर लगा कि कहीं वह उसे पकड़ न ले जाए। उसके मन में यह बात बैठ गई थी कि काबुलीवाले की झोली के अंदर तलाश करने पर उस जैसे और भी दो-चार बच्चे मिल सकते हैं।
काबुली ने मुसकराते हुए मुझे सलाम किया। मैंने उससे कुछ सौदा खरीदा। फिर वह बोला, "बाबू साहब, आप की लड़की कहाँ गई?"
मैंने मिनी के मन से डर दूर करने के लिए उसे बुलवा लिया। काबुली ने झोली से किशमिश और बादाम निकालकर मिनी को देना चाहा पर उसने कुछ न लिया। डरकर वह मेरे घुटनों से चिपट गई। काबुली से उसका पहला परिचय इस तरह हुआ। कुछ दिन बाद, किसी ज़रुरी काम से मैं बाहर जा रहा था। देखा कि मिनी काबुली से खूब बातें कर रही है और काबुली मुसकराता हुआ सुन रहा है। मिनी की झोली बादाम-किशमिश से भरी हुई थी। मैंने काबुली को अठन्नी देते हुए कहा, "इसे यह सब क्यों दे दिया? अब मत देना।" फिर मैं बाहर चला गया।
कुछ देर तक काबुली मिनी से बातें करता रहा। जाते समय वह अठन्नी मिनी की झोली में डालता गया। जब मैं घर लौटा तो देखा कि मिनी की माँ काबुली से अठन्नी लेने के कारण उस पर खूब गुस्सा हो रही है।
काबुली प्रतिदिन आता रहा। उसने किशमिश बादाम दे-देकर मिनी के छोटे से ह्रदय पर काफ़ी अधिकार जमा लिया था। दोनों में बहुत-बहुत बातें होतीं और वे खूब हँसते। रहमत काबुली को देखते ही मेरी लड़की हँसती हुई पूछती, "काबुलीवाले, ओ काबुलीवाले! तुम्हारी झोली में क्या है?"
रहमत हँसता हुआ कहता, "हाथी।" फिर वह मिनी से कहता, "तुम ससुराल कब जाओगी?"
इस पर उलटे वह रहमत से पूछती, "तुम ससुराल कब जाओगे?"
रहमत अपना मोटा घूँसा तानकर कहता, "हम ससुर को मारेगा।" इस पर मिनी खूब हँसती।
हर साल सरदियों के अंत में काबुली अपने देश चला जाता। जाने से पहले वह सब लोगों से पैसा वसूल करने में लगा रहता। उसे घर-घर घूमना पड़ता, मगर फिर भी प्रतिदिन वह मिनी से एक बार मिल जाता।
एक दिन सवेरे मैं अपने कमरे में बैठा कुछ काम कर रहा था। ठीक उसी समय सड़क पर बड़े ज़ोर का शोर सुनाई दिया। देखा तो अपने उस रहमत को दो सिपाही बाँधे लिए जा रहे हैं। रहमत के कुर्ते पर खून के दाग हैं और सिपाही के हाथ में खून से सना हुआ छुरा।
कुछ सिपाही से और कुछ रहमत के मुँह से सुना कि हमारे पड़ोस में रहने वाले एक आदमी ने रहमत से एक चादर खरीदी। उसके कुछ रुपए उस पर बाकी थे, जिन्हें देने से उसने इनकार कर दिया था। बस, इसी पर दोनों में बात बढ़ गई, और काबुली ने उसे छुरा मार दिया।
इतने में "काबुलीवाले, काबुलीवाले", कहती हुई मिनी घर से निकल आई। रहमत का चेहरा क्षणभर के लिए खिल उठा। मिनी ने आते ही पूछा, ‘’तुम ससुराल जाओगे?" रहमत ने हँसकर कहा, "हाँ, वहीं तो जा रहा हूँ।"
रहमत को लगा कि मिनी उसके उत्तर से प्रसन्न नहीं हुई। तब उसने घूँसा दिखाकर कहा, "ससुर को मारता पर क्या करुँ, हाथ बँधे हुए हैं।"
छुरा चलाने के अपराध में रहमत को कई साल की सज़ा हो गई।
काबुली का ख्याल धीरे-धीरे मेरे मन से बिलकुल उतर गया और मिनी भी उसे भूल गई।
कई साल बीत गए।
आज मेरी मिनी का विवाह है। लोग आ-जा रहे हैं। मैं अपने कमरे में बैठा हुआ खर्च का हिसाब लिख रहा था। इतने में रहमत सलाम करके एक ओर खड़ा हो गया।
पहले तो मैं उसे पहचान ही न सका। उसके पास न तो झोली थी और न चेहरे पर पहले जैसी खुशी। अंत में उसकी ओर ध्यान से देखकर पहचाना कि यह तो रहमत है।
मैंने पूछा, "क्यों रहमत कब आए?"
"कल ही शाम को जेल से छूटा हूँ," उसने बताया।
मैंने उससे कहा, "आज हमारे घर में एक जरुरी काम है, मैं उसमें लगा हुआ हूँ। आज तुम जाओ, फिर आना।"
वह उदास होकर जाने लगा। दरवाजे़ के पास रुककर बोला, "ज़रा बच्ची को नहीं देख सकता?"
शायद उसे यही विश्वास था कि मिनी अब भी वैसी ही बच्ची बनी हुई है। वह अब भी पहले की तरह "काबुलीवाले, ओ काबुलीवाले" चिल्लाती हुई दौड़ी चली आएगी। उन दोनों की उस पुरानी हँसी और बातचीत में किसी तरह की रुकावट न होगी। मैंने कहा, "आज घर में बहुत काम है। आज उससे मिलना न हो सकेगा।"
वह कुछ उदास हो गया और सलाम करके दरवाज़े से बाहर निकल गया।
मैं सोच ही रहा था कि उसे वापस बुलाऊँ। इतने मे वह स्वयं ही लौट आया और बोला, “'यह थोड़ा सा मेवा बच्ची के लिए लाया था। उसको दे दीजिएगा।“
मैने उसे पैसे देने चाहे पर उसने कहा, 'आपकी बहुत मेहरबानी है बाबू साहब! पैसे रहने दीजिए।' फिर ज़रा ठहरकर बोला, “आपकी जैसी मेरी भी एक बेटी हैं। मैं उसकी याद कर-करके आपकी बच्ची के लिए थोड़ा-सा मेवा ले आया करता हूँ। मैं यहाँ सौदा बेचने नहीं आता।“
उसने अपने कुरते की जेब में हाथ डालकर एक मैला-कुचैला मुड़ा हुआ कागज का टुकड़ा निकला औऱ बड़े जतन से उसकी चारों तह खोलकर दोनो हाथों से उसे फैलाकर मेरी मेज पर रख दिया। देखा कि कागज के उस टुकड़े पर एक नन्हें से हाथ के छोटे-से पंजे की छाप हैं। हाथ में थोड़ी-सी कालिख लगाकर, कागज़ पर उसी की छाप ले ली गई थी। अपनी बेटी इस याद को छाती से लगाकर, रहमत हर साल कलकत्ते के गली-कूचों में सौदा बेचने के लिए आता है।
देखकर मेरी आँखें भर आईं। सबकुछ भूलकर मैने उसी समय मिनी को बाहर बुलाया। विवाह की पूरी पोशाक और गहनें पहने मिनी शरम से सिकुड़ी मेरे पास आकर खड़ी हो गई।
उसे देखकर रहमत काबुली पहले तो सकपका गया। उससे पहले जैसी बातचीत न करते बना। बाद में वह हँसते हुए बोला, “लल्ली! सास के घर जा रही हैं क्या?”
मिनी अब सास का अर्थ समझने लगी थी। मारे शरम के उसका मुँह लाल हो उठा।
मिनी के चले जाने पर एक गहरी साँस भरकर रहमत ज़मीन पर बैठ गया। उसकी समझ में यह बात एकाएक स्पष्ट हो उठी कि उसकी बेटी भी इतने दिनों में बड़ी हो गई होगी। इन आठ वर्षों में उसका क्या हुआ होगा, कौन जाने? वह उसकी याद में खो गया। मैने कुछ रुपए निकालकर उसके हाथ में रख दिए और कहा, “रहमत! तुम अपनी बेटी के पास देश चले जाओ।"
Most Indians and Pakistanis cant agree where Kashmir is on a map. But ask them who started the war, and they will have an answer.
From directors Senain Kheshgi and Geeta V. Patel comes PROJECT KASHMIR--a feature documentary in which the directors, two American friends from opposite sides of the divide, investigate the war in Kashmir and find their friendship tested over deeply rooted political, cultural and religious biases they never had to face in the U.S. PROJECT KASHMIR explores war between countries and war within oneself by delving into the fraught lives of young people caught in the social/political conflict of one of the most beautiful, and most deadly, places on earth--Kashmir.
Beautifully lensed by Academy Award® winner, Ross Kauffman, the film captures the stunning beauty of Kashmir, while expertly interweaving deeply moving personal stories of Kashmiris with those of the two American women, who strive to reconcile their ethnic and religious heritage with the violence that haunts their homeland.
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