5-day tri-continental film festival begins in Goa

Panaji, Sep 29 (UNI) The five-day Tri-Continental Film Festival organised by International Centre, Goa (ICG), Moving Images and Breakthrough, has begun.

Being held for the first time in Goa, the festival showcases 18 films reflecting different walks of life followed by discussions.

''The Rockstar and the Mullahs'' directed by Ruhi Hamid and Angus Macqueen and ''Return to Kandhar'' directed by Nelofer Pazira and Paul Jay, were screened to mark the inauguration of the festival at the ICG yesterday.

Breakthrough Programme Coordinator Anuja Ghosalkar, participating as the chief guest on the occasion, said the main aim of the festival was to promote film culture on issues such as human rights.

Next year Breakthrough will plan to hold a full festival in Goa which will travel to different parts of India, she said. The internationally acclaimed films screened at this festival are part of the Gold List made up of selected films from the last three festivals.

ICG Director M Rajaretnam and Moving Images Chairperson Anjali D'Souza were also present on the occasion.

In the discussion that followed, participants questioned the objectivity and veracity of the documentary film form in portraying reality.

Mrs Ghosalkar felt that in the second film, the perspective was much skewed toward western ethics, while Jason Fernandes objected to the demonising of Islam by the West. Many however, opined that these films should be used to look inwards at our own society and politics and identify religious intolerance and fundamentalism in India.

Sameer Yasir, a student of International Relations at the Goa University from Kashmir, opined that India as a secular democracy did not face the problems of Islamic States depicted in such films.

Some opined that the film ''Return to Kandhar,'' reflected a condescending attitude that the West was 'better' and the East 'backward' and 'chaotic' and that the people living in the Eastern countries sought the help of the West to tell their stories to develop into progressive, tolerant and just societies.

UNI