India in low-key at Locarno fest

Locarno, Aug 1 (UNI) India's mainstream cinema does not have anything to celebrate at the 60th birthday of Locarno film festival, which began on August 1.

None of its products were selected for either the main competition or any of the other categories of the 12-day festival.

This continues the trend in the major filmfests in Europe this year, like Berlinale and Cannes, where too there had been a total absence of our masala movies.

This is something for our movie-moguls to worry about since, just in the recent past, things had been quite different. In 2002, Locarno had put together a special package of Indian films. In the preceding year, it had shown "Lagaan" to an appreciative audience which gave it the coveted Prix du Public (Audience's Prize), and thus launched the film on its successful run overseas, leading upto an Oscar nomination. Later, Ketan Mehta's "The Rising" too had a showing at Locarno's Piazza Grande.

On the other hand, one now sees a greater and visible presence of Japan and South Korea, which represent Asia in the various categories in Locarno, as at other festivals in Europe. These things appear to follow a trend. Some years earlier, it was the fashion in Europe to promote the Iranian film directors, a talented and hardy lot, who made movies within the confines of the restrictions placed on them by their home government. Then it was the turn of China, some of whose filmmakers were similarly hindered in their own creative efforts back home.

One reason for the relative downgrading of India could be the fact that many of its renowned directors have lately not been active. Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani in Mumbai had no new films canned this year. Mrinal Sen, whose "Aamaar Bhuvan" was premiered at Locarno in 2002, has not made a film since then. An exception is Adoor Gopalakrishnan, who has recently finished a film on the dance-form, Mohini Attam. It is a French production with the title "La Danse de l'enchantresse", and would get its World premiere here, in the category 'Ici&Ailleurs' (Here and Elsewhere).

Adoor Gopalakrishnan's classic, "Mukhamukham" too had been premiered in Locarno 1984, in the main Competition section. So had Shaji Karun's "Piravi" in 1989 (after winning the Camera d'Or in Cannes) and it had also got the Silver Leopard. Both the directors have been invited for the 60th Locarno this year, and their respective films too would again be shown on the occasion.

There are two young, and mostly unknown, filmmakers from India, whose entries have been accepted this year. One of them is Ashish Avikuntha, with degrees in archaeology and anthropology behind him, who has made his first feature film, "Nirakar Chhaya" (Shadows Formless). The 81-minute movie, shot partly in black-and-white, is about the life of a woman deserted by her husband and how she copes with its aftermath. The film would compete with 18 others in the category, "Filmmakers of the Present".

The other entry, in the section, "Leopards of Tomorrow" (also competitive), is "Rewind". It has been directed by a FTII, Pune graduate, Atul Taishete. Hopefully, these two young filmmakers would emulate their seniors who had got their first boost at Locarno, and would go on to make a name for themselves.

UNI