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Southern Films Round Up

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Nayanthara

Nayanthara To Receive Highest Salary

Nayanthara will be pairing up with Vikram for the 1st time for the film to be directed by Anand Shankar. Nayan who is on a roll after hat-trick of hits in ‘Thani Oruvan’. ‘Maya’ & ‘Naanum Rowdy Dhaan’ has been paid a whopping salary for accepting the lead lady role in this film to be produced on a grand scale by Shibu Thameens of ‘Puli’ fame. The Lady Superstar has signed up the deal to act in the yet to be titled film with Vikram after being offered Rs.3 crores as the salary. If this is true it will be the highest salary paid to a South Indian actress and Nayan will become the number one actress in terms of salary.

Dhansika Bags Maniratnam Film

It was widely reported a few weeks back that Maniratnam’s proposed multi starrer tentatively titled ‘Vellai Pookkal’ was dropped with news that Mani is producing the Hindi remake of ‘Ok Kanmani’ adding to the speculation. But now the buzz is resurfacing that the most celebrated Indian director is indeed doing the film with Karthi, Nani & Nithya Menen and will be joined by Dhansika who will supposedly do the role that was originally intended for Keerthy Suresh. Shooting will reportedly begin from Apr, 2016 but however this being a Maniratnam film, we can confirm only when the man himself opens up about his project.

Vijay’s High Voltage Stunts By Hollywood Action Director

The next schedule of Illayathalapathy Vijay’s ‘Theri’ directed by Atlee is set to begin in Goa in a few days time and a high voltage stunt sequence on a bus is going to be filmed. For this risky sequence stunt director Dilip Subbarayan is going to collaborate with celebrated Hollywood action director Kaloian Vodenicharov, who is known for his exemplary work in films like ‘Troy’, ‘World War Z’, ‘The Bourne Series’, ‘Mission Impossible’ et al. Vodenicharov is also not new to Indian films as he has already worked in S.S. Rajamouli’s ‘Baahubali – The Beginning’ and currently doing SRK-Kajol’s ‘Dilwale’.

Jayam & Arvind To Combine Again

The ‘Thani Oruvan’ hit combo Jayam Ravi & Arvind Swamy in all likelihood will team up once again for a new film to be produced by Prabhu Deva & directed by Lakshman of ‘Romeo Juliet’ fame. Initially Vijay Sethupathy and later Bobby Simha were said to be doing the parallel hero role in the as yet untitled film but now it looks like the talks are in the final stages with Arvind Swamy who is on the verge of signing. Official confirmation is awaited on this one.

Dil Raju Graphics Film With Krishna

Dynamic producer Dil Raju is collaborating with creative director Krishna Vamsi for a techno-graphical extravaganza. The film boasts of high end visual effects and will be made on a staggering budget. The film will have 2 female leads and 5 male leads. The makers are planning to kick start the film early next year. Currently, the script work is on and Vamsi is giving final touches to it. Usually, we get to see either a mythological or a socio-fantasy film which boasts of heavy graphics but it remains to be seen what’s going to be the genre of Krishna Vamsi’s film. As of now, the makers have put the details about the film under the wraps.

Rakul Special In ‘Nannaku Prematho’

Petite beauty Rakul Preet Singh is all set to present a flavour of her voice to the Tollywood audiences soon. Grapevine is that Rakul, who is fluent in speaking Telugu, is going to dub her lines in her upcoming film ‘Nannaku Prematho’. The actress has been picking up the language for a while now and has got the diction right. Rakul was supposed to dub her lines for Ravi Teja starrer ‘Kick 2’ but things never fell in place owing to hectic production schedules. The actress had begun dubbing the lines and is quite excited to don this new role. She is working really hard and is putting sincere efforts to give an authentic feel to the audiences.

Mahesh Returns His Remuneration

Superstar Mahesh Babu has returned Rs 10 cr which he received as a token advance from producer S Radha Krishna says sources. Radha Krishna, who earlier made blockbuster hits like ‘Julayi’ and S/O Sathyamurthy, has approached Mahesh to team up with Trivikram Srinivas for a new movie. However, things never worked in favour of the producer and despite paying advance remuneration to Mahesh, Radha Krishna has dropped his plans to make a film with the Superstar. Although the exact reason behind this development is yet to be announced, sources close to the producer reveals that he doesn’t want to push Mahesh to kick-start his project before the actor wraps up ‘Brahmotsavam’ and another movie with AR Murugadoss.

Mohanlal In NTR’s Next

Young Tiger NTR & director Koratala Shiva have collaborated for a new movie tentatively titled ‘Janatha Garage – Ikkada anni repairlu cheyyabadunu’. Produced by Mythri movies, the film will begin the principal shooting in Jan, 2016 soon after NTR wraps up ‘Nannaku Prematho’. The film has an interesting addition to its star cast. According to reports, Malayalam superstar Mohanlal has been roped in to play a pivotal role in this NTR-starrer. Mohanlal, who was in Hyderabad to discuss about the shooting schedule of his upcoming Telugu film under the director of Chandrasekhar Yeleti, has agreed to play a crucial role in NTR’s film. Speculations were rife that Mohanlal will play an important role in NTR’s action entertainer. However, an official confirmation is awaited.

Uthara & Manisha Completes ‘Edavapathi’ Shoot

Lenin Rajendran’s upcoming movie titled ‘Edavapathi’ has been completed. The movie stars Manisha Koiralla, Uthara Unni & Siddarth Lama of ‘Yodha’ fame in the lead roles. The movie is a period one based on the tales of Vasavadutta & Upagupta. Uthara Unni is excited to be part of this venture as she has got the chance to share screen with Manisha Koiralla, who incidentally has given the young actress a boost with her positive review of her acting. Uthara has also got the opportunity to showcase her dancing skills through this movie. Lenin himself has written the movie. The movie was shot at various locations including Manali, Kulu et al.

Archana Gets Engaged

Actress Archana Kavi of ‘Neelathamara’ fame has got engaged to her beau Abish Mathew. The actress herself posted a picture of her engagement with him and wrote “. You are taken Abish Mathew. Guys, we got engaged”. The duo were childhood friends who grew up in Delhi. They had admitted to their relationship recently in a leading magazine. Abish is a stand up comedian and is part of the famed AIB team. Archana has not been very active in tinsel town of late. She will get married early next year.

‘Swachcha Bharatha’ U Certified

Former KFCC President and current FCI director B Vijayakumar much loved film ‘Swachcha Bharatha’ (on the basis of Swachch Andolan of Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi) has been cleared by regional censor certificate with ‘U’ and without any cuts. It has been wish of producer B Vijayakumar to make a message oriented with commercial format. This is one such film heading for audio release of the film. ‘Swachcha Bharatha’ the 50th direction of BR Keshava was shot in Bengaluru, Kashi, Varanasi locations. Pramod is cameraman, MS Maruthi scores music, Siddaraju is editor & Seshagiri has penned dialogues.

Joni Turns Producer

A film is finally made at the editing table. The work of editor is so strong and prominent. There are quite a few editors turning directors in Kannnada film field. In the case of over 100 films editor Joni Harsha it is different. He turns producer from a comedy television serial ‘Sriman Srimathi’. The purpose behind leaping in to TV production is to give good quality. I was upset when I saw some of the TV programs made in Kannada. I got a good subject and team in ‘Sriman Srimathi’ made me to invest on this comedy serial says Joni Harsha.

“I feel highly honoured on receiving the lifetime achievement award:” Nikita Mikhalkov

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Nikita Mikhalkov

In the on-going 46th International Film Festival of India (IFFI Goa 2015) a renowned Russian film actor cum filmmaker Nikita Mikhalkov was honoured with a lifetime achievement award. He has earned quite a name and fame for himself both behind the scenes as a filmmaker and as an actor in front of the camera. His films are widely acclaimed by an international audience and have also received varied international awards. Moreover at present Mikhalkov is the president of his own film production company, Three T Productions. Besides he is also the head of the Russian Filmmakers Union, chairman of the Russian Cultural Foundation and also a member of the Russian Presidential Council of Culture.

How about recalling a little bit of your film history for your Indian fans?

I was born in Moscow in the year 1945. Since a very early age I realised that cinema is a passion for me and since then I strived to be a filmmaker cum actor and I must say that my efforts bore fruits. To start off with I studied acting in Children’s film studio Of the Moscow Art Theatre and later at the Shchukin School of the Vakhtangov Theatre. While still a student, I appeared in Georgi Daneliya’s film I Step Through Moscow (1964) and my brother Andrei Konchalovsky’s film Home Of The Gentry (1969). And very soon I became a star of the Soviet stage and cinema.

So how did you make a transition from an actor to a director?

While continuing to pursue my acting career, I entered VGIK, the state film school in Moscow, where I studied direction under filmmaker Mikhail Romm, who was in fact a teacher to my brother and Andrei Tarkovsky. I directed my 1st short film in 1968, I’m Coming Home, and one for my graduation, A Quiet Day At The End Of The War in 1970. Actually speaking I had appeared in more than 20 films as an actor, including my brother’s Uncle Vanya (1972), before I co – wrote, directed and starred in my 1st feature, At Home Among Strangers in 1974, an Ostern set just after the 1920s civil war in Russia. Then as luck would have it I established an international reputation with my 2nd feature film, A Slave Of Love (1976). Set in 1917, it followed the efforts of a film crew to make a silent melodramatic movie. Then in the year 1994 one of my film named Burnt By The Sun won an Oscar for “Best Foreign Language Film”. Then in 2013 another one of my film named 12 was nominated for the same award.

What are your feelings on being bestowed with a lifetime achievement award in the International Film Festival Of Goa 2015?

It is a great honour coming from the Indian Government. I feel more elated on receiving this prestigious award from an Indian International Film Festival (IFFI Goa 2015). I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart. I feel proud on being included in the list of distinguished personalities who have received the award previously. You see Indian cinema has had a great impact on my work. Love and tenderness shown in the films of the Late Raj Kapoor had influenced me since my childhood. (Hums the famous song ‘Awara’, from the Late Raj Kapoor’s film) Oh! How do I explain my love for Indian films? Suffice it to say that Indian cinema is an entirely different planet for me! A film becomes an international film when it is truly national & cultural oriented.

What do you feel on the constant rise of violence and aggression in Global films?

It’s very pathetic. I feel that the world has died of its own greed, people value money more than each other’s emotions, this leads to violence and aggression. I follow a strict set and format of film making as I feel movies should have the freedom to breath.

“Cinema’s power lies in seamless reach and cross culture:” Amos Gitai

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Amos Gitai

Well–known Isreali filmmaker Amos Gitai was born on 11th Oct, 1950 in Haifa. He graduated as an architect from the Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa and acquired a PhD in architecture at Berkeley University in California. He fought in the Yom Kippur War in 1973, during which he was injured. Attracted by directing, he became a professional filmmaker in 1980 with House. From that point he created many films, both fiction and documentary that brought him considerable international recognition. 46th IFFI is paying a Retrospective Honours to Amos Gitai. Opening with Screening of Rabin – The last Day, 10 of his films are being screened under this section. Other films include Alia, Berlin -Jerusalem, Devarim, Esther, Golem, The Spirit Of The Exile, Kadosh, Lullaby To my Father, Tsili and Yom Yom.

In an interaction Amos Gitai opined that, “The power of cinema as a medium lies in its capacity to go beyond borders and to communicate across cultures. The films need to be both passionate and critical when need be. I am originally an architect and believe in ideas as ideas are important and strong, capable of moving planets.”

He further added, “Films need to have a social context and should not be just entertainment. Filmmakers like Satyajit Ray are called great because they care for their country and use art and films to shape public opinion.”

Expressing disappointment, Amos Gitai averred, “There is too much recycling in the field of cinema. The new generation of filmmakers should feel free while expressing themselves to bring out their originality and creativity.”

“I understand casting process in India is different:” Nancy Bishop

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Nancy Bishop

Nancy Bishop, C.S.A. is an Emmy nominated casting director, who works internationally with offices in London and Prague. With nearly one hundred major feature films and television projects amongst her credits, Nancy has cast hundreds of actors throughout Europe, UK and US. Nancy has been retained as a casting director by dozens of major screen producers and directors, including Brad Bird (Mission Impossible IV), Roman Polanski (Oliver) and Ridley Scott (Child 44). She was also nominated for an Emmy Award for her casting work on Anne Frank: The Whole Story, ABC / Disney Studios. Nancy is a native of New England and trained as an actor and director at the University of Michigan and the National Theatre Institute. She earned a Master’s of Arts degree in theatre at Northwestern University. Nancy began hercareer as an actor, director and acting teacher in Chicago. Nancy also took Master Class at the ongoing IFFI Goa 2015.

In an interaction at IFFI Goa 2015 Nancy Bishop averred with reservation that the phenomena of Casting Couch does exist at some level. Regarding places looking for talent, she said she takes workshops in various countries and also goes for street casting when a totally unknown face is required. Neither producer nor cast director but it is the financer who has a final say in deciding cast in most of the cases. She concluded by stating that casting being a creative process, the time taken in finalising the cast depends on the project.

Film Bazaar of National film Development Corporation (NFDC) kick starts in Goa with a big fanfare

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The Film Bazaar of National film Development Corporation (NFDC) Kick Starts At Hotel Marriot Goa with a big fanfare. The 9th edition of Film Bazaar witnessed many firsts; and day one was attended by many Indian & International filmmakers. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, India along with NFDC also launched a Film Facilitation Office at the Film Bazaar on 21st Nov, 2015. Apart from that, Film Bazaar 2015 had interesting sessions in the Knowledge Series by filmmakers like Shoojit Sircar, Anurag Basu, Sudhir Mishra, Theatre Artist – Vani Tripathi Tikoo, Satya Raghavan – Head of Content Operations YouTube India and more.

The Film Facilitation Office (FFO) will be housed in NFDC and will facilitate according permissions for feature films, TV series & advertisement films to be shot in India by filmmakers. The FFO will be additionally charged with facilitating obtaining of clearances from various Government agencies and help in creating on – the – ground support crew for film & ancillary services through standardized vocational training programs.

Post the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting ‘s initiative to set up the Film Facilitation Office, the Ministry of Tourism in association with the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and the NFDC began a 4 day Symposium on Film Tourism with the objective to explore current challenges facing filmmakers to film in India and the steps that can be taken to facilitate greater ease of shooting / producing a feature / non – feature film.

The Symposium began with an interactive session between the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, the Ministry of Tourism & members of the film fraternity from India & abroad led by Sunil Arora, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting & Vinod Zutshi, and Secretary of Tourism. The deliberations centered on how a single window clearance could effectively deal with the facilitation of an eco – system that would be sensitive to the needs of both the filmmakers & the administration.

The session saw the participation of leading filmmakers like Shyam Benegal, Ramesh Sippy, Prakash Jha, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Anubhav Sinha, Sudhir Mishra, Kabir Khan, Sanjay Suri, Bharat Bala, amongst others. James Weyman, Manager of Industry Initiatives, Ontario Media Development Corporation and Ruth Harley, Former CEO Screen Australia & New Zealand Film Commission shared their experiences at the session while leading line producers like Parvesh Sahni, Iqbal Kidwai, Deborah Benattar spoke of the on – ground challenges of shooting a film.

The NFDC Knowledge Series had an interesting line up with enchanting speakers covering various aspects of filmmaking. In the session by Shoojit Sircar, he spoke about his experience filming in Gujarat with Khyati Nayak, Manager – Film Cell, Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd. “Gujarat is one of the few States in India which actually has a single window clearance for permissions to shoot”, he added.

Sircar also had another very interesting session titled; Shoojit Sircar – A Journey in Storytelling. Talking about his mentor & his journey, Shoojit said, “As a child when my father took me for the film, Pather Panchali, I slept through it. Now every time I’m low, I watch this film. Satyajit Ray has been my biggest inspiration and my journey began by watching & learning from his films.” He is a man of stories – the filmmaker who has a very strong sense of narrative. Talking about the same, he adds, “If your research is right, you will never go wrong.”

Filmmakers Anurag Basu, Sudhir Mishra & Theatre Artist – Vani Tripathi Tikoo covered a very interesting topic in the session – Female protagonists in Bollywood today – how real is the discourse? Talking about the reprisal of women – centric roles in Indian cinema, Sudhir Mishra said, “The kind of stardom that actresses like Nargisji, MeenaKumari, Sridevi & Madhuri Dixit have had, none of the new actresses have had. The problem with films & cinema today is parallel cinema is being ignored. It’s like people are saying that Shyam Benegal’s cinema, Shabana Azmi & Deepti Naval’s work did not exist. Women are objectified in our films. There are so many songs on female beauty but none on male beauty.”

Director Anurag Basu said that women centric films have always been around. “I feel that you make movies according to the kind of person you are. Shoojitn Sircar has made Piku, Vikas Bahl made Queen but Rohit Shetty does not make these kinds of movies. I have nothing against him, I’m just mentioning this. Women centric films have always been around because the ending of Queen is the same like that of Arth. The problem is that women filmmakers want to make masala blockbusters like men do. We need Juhi Chaturvedi and others like her to give us more characters and films like Piku,” says Anurag.

Television & theatre actress Vani Tripathi Tikoo said that portrayal of women in television is regressive. “I have worked on strong & memorable characters in shows directed by Anurag Basu. After that, there was a wave of shows directed by women, written by women, and even produced by women who were very regressive and seen by generations of women all over. Earlier in films, we had the vamp & the heroine. Today, we have anti – heroine characters but there’s a long way to go for liberalization”, says Vani.

In the Television in Digital India session, Gayatri Yadav, Executive Vice President, Marketing & Communications, STAR India spoke about the rise of Internet usage in India. The session gave a roadmap to people for the future of content making, delivery & consumption and how content makers must challenge the statusquo & push the envelope.

Satya Raghavan – Head of Content Operations YouTube India discussed Emergence of Content Destinations. Google & YouTube are one of the most prominent tools today at a filmmaker’s disposal for marketing a film, especially as they offer amazing monetizing solutions as well.

This year, the Investor’s Pitch consists of 3 pitching sessions that provides investors a platform to connect with film projects from different genres and in various stages of completion. The 3 Investor Pitches include; 19 Co – Production Market projects selected across genres with a special focus on South Asian stories from across the globe, 16 Screenwriters’ Lab scripts with a focus on Romance & Children’s stories. These projects have been mentored by national & international industry experts and 18 Film Bazaar Recommends projects from the Viewing Room & Work in Progress Lab. This is the first time the projects under the Screenwriters’ Lab had an opportunity to participate in the pitches.

There are 9 Film Offices set up at this year’s bazaar. The following have participated; Chhattisgarh Tourism, Madhya Pradesh Tourism, Gujarat Tourism, Maharashtra – Film City, West Bengal Tourism, Tamil Nadu Tourism, Daman & Diu Tourism, Puducherry Tourism & Incredible India.

NFDC India’s Managing Director, Nina Lath Gupta says, “It has been a great start to the bazaar this year. It has been our endeavour over the years to facilitate the ease of shooting films in India, with the launch of FFO, it will only get better. Change will not happen overnight but under the guidance of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and Ministry of Tourism, we will have tangible outcomes in the months forward.”

At the Film Bazaar 2015, the opening evening networking event on 20th Nov 2015 was organized by KeySmith.com; lunch on 21st Nov, 2015 was co – hosted by Madhya Pradesh Tourism & Gujarat Tourism. The evening networking event on 21st Nov, 2015 was organized by Incredible India.

Incidentally speaking Film Bazaar in its 9th edition is exclusively created to encourage collaboration between the international & South Asian film fraternities. The market aims at facilitating the sales of world cinema in the region. The 2014 market saw an attendance of 1042 delegates from 38 countries with country delegations from Canada, South Korea and Poland. Film Bazaar will be held from 20th Nov, 2015 – 24th Nov, 2015 at Goa Marriott Resort in Goa (India).

That apart incorporated in the year 1975 National Film Development Corporation Ltd is formed by Ministry of Information & broadcasting with the primary objective of promoting the good cinema movement. NFDC is instrumental for creating an ecosystem to support the financing, distribution & development of independent films across the country.

Movie Review: ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ is a perfect family entertainer. So what if it defies all logic

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Prem Ratan Dhan Payo

Banner: Rajshree Productions
Producer: Ajit Kumar Barjatya, Kamal Kumar Barjatya & Raj Kumar Barjatya
Director: Sooraj R. Barjatya Cast: Salman Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Anupam Kher, Swara Bhaskar, Armaan Kohli, Aashika Bhatia, Deepak Dobriyal, Samaira Rao, Sanjay Mishra, S. M. Zaheer, Lata Sabharwal, Suhasini Mulay et al Music: Himesh Reshammiya

Salman Khan & Sooraj Barjatya go a long way from ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’ to ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ en route ‘Hum Saath Saath Hain’ & ‘Hum Aapke Hai Kaun’. In fact Sallu Miyan is back again to steal the audiences hearts with his double role as Prem & Sooraj in ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’. While Sooraj Barjatya has already created history with films like ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’, ‘Hum Aapke Hai Kaun’ & ‘Hum Saath Saath Hai’, ‘Vivaah’, ‘Ek Vivaah Aisa Bhi’ Sooraj Barjatya is returning to direction after 9 years. To be frank ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ is a complete family drama with all emotions intact.

Prem Dilwale (Salman Khan) is a happy go lucky stage actor who falls in love with Princess Maithili (Sonam Kapoor) of Devgarh. He admires her charitable activities and sets off on a journey to meet her. Maithili’s fiancé Prince Vijay Singh (Salman Khan) of Pritampur is soon to be crowned as king. Being an arrogant person he faces many problems with Maithili and his family. His step sisters Rajkumari Chandrika (Swara Bhaskar) & Rajkumari Radhika (Aashika Bhatia) too are upset with him and stays in a separate house away from the palace. His step brother Prince Ajay Singh (Neil Nitin Mukesh) hates him to the core and plans an attack on him with the help of his CEO Chirag Singh (Armaan Kohli). To save the palace prestige Diwan saheb (Anupam Kher) a loyal servant of the palace gets Prem to take Prince’s place in order to save him. Prem Dilwale vows to return the happiness of this broken family overcoming all the bitterness & hatred they have for one another.

Mounted on a very lavish scale in all aspects & respects music is the strongest point of the film. The semi – tradional tunes in lieu with the songs bring the melodious feel of the 80’s & the 90’s. The cinematographer V. Manikandan has done a perfect job. Kudos to Sooraj Barjatya for doing an outstanding job of displaying his near perfect directional skills. Well Sooraj Barjatya has made a perfect family entertainer.
So what if it defies all logic.

Performance wise Salman Khan has proved once again especially after ‘Tere Naam’ & ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ that he is an uncrowned king of histrionics. Sonam Kapoor looks & appears as a sensational stunning beauty and perhaps that was all that was expected of her. Deepak Dobriyal is totally mesmerising. While Neil Nitin Mukesh, Armaan Kohli & Swara Bhaskar are apt in their respective roles.

Tail Piece: ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ is like a double whammy for Salman Khan fans just like his currently on air show namely ‘Big Boss 9 Double Trouble’ and is stricly recommended mainly for die hard Sallu Miyan fans.

A medley of films at IFFI 2015

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IFFI 2015

The International Film Festival of India (IFFI Goa 2015) begins from 20th Nov, 2015 and it will be curtains down on the festival on 30th Nov, 2015. This year the bouquet of International competition section of IFFI Goa 2015 seems to be very attractive and appealing. The fest is all set to screen almost 15 films helmed by world – class filmmakers.

And the films to be screened in the competition section are Kaushik Ganguly’s Cinemawala and Debesh Chatterjee’s Natoker Moto are the 2 Indian Films selected in this section. Besides the International Competition section at IFFI brings forth the cinematic vibrancy of the world cinema. The section is so popular amongst the world film fraternity that this year it has attracted films and filmmakers even from unconventional film regions like Argentina, Venezuela, Serbia, Bolivia, Jordan among others. Traversing through various languages and countries, the films in this section are nothing short of a masterpiece envisioned by the world – class filmmakers.

Appreciating films and the art of film making by talented filmmakers from the world, the International Competition section will offer a unique opportunity to showcase the most spectacular films to film enthusiasts and film makers from India and across the world.

A brief insight into some of the exceptional films, which will be competing for the prestigious awards this year at IFFI Goa 2015 include:-

1. 3000 Nights (Mai Masri) from Palestine, France, Jordan, Lebanon / 2015 / Arabic, Hebrew / 103 minutes / colour. It’s about Layal, a young newlywed Palestinian school teacher who is arrested after being falsely accused and sentenced to & years of prison. She is transferred to a high security Israeli women’s prison where she encounters a terrifying world in which Palestinian political prisoners are incarcerated with Israeli criminal inmates.

2. Embrace Of The Serpent (Ciro Guerra) Colombia / Venezuela / Argentina / 2015 / Spanish / Portuguese / German / Catalan / Latin / 122 minutes / colour. : It is an epic story of the 1st contact, encounter, approach, betrayal and eventually, life – transcending friendship, between Karamakate, an Amazonian shaman, last survivor of his people & above all 2 scientists.

3. Enclave (Goran Radovanovic) Serbia / Germany / 2015 / Serbian / 92 minutes / colour. The movie traces the story of Nenad, a 10 year old Christian boy from a Serbian enclave who crosses enemy lines in order to ensure a proper community burial for his late grandfather.

4. Filosofi Kopi (Angga Dwimas Sasongko) Indonesia / 2015 / Indonesian / 117 minutes / colour. The movie is a tale about soul – searching and making peace with the past through coffee. Ben and Jody are 2 friends and owners of ‘Filosofi Kopi’, a sophisticated coffee shop known for serving the best coffee in the country.

5. Journey To The Shore (Kiyoshi Kurosawa) Japan, France / 2015 / Japanese/ 128 minutes / colour. The movie is a tale about Mizuki’s husband Yusuke drowned at sea 3 years ago. When he suddenly comes back home, she is not that surprised. Instead, Mizuki is wondering what took him so long. She agrees to let Yusuke take her on a journey.

6. Kapo In Jerusalem (Uri Barbash) Israel / 2015 / Hebrew / 98 minutes / colour. It is the tale of a pair of Auschwitz survivors who arrive in Jerusalem. Bruno is a doctor and Sarah a pianist. They are trying to rehabilitate their lives and love in a city under siege during the War of Independence.

7. Labyrinth Of Lies (Giulio Ricciarelli) Germany / 2014 / German / 121 minutes / colour. The movie is a tale of the economic miracle which is changing the life of Germans in post war Germany. Most of them are sick of the war and prefer to push their guilt to the back of their mind. When a journalist identifies a teacher in the playground as a former guard from Auschwitz.

8. Eisenstein In Guanajuato (Peter Greenaway) Netherlands / Mexico / 2015 / English, Spanish / 105 minutes / colour. The movie unfolds in 1931, at the height of the artistic powers. Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein travels to Mexico to shoot a new film to be titled Que Viva Mexico. Freshly rejected by Hollywood and under increasing pressure to return to Stalinist Russia, Eisenstein arrives at the city of Guanajuato.

9. The Man Who Became A Horse (Amir – Hossein Saghafi) Iran / 2015 / Farsi / 110 minutes / colour. A father and his daughter live together. The mother has passed away. There is just one white horse left for their daughter. The father prevents his daughter from leaving him though she is married. The father is even planning to kill his son – in – law but the girl leaves him and he goes crazy.

10. The Measure Of A Man) (La Loi Du Marche – Stephane Brize) France / 2015 / French / 93 minutes / colour. It is the tale of Thierry who at the age of 51 and after 20 months of unemployment starts a new job that soon brings him face to face with a moral dilemma. How much is he willing to accept to keep his job?

11. Mustang (Deniz Gamze Erguven) Turkey / 2015 / Turkish / 97 minutes / colour. The movie unfolds in the beginning of the summer. In a village in the north of Turkey, Lale and her 4 sisters come home from school, innocently playing with boys. The supposed debauchery of their games causes a scandal with unintended consequences.

12. Rams (Grimur Hakonarson) Iceland / 2015 / Icelandic / 93 minutes / Colour. The movie unfolds in a secluded valley in Iceland, Gummi & Kiddi live side by side, tending to their sheep. Their ancestral sheep – stock is considered one of the country’s best and the 2 brothers are repeatedly awarded for their prized rams that carry an ancient lineage.

13. Sealed Cargo (Julia Vargas) Bolivia, Mexico, Venezuela, France 2015 / Spanish / 107 minutes / colour. The movie opens when somewhere in the Andes half buried containers of suspicious minerals are found. The villagers demand their police to get rid of them. The government decides to send them to the border by any means, and the only available train is a steam locomotive whose anarchist driver, Augustin, is retired

14. Natoker Moto (Debesh Chatterjee) India / 2015 / 121 minutes / colour. It is the story of a journey of a female theatre artist and her multi -dimensional conflicting experience as a girl, as a woman and even as an artist. It is more so when especially a woman is of maverick capability and of excellence beyond her time.

15. Cinemawala (Kaushik Ganguly) India / 2015 / colour). Pranabendu Das is a retired film exhibitor from a small town in West Bengal. He owns a movie theatre ‘Kamalini’ named after his separated wife. This old man never retired on his own wish. He was forced to take up this decision.

The 46th edition of International Film Festival of India – IFFI Goa 2015 will be held from 20th Nov, 2015 to 30th Nov, 2015 in Goa where film luminaries across the world will witness a mélange of National as well as international cinema.

‘Bhouri’ is a women-centric film: Chanderpaul Singh

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Bhouri

Débutante producer Chanderpaul Singh is now ready with an off beat & realistic film, needless to say with all the commercial trappings intact, offering named ‘Bhouri’. In this exclusive interview he speaks at length all about his pet project ‘Bhouri’.

Right at the outset tell us what is your upcoming film ‘Bhouri’ all about?

First of all I would like to enlighten one & all that my upcoming film ‘Bhouri’ is a womencentric film. It depicts how all women, especially if they are beautiful, in a particular small village is treated as an object of a lusty desire of some men to give vent to their carnal pleasure.

How about narrating the plotline of ‘Bhouri’ in a nutshell?

The opening sequence of ‘Bhouri’ introduces us to the part of a famished rural India to which the higher authorities have turned a blind eye. The local governance & supplies are dominated by a group of 5 upper class men who collectively rule the village. They exploit their power in every possible way. The villagers are compelled to satisfy them, often at a great expense to their meager means & dignified self respect to the extent that most of the women, especially ‘Bhouri’ the most beautiful of them who was recently married to Dhanua one of the villager, in the village have been compelled to flesh trade for these so called 5 tyrants’ gratified sexual pleasures. And all these women are a hapless & helpless as their menfolks’ only means of livelihood in the village is the Zamindar owned & run kiln (Bhatta). The film ‘Bhouri’ narrates the plight of these women who are sexually exploited sometimes even with force. Until Bhouri revolts & protests strongly against this sexual malpractises.

Don’t you think this sexual exploitation scenario has been repeated time & again in Bollywood movies?

Yes! You are right on this score but you forget one thing that every filmmaker & director presents such oft repeated scenario with their own perspective, their own hindsight. And as far as ‘Bhouri’ is concerned it is based on one particular angle which is set against the backdrop of the fight of women in rural India. In particular ‘Bhouri’ is based on a fictional yet somewhat true story of a 22 year old girl named Bhouri whose extremely fair complexion & sharp features became a source of endless pain & punishment in life as her only crime was that her over attractive looks aroused (sexual) lust, lust & only lust.

Don’t you think the blatantly bold theme of ‘Bhouri‘ topped with a fair amount of skin show will prove to be a hindrance at the time of censoring the film?

The skin show that you are referring to has been done in a very decent & dignified manner as per the requirement of the theme of the film. So I don’t think the censors will raise any objections to it.

As a parting shot how about giving us an insight into the crew & the cast of ‘Bhouri‘?

‘Bhouri’ has been produced by me under the banner of S Video Picture Pvt Ltd Presents. The other crew members are directed by Jasbir Bhati, screenplay & dialogues by Jagat Bhushan Singh & Manjeet Mahipal, cinematography by Mohammed Rubaiz, editing by Mansoor Azmi & Miraz Ali, music by Sanjay Pathak, lyrics by Priya Pathak & Manjeet Mahipal & PRO Raju Kariya. The film stars débutante Masha Paur as Bhouri & stalwarts like Raghuveer Yadav, Kunika, Shakti Kapoor, Mohan Joshi, Sitaram Panchal, Mohan Joshi, Mukesh Rishi & above all Aditya Pancholi.

“NH10 was the turning point in my career:” Navdeep Singh

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Navdeep Singh

Navdeep Singh had gained instant recognition & glory when he had yielded the megaphone for actress Aushka Sharma’s ‘NH10’, and this was almost after 8 years of lying low after his debut directorial venture ‘Manorama Six Feet Under’. Here in this exclusive interview Editor Ravi Kumar of Film & TV Trade preview, Navdeep Singh speaks about his more than a decade long directorial journey.

You are hailing from an army background. So what made you to choose your career in the film industry?

After completing my education in US & UK and also dabbling with the making of a few commercials side by side out there I had come to India and joined the army but from day one I was itching to do something creative. Over here, I mean in the Army Club’s cantonment arena they used to show us the VHS of Hindi & English films. And so I slowly got drifted into the realms of the magic of Bollywood movies.

Did you face any objections from your family, when you decided to opt for a career in the film industry?

None whatsoever as I had already tried my hands at making commercials in UK & US I decided to follow my passion in India too. So when I reached the Indian shores I instantly decided to make commercials and I ended up doing the commercials of branded products like Lakme, Maruti, Garnier et al.

So your real claim to fame has been in the arena of the commercials & the music videos. Tell us something about your past work!

As said earlier I made commercials and the making of music videos came much later. On the flip side I also started making enough grounds for making my debut Hindi film. Besides I have already told you about the branded commercials I had done.

When did you decide to direct a Hindi feature film?

I had come to Mumbai in the year 2001. Then I took some time to establish myself by making commercials & music videos. And then I planned the making of my debut feature film in Hindi. No doubt it was an offbeat film named ‘Manorma Six Feet Under’. I had initially planned to make ‘Manorama Six Feet Under’ with Irfan Khan, but the initial producer who had come on board jus backed out at the last moment. And since the project was getting delayed day by day Irfan khan too started becoming busy and he too opted out. But finally ‘Manorama Six Feet Under’ hit the celluloid silver screen in the year 2006.

You directed ‘NH10’ after a gap of 8 years. What was the reason behind it?

You see it so happened that ‘Manorama Six Feet Under bagged a lot of critical appreciation but could not hit the bull’s eye at box office. I did have to make serious efforts to bag my 2nd project. And then when I landed up the project named ‘NH10’ its pre – production planning took a lot of time and finally it went on the floors.

How did you plan ‘NH10’?

After the initial pre – production planning like getting the script and stars on board which also included the rece of the locales on the National Highway 10 which also included seeking of the requisite Governmental permissions to shoot. And since it was the debut project for Anushka as a producer we all were trying to make extra efforts for its success both artistically & commercially.

’NH10’ was a perfect balance of realistic & commercial cinema, touching the subject of honour killing in a very different way. Have you done any effort to make the film commercially viable?

No we did not take any effort in this direction. We had landed up a good subject for ‘NH10’ so we tried to present the theme as realistically as possible. We did not temper with it nor did we try to decorate it with the usual commercial trappings of songs, dances and the usual masala entertainment. It was a story based on the true events. With no lecture baazi and it was not even preachy. A simple story told simply, of course retaining the hardcore gruesomeness as far as possible.

How was it working with Anushka Sharma?

It was a pleasure working with her. I would say that she is a fantastic actress. Not only these, she is equally sincere & dedicated actress. The film was shot mostly in night shift but never once did she complain and above all she is a wonderful producer never even once asking how the film is shaping up. There were no objections or obstacles whatsoever raised from her side. It was a smooth sailing all the way.

It is heard that members of censor board wanted a ban on ‘NH10’. Why?

Yes initially they did raise an objection stating that the film was too crude, violent & gruesome. But ultimately I convinced them by saying that it was nothing as compared to what happens in real life. And it will hardly inspire anyone to connect with such crimes. In fact it will prove to be very repulsive for them to hate such crimes.

Is thriller your favourite genre?

Yes you can say that as I enjoy making films of this genre.

If a director gives a flop in Hindi film industry, producers are generally afraid to sign his / her next project. What are your comments on it?

It’s true. Tell me why they would take risk on such flop directors. But one fine day such directors too, get a 2nd time to prove their directorial prowess but it takes a lot of convincing powers to make them to back your project. Directors do find someone who can put their belief in them.

In Hindi industry, cinema with stars is preferred more than the cinema of content. What are your comments on it?

Yes I think so and I totally agree with you. But of late content driven films are proving to be a lot more successful.

Are you looking forward to work with any big star?

Yes of course If they come forward and believe in my kind of cinema. Or else I am happy with my content driven films starring mini stars or debutante actors.

So what is next on your directorial cards?

A lot more which I can’t reveal at this stage. Suffice it to say that concrete & productive talks are going on with 2 to 3 producers.

“The entire process of producing a movie has never been a smooth sailing:” Ramesh Taurani of Tips

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ramesh-s-taurani

The musical scenario of Bollywood has undergone a drastic change, especially since the last 1 decade. But a most reputed film producer like Ramesh Taurani of Tips music does not feel so. He is of the opinion that as far as music is concerned it has only changed platforms but it’s for the good as music has now had a far wider reach. Ramesh Taurani discusses at length about his musical journey via his Tips music company which has also culminated into his filmmaking journey too.

Nowadays the business of music has been changed. Has the revenue of music expanded compared to earlier times?

Music has always remained a necessary ingredient of our films. It has now changed its course in varied forms for instance it is now available more on digital platform. It now has a far wider reach. The revenue from the sales of music has always been fluctuating. It was the same story then and it is the same story now.

According to you which were the best era of music in Hindi cinema as far as its quality and not quantity are concerned?

I think after the musical era had mesmerized the music lovers in the Black & white era its best period was from the 60’s to the 90’s. After this it has always been fluctuating by doling out some times bad and most of the times good music.

Piracy of music & movies has always been a big setback for producers as well as music companies. How can it be eliminated completely?

In spite of taking all the precautions to curb this ever growing piracy menace we all have failed to completely eradicate this malaise. Once a few of the pirates are booked for their piracy crimes of music & movies another set of such criminal pirates raises their ugly heads. But one day we will all overcome this so called musical hindrance too.

You started making films as a producer in the year 1996 and had made many successful films. What are the changes industry is facing for producing films nowadays? Is producing a film, nowadays more difficult than the earlier times?

According to me the entire process of producing a movie has never been a smooth sailing process. No matter how much we try but everyone faces some kind of road blocks at every step, at every crossroads. There are many changes & developments taking place time & again but not everything can be summarised entirely out here. Each one us learn from our own mistakes and discover the ways to avoid such hindrances & pitfalls.

One of your films ‘Entertainment’ had a mix report. Tell something about that.

I can proudly claim that all our films made under the Tips banner have done extremely well. But of course ‘Entertainment’ had not registered a decent box office collections in hi end multiplexes in some territories especially Bombay.

Some of your past releases didn’t perform well at the box office. What went wrong with these projects?

The answer to these will be the same as mentioned above. Show me one producer whose each & every films have succeeded or garnered decent box office collections all the time. I can claim that our track record is far better.

Individual producers are vanishing because the corporate companies have made the business out of their reach. Shall the time of individual producers come again?

We individual producers are also to be blamed for this pathetic state of affairs. Why blame only the corporate companies as individual producers themselves have taken up this onus of getting over ruled & dominated by the corporate companies. Now whether the time of individual producers will come back or not only time will tell.

Tell something about your forthcoming ‘Love Shhuda’.

I think it is not the right time to speak about it. But I assure you that it will be a very entertaining musical love story.

Girish’s performance was well appreciated in ‘Ramaiya Vastaviaya’. Tell us something about his role in ‘Love Shhuda’.

He is performing a very unusual kind of role in ‘Love Shudda’. His performing skills are getting better day by day. I think his future is very bright in future in the long run.

Is Race3 on card?

Yes very much.

It is heard that Saif wouldn’t be the part of Race3?

Who says so? He is very much a part of ‘Race 3’.

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