Indian Panorama 2016 recently announced its final selection of Feature & Non – Feature films to be screened in Goa at the 47th International Film Festival of India, 2016.

1. The Jury of Feature Films, headed by well known Director & Producer, Shri Rajendra Singh Babu, has selected 22 films out of 230 eligible entries. The 13 Members Jury took a month to finalize the selections.

The Jury constituted of the following Members: Rama Vij, Actress, Arup Manna, Director, C V Reddy, Producer & Director, Girish Mohite, Producer & Director, Dr. K. Puttaswamy, Writer, N . Krishnakumar, Producer & Director, Sabyasachi Mohapatra, Filmmaker, Sanjay Pawar, Director & Columnist, Satinder Mohan, Critic & Journalist, Swapan Mullick, Journalist & Film Critic, Uday Shankar Pani, Writer & Filmmaker & Shri Ahathian, Producer & Director.

The Jury has recommended Sanskrit film Ishti Directed by G. Prabha as the Opening Feature Film of Indian Panorama 2016. As per Clause 8.6 of the Indian Panorama 2016 Regulations the Best Feature Film of 63rd National Film Awards 2015, titled Baahubali Directed by S. S. Rajamouli is included in the Indian Panorama 2016. 3 mainstream films are also selected under Indian Panorama Section of 47th International Film Festival of India, 2016. The complete list of 26 Feature Films selected for Indian Panorama section for 47th International Film Festival of India 2016 are as follows.

Feature Films

S. No. Title of the Film Language Director

1. Roopanthram (Malayalam) M. B. Padmakumar

2. Harikatha Prasanga (Kannada) Ananya Kasaravalli

3. Natsamrat – Asa Nat Hone Nahi (Marathi) Mahesh Manjrekar

4. Loktak Lairembee (Manipuri) Haoban Paban Kumar

5. Bastu Shaap (Bengali) Kaushik Ganguly

6. Veeram Macbeth (Malayalam) Jayaraj Rajasekharan Nair

7. Ekk Albela (Marathi) Shekhar Sartandel

8. Kaadu Pookkunna Neram (Malayalam) Dr. Biju

9. U Turn (Kannada) Pawan Kumar

10. Ishti (Sanskrit) G. Prabha

11. Shankhachil (Bengali) Gautam Ghose

12. Irudhi Sutru (Tamil) Sudha Kongara

13. Pinky Beauty Parlour (Hindi) Akshay Singh

14. Mantra (English) Nicholas Kharkongor

15. Ringan (Marathi) Makaramd Mane

16. Onaatah (Khasi) Pradip Kurbah

17. Chitrokar (Bengali) Saibal Mitra

18. Sahaj Paather Gappo Colours of Innocence (Bengali) Manas Mukul Pal

19. K Sera Sera (Konkani) Rajeev Shinde

20. Allama (Kannada) T S Nagabharna

21. Sairat (Marathi) Nagraj Manjule

22. Dikchow Banat Palaax (Assamese) Sanjib Sabhapandit

23. Baahubali (Best Feature Film in 63rd NFA) (Telugu) S.S Rajamouli

24. Bajirao Mastani (Hindi) Sanjay Leela Bhansali

25. Airlift (Hindi) Raja Krishna Menon

26. Sultan (Hindi) Ali Abbas Jaffar

Non – Feature Films

The Non – Feature films Jury chaired by well -known documentary filmmaker Arvind Sinha has picked 21 films out of 198 eligible entries. The 7 Members Jury took 15 days to finalize the selections. The Jury constituted of the following Members : Aarti Srivastava, Documentary Filmmaker, Abhijit Mazumdar, Documentary Filmmaker, Gautam Benegal, Animation Filmmaker, Madhureeta Anand, Film writer & Director, Ronel Haobam, Documentary Filmmaker, Prof. Suresh Sharma, Film Critic & Documentary Filmmaker Ima Sabitri directed by Bobo K H has been chosen as the Opening Non -Feature Film by the Non – Feature Film Jury. As per Clause 8.6 of the Indian Panorama 2016 Regulations the Best Non Feature Film of 63rd National Film Awards 2015, titled Amdavad Ma Famous directed by Hardik Mehta is included in the Indian Panorama 2016, by virtue of direct entry.

The complete list of 21 Non – Feature Films selected for Indian Panorama section for the 47th International Film Festival of India 2016 is given below.

Title of the film Director’s name Language

1. The wind in the Maruwa Sankhajit Biswas (Bengali)

2. Taandav Devashish Makhija (Hindi)

3. Paywat Mithun Chandra Chowdhary (Marathi)

4. In return, Just a Book Shiny Jacob Benjamin (Malayalam)

5. Gudh Saurav Rai (Nepali)

6. Cecilia Pankaj Johar (English)

7. Guns And Guitars – a musical travelogue Bidyut Kotoky (English)

8. Randu Kurippukal Gireesh Kumar. K (Malayalam)

9. Gods ln Shackles Sangita Iyer (English)

10. Memories of a forgotten war Utpal Borpujari (English)

11. Ima Sabitri Bobo KH (Manipuri)

12. Earth Crusader Shabnam Sukhdev (English)

13. Bachchha Saheb Saikat Sekhareswar Ray (Bengali)

14. Ormayude Athirvarambukal Sudesh Balan (Malayalam)

15. Chaukat Umesh Mohan Bagade (Marathi)
16. Edpa Kana Niranjan Kumar Kujur (Hindi)

17. Sabin Alun Altaf Mazid Karbi (Assamese)

18. Samann Billu Paul (Haryanvi)

19. Daayra Sonia Saharan (Haryanvi)

20. Daaravtha Nishant Roy Bombarde (Marathi)

21. Amdavad Ma Famous Non Feature Film of 63rd NFA 2016 Hardik Mehta

Jiya Wadkar The 8 Year Old Daughter Of Suresh Wadkar Makes Her Solo Album Debut With Sapno Ka Gaon Released By R J Series

The Ravindra Jain Group has announced the launch of the 1st ever Kids Web Channel, “Welcome To Fairyland”. The web channel was launched at a grand event at Ajivasan, Juhu in the presence of esteemed guest Pt. Suresh Wadkar & Deevya Jain amongst others.

The event also marked the launch of the 1st ever solo album of Jiya Wadkar, daughter of Pt. Suresh Wadkar. The album is called “Sapnon Ka Gaon”. The interesting trivia is that it was legendary music director Ravindra Jain who launched Suresh Wadkar in Bollywood and now, it’s his son Ayushman Jain who is launching Suresh Wadkar’s daughter.

“Welcome to Fairyland” is a beautiful & interactive world where a child can let his / her imagination run free, was an idea that was birthed in the minds of the Late Ravindra Jain and his wife Deevya Jain. Dr. Ravindra Jain adored kids and how the mind of a child worked, he was fascinated by their imagination and wanted to make something or some outlet where these children would be allowed to think & play freely. Even though he wasn’t able to bring this thought into fruition when he was still with us, his wife Deevya Jain & his son Ayushman Jain are working towards making this dream a reality. Through ‘Welcome to Fairyland’, we are looking forward to bring forth varied concepts & activities that a kid can take part in or can find entertainment through.

Music MASTI (Albums):

Deevya Ravindra Jain and her son Ayushman Jain, through their production house R. J. Series released their albums on nursery rhymes & varied other genres specifically for the entertainment & joy of kids.

These albums will have not only have old nursery rhymes that we have all grown up with, but also original rhymes that have been written & composed specially for children. The 1st album was released by Suresh Wadkar sung by Jeeya Wadkar, the daughter of the well renowned playback singer Suresh Wadekar. Also, in this album, the music is composed & directed by Abhinay Jain, who is an up & coming music director, and the rhymes are written by Patik Bhattacharya. This album consists of 7 songs and the videos have been directed by Sameer Kashani & choreographed by the up & coming Vibha Luhadia. The name of the album is “Sapno Ka Gaon”.

These albums can be found on social media sites such as YouTube and also can be bought through this website as well as sources like Gaana, Saavn, ITunes et al.

Fairy Tales (Imagine – Nation):

Children love to live in a world full of wonder & fantasy that they create in their own minds, and seeing to this we want to create a world where a child can learn and have fun, we will do this by bringing forward stories that can, not only be bought as books but also can be found on YouTube in the form of a Web Series in which we will bring all the wondrous characters that are a part of these books to life so that kids can enjoy & learn from watching these characters as well as interact with these characters by doing activities with them which would also keep these children active.

The concept of these stories was brought forward by Deevya Jain, produced by Deevya Jain & Ayushman Jain, these stories have been written by Pratik Bhattacharya, directed by Sameer Kashani and these stories are voiced by film actress Ananya Dey, whom we can find on the Web Series that will be available to watch on YouTube.

Kitty & Naughty (Knok – Jhok):

Kitty & Naughty are 2 characters that are being introduced by us, they are a pair of mischievous characters who love to pull each other’s legs and are also a lot of fun!

They love joking around and also love playing games, they are a way through which we can teach children about different values and also help them learn in a fun & playful way!

While Kitty is the quiet & level headed one, Naughty is a little troublemaker and together they make a wonderful pair!

They can be found on our YouTube Channel.

Dreams Come True (Sapne Jo Sach Honge):

Every child has a dream, no matter where that child comes from but many a times, these children aren’t able to achieve these goals, this is why we have brought forth this idea.

This is a platform through which children will be able to showcase their talent and will be able to be featured on our YouTube channel, they can write & send in poems, stories and other varied things which will be featured on the channel, they can also send in videos of them performing and doing whatever they like, which then we can showcase on the channel.

One of the main goals of this is that we want to help a child become closer to his / her dream, whatever it may be, we aim to assist that child in his endeavor, and so through the varied poems, stories or videos that will be sent to us, we will select & help children who are unable to reach their dream due to one reason or the other.

Amidst flashing cameras, glittering stars & an exhilarating atmosphere, the music of 5G International Presents & Sachin Katarnawre produced, Bhay, was launched. The music was launched by Bollywood stars Raveena Tandon & Sohail Khan. The music was launched with great enthusiasm in the prescence of numerous celebrities. On this occasion, the trailer of the movie & songs were screened. Actors Raveena Tandon & Sohail Khan said that the successful run of Marathi films is praiseworthy, and the movie Bhay will definitely be a new experience for the movie goers.

Praising all the actors of the movie Bhay, Raveena Tandon expressed her wish to act in Marathi films. At the launch, it was also announced that the movie will also be released in 3 other languages namely, Tamil, Telugu & Arabic. Rahul Bhathankar has done the direction & editing.

This movie has songs of 3 different genres. The 2 songs, “Saajanaa” & “Mi aalo” have been sung by Brijesh Shandilya & Tulika Upadhyay. Both the songs have been picturized in a different style. The songs take us on a small journey on a cruise, and we are treated to the beautiful visuals of helipads & skyscrapers of Dubai and pristine & famous beaches. The song “Chal re” has vocals by Ali Aslam. The lyrics by Shekhar Astitva have been set to music by Vikram Montrose. The Music of Bhay is released by Zee Music.

Abhijit Khandkekar, Satish Rajwade, Uday Tikekar, Smita Gondkar, Sanskruti Balgude, Vinit Sharma, Siddharth Bodke, Shekhar Shukla, Dhananjay Mandrekar, Nupur Dudhwadkar have acted in this film. Each one has some fear in their mind. How people living with fear in their mind, face varied difficulties, is what we are going to see in this absorbing movie Bhay. The co -producers of the movie are Ajay Joshi. Ashish Chauhan is the executive producer. Story, screenplay & dialogues are by Nitin Vijay Supekar. Art direction is by Prashant Rane. Ajay Devrukhkar is the choreographer & the cinematographer is Rajesh.

He remain inspired & guided by the story & philosophy “Growth is Life”! In the present Bollywood landscape, Ajay Kapoor is definitely one of the elite names in the business. Ajay Kapoor who undoubtedly has the highly coveted quality of being a respected dramatic thespian will spearhead Rajesh Wadhawan Group – a leading business group with interest in finance, real estate, hospitality & sports spearheaded by Kapil Wadhawan & Dheeraj Wadhawan foray into Bollywood in film production.

With his wealth of experience, his name denotes success & spells entertainment. Ajay Kapoor possess the quality to be a major force to be reckoned with. With his impeccable knack for music, drive & determination, Ajay Kapoor is touted to cross its own limits and walk the impossible roads to achieve growth to a greater heights with glorious experience of 2 decades.

The 2nd innings as managing director is all set to scale new heights, Ajay felt it was time he took up new challenges. “Over the years T – Series has given me a lot of love, strength & recognition in the market. It was time I took the experience I have gained and make use of it into exploring newer & bigger opportunities. I share the vision of this group’s foray into the film production business and hope to make a difference together as envisioned I am grateful to the Wadhwan group for the warm welcome” Ajay said.

Welcoming Ajay Kapoor’s addition to the group, Dheeraj Wadhawan, Vice Chairman of Rajesh Wadhawan Group said, “His wealth of experience and the y of work till date makes him a major force to be reckoned with in the industry. We welcome Ajay to our family and hope his vision & leadership skills will create strong foundation for our production house” said Mr. Wadhawan.

At T – Series, Ajay was famous for having produced Box – Office turnstiles hits like Ready, Tum Bin, Roy, Bhootnath Returns, Baby, Airlift, Hate Story amongst other films. He worked with T – Series Group for over 2 decades.

It is rightly said that before you begin anything fresh you should seek the good wishes & blessings of the divine. The star cast of the upcoming film Saasein – The Last Breath Rajniesh Duggall & Sonarika Bhadoria along with the producer Goutam Jain recently visited Ajmer Sharif Dargah to give an auspicious kickstart to their promotional city tour.

In fact, even before the film rolled, it was decided that the city tours should begin from Khawaja Gharibnawaz Dargah Ajmer Sharif.

Rajniesh stated, “We always wanted to start our journey with the blessings of God. Hence we started our promotions from Ajmer Sharif. Visiting Ajmer Sharif was a divine experience for all of us and I wish the blessings stay with us and our film Saasein – The Last Breath.”

Many Bollywood stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Kangana Ranaut, Priyanka Chopra, Kapil Sharma, Katrina Kaif have visited the holy shrine of Ajmer Sharif in the past to pray for their films’ success.

Starring Rajniesh Duggall, Sonarika Bhadoria along with Hiten Tejwani, Neetha Shetty, Vishal Malhotra, Amir Dalvi, Saasein – The Last Breath is directed by Rajiv S Ruia. The music is composed by Vivek Kar & lyrics are penned by Kumar. Saasein – The Last Breath is produced by Goutam Jain & Vivek Agarwal under the banner GPA Productions.

Saasein – The Last Breath is all set to be release on 11th November, 2016.

Hiten Paintal, happens to be a chip of the old block namely the erstwhile comedian Paintal who needs no special introduction. Hiten had begun his career simultaneously both on the big screen as well as the small screen. But at one point of time he gave up television completely to get a firm footing on the big screen. Present herewith is a telephonic interaction with an actor par excellence. Tune in.

How would you describe your filmic journey
on the big screen as well as the small screen in a nutshell?

My journey on both the front has been interesting, with a lot of ups & downs and no doubt mixed with a few disappointments. But all said & done I don’t regret anything and if I had to go through it again I wouldn’t change a thing.

So What is your upcoming film 30 Minutes all about?

The film is about a young boy whose father has tortured him all his childhood due to the value of time and when he grows up he has a good job & falls in love. And then an incident happens in his life where he comes on the brink of sanity & insanity and then he plays a game called “30 Minutes”. Hence the title.

What did you enjoy most, working on the big screen or the small screen?

Actually speaking I have enjoyed working in both the mediums. But working on the small screen gives you an opportunity to get connected with some of the most amazing shows even otherwise television and television stars have a far greater reach but still I feel that at some point of time television stops giving you creative satisfaction and you tend to get stagnated by its daily routine. So honesty speaking I prefer working more on big screen.

How would you rate your father Paintal as an actor and as a human being?

I consider my father a great, great actor. He is one of the best actor that we have today and I would rate him 10 on 10 as far as his acting goes. He has been working as an actor for more than 4 and a half decade. Besides I would say that is a wonderful human being, extremely loving and compassionate. So as a human being I would rate him 11 on 10 as for me he is a great, great father.

What did you learn or unlearn from your father Paintal?

Truly speaking I have learned a lot from my father in fact I have gained a lot from him. One thing I have noticed is that he was very punctual, hard working & very down to earth person as far as his work was concerned and when I became an actor he always told me to be always true to my work. Never compromise or cheat my work and always worship and treat my work like a temple. So you see I have always learned good things from him and never unlearned anything from him.

Amongst all the work you have done till date which are your favorites?

One of my all time favorite film is Bachna Ae Haseenon. Believe me it was mad, mad, mad laughriot. Its director. Siddarth Anand was my school friend, I had a special connect with Ranbir Kapoor as my father Paintal and his father Rishi Kapoor too were great friends. So we 3 boys that is myself, Siddharth & Ranbir were always on the sets and after work we used to indulge in a lot of fun & frolic on the sets while the girls used to leave once they had finished their work. So Bachana Ae Haseenon will always remain a special & memorable for me.

How was the experience of working with your father in 30 Minutes?

It was a super experience working with him. Besides we were playing father and son in the film which we are in real life. We were supposed to shoot for 20 days but we could wrap up our work in 12 days. It was easy &
comfortable being with him on the sets. He would correct me, point out my flaws if any and even guide me properly.

You are playing a lead role in 30 Minutes. So what are your expectations from the film?

Yes this is my 1st lead role as I think that till now the industry was scared to give me a lead role probably thinking that “Comedian ka beta hai, toh comedy hi karega” So my expectations from the film have increased far beyond. I think it is should do well for everyone involved in the film specially for my producer Yesudas. I wish that people should just go and watch the film and then decide.

As a parting shot tell us something about your producer & director Yesudas?

Mr. Yesudas who is my producer & director for 30 minutes is an extremely great human being. I have been associated with him for almost 3 years. We took one and a half year for scripting and another one and a half year for shooting. So I think he is a wonderful, wonderful man and he has the cutest smile in the industry. He was very focussed about what he wanted and how he wanted? I thank him for putting his faith & belief in me and I hope I have lived up to his expectations.

Producer: Eyefaa Studio, Pradeep K. Sharma & V. Nazareth
Director: Arshad Siddiqui
Star Cast: Ssharad Malhotra, Hritu Dudani,
Melanie Nazareth, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Deepraj Rana, Gargi Patel, Aprajita Mahajan
Anubhav Dhir et al
Music: Sunil Singh, Liyakat Ajmeri & Ali -Anirudh

Director Arshad Siddiqui in his decade long career has given innumerable films but in his latest offering 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath he has gone totally wrong in his directorial calculations.

The scripted scenario of 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath kicks off with a manic depressive prince, Aditya Pratap Singh (Ssharad Malhotra) who not only believes in ghosts, but spends the better part of his days chatting up with them. His palace is a bastion for spirits, with the aatma of his recently deceased wife Kasturi (Hritu Dudani) topping the list. As Aditya sinks deeper into the delirium, a man is killed in the palace and inspector Suryakant Singh (Deepraj Rana) begins investigation. In the meantime, Aditya’s friend from the US, Sonali (Melanie Nazareth), comes visiting and almost falls in love with him. However, she is chased away by the jealous ghost of Kasturi. Just before intermission, the movie changes track so violently, that you’re not sure whether it’s a thriller or your brains are just being picked.

It is sometimes really disheartening to note that even an experienced filmmaker like
Arshad Siddiqui can sometimes make such an inconsiquential movie. The only redeeming factor of the movie is its meliflous & melodious music by Sunil Singh, Liyakat Ajmeri & Ali -Anirudh and they have really delivered some hit numbers like the title track, “Pakeezah” & “Aye Mere Khuda”.

Peformance wise Ssharad’s character is so flat, it’s laughable and his acting skills are. worst to say the least. Hritu Dudani & Melanie Nazareth, minus their oomp factor, are as horrible as they come. Deepraj Rana supposed to be gifted has merely sleep walked through his role. While the other actors of the film too are disappointing.

Tail Piece: 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath is watchable only for its lilting musical score. But on second thoughts you can listen to its music by buying its music CD and save youself the trouble of sitting through the entire movie.

Producer Pradeep K. Sharma is one cool guy who takes everything in his stride without losing his calm & composure in the least bit. To start off his filmic career as a producer he made a right beginning by launching his own home production banner namely Baba Motion Pictures Pvt Ltd. Present herewith is a one on one interview session with him in Cafe Coffee Day.

How did you begin your filmic journey?

Honestly speaking I always aimed to be a filmmaker. And to make a right beginning towards this end I proceeded by launching my own home production banner namely
Baba Motion Pictures Pvt Ltd and produced my 1st film namely Direct Ishq which was a moderate success. Even my 2nd film released under the same banner namely 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath has been released but sadly enough it received a very lukewarm response from the cine goer’s all over. But no regrets whatsoever I will continue making good cinema in all genres.

It seems you had a little tiff with director
Arshad Siddiqui during the making of 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath?

You cannot really term it as a tiff. But then you tend to have a little misunderstanding which was later on cleared amicably. Even otherwise how could I upset my director Arshad Siddiqui who was also a part producer of 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath. He had used the name of his long standing banner namely Eyefaa Studio.

It seerms singer Swati Sharma happens to be your daughter?

Yes you are right and indeed she has rendered 5 songs in 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath.
But that’s all! I do not at all interfere in her singing career. In fact she takes her own independent decisions.

To what would you attribute the lukewarm response to your 2nd film 1:13:7 Ek Tera Saath!

No body can really understand the psyche of the Indian cine goer’s. You can never know what they would like and what they would not. Anyways I am very happy that my 2nd film also got released in the same year as my 1st film Direct Ishq. The music & the script were also great. My daughter Swati Sharma’s 5 songs with Raahat Fateh Ali Khan, KK & Aman Trikha were also very melodious. The film also had good actors like Ssharad Malhotra, Hritu Dudani & Melanie Nazereth.

Are you trying to follow in the footsteps of Ramsay Bros of the past era and Vikram Bhatt of the present times by making a film rooted in the horror genre?

No its nothing like that. Once again I would like to stress that I will continue making films of all genres as long as they represent good cinema that would be liked by the masses as well as the classes.

So which are the next films that you are planning under your own home production banner?

I am now planning to launch 2 new films under my own home production banner namely Aashiq Surrender & Ishqabaad as well as a Marathi film next year. Yes you can say that I was highly impressed & inspired by the grand success of Marathi film Sairaat. That apart I am also planning to make 2 big films every year, with big star cast in the coming years.