|P R A V A S I F I L M F E S T I V A L |
was given by Anuranjan Jha, journalist and film maker. He said that the in the recent past, a plethora of NRI filmmakers have shifted from the periphery. With the success of Bend it like Beckham, Bride and Prejudice, and more recently The Namesake, NRI film makers are paving their success path towards the mainstream. Mr. Singh said that it was a unique and important initiative taken by Pravasi Today Group. He said that Pravasi Film Festival will give a platform to NRI film makers to interact with the Indian film makers as well as with the media and public at large. Film critic Vinod Bhardwaj said that the heart of a film festival like this lies in the fact that it turns out well for Indians settled elsewhere. This in turn brings out their cherished ideas, sorrows, highs and lows in the form of a medium as powerful as cinema. He also said that through this platform, the Indian citizens will also get to know the conditions and phases the NRIs have to cross while envisaging to live a peaceful, accommodative and normal life with the residents of a particular alien country. Dr. Ajay Dubey said that such an initiative will certainly cater to a wide range of audience. Being first of its kind and out-of-the-box go-ahead, Pravasi Film Festival will also give publicity to the film makers of Indian origin. Seconding the thoughts of Mr. Bhardwaj and Dr. Dubey was the director the Film Festival Anil Joshi. PRAVASI TODAY | OCTOBER 2009
Mr. Joshi said that on a bigger canvas, the Pravasi Film Festival will eventually conceive of thriving into a forum for NRI issues, and would strive to act as a one-stop assembly to express their creativity. Also displayed was a power point presentation to put light on the virtues of film festivals like these through a power point presentation. It was emphasised that it is high time that one should shrug off the misconception that the films highlighting the Indian Diaspora are monotonous in nature. Citing the example of Bend it like Beckham and The Namesake, the organisers said that these films are the best medium which portrays cross-cultural merits and demerits. The vote of thanks was given by Mr. Rajesh Jain, another co-director of PFF 2010. Mr. Jain said that the film festival is an idea to create an atmosphere conducive to valuing culture as a statement, to seeing art works as interventions in current discourses and in recognizing woes and aspirations of a community, which is very much ours, through their art. He also said that highlighting issues related to the Indians staying abroad is a positive step in disguise, as this is the only way through which normal audience could grasp their lives. The event has been able to generate a very warm response from the media fraternity across the globe. Long live pravasi films and filmmakers! Q 45 รงoklh VqMs | vDVwcj
2009