My Film Festival
this is an excerpt of my report on the Kolkata Film Festival ...it was rejected ...the person in charge of the website felt its was just a series of comments by the bystanders...my attempt was to string together the Film Festival story...
look at me am the quintessential whiney writer...
Long after the dust settles on Nandan grounds, the flavor of the sumptuous film feast will linger in the mouths of cinephiles. The Kolkata Film Festival is a veritable feast, which leaves its patrons hungry for more, and this year the feast was particularly well laid out. The discerning jury members like fussy Chefs, ensured that only the freshest and choicest of films were served.
Many People…Many Voices…
On every second week of November people from all walks of life in Kolkata come together for a cause célèbre; a week of celluloid revelry through which Kolkata celebrates her most enduring aspect: her mythical middle class intellectual who swears by Godard and dotes on Fellini.
Therefore one wouldn’t be too off the mark if one decides to track the “mythical intellectual” in the melee of Nandan Multiplex grounds. Armed with a note pad and a pen, yours truly decided to hunt him/her down and the results were surprising to say the least.
Sample these-
Aditya Mondol, a constable with the Kolkata Police, who has been posted as security personnel in the Nandan Complex (where most of the films were screened), says “ I would love to watch movies from different parts of the world, but I also realize that as a security person my duty is to ensure that cinema lovers of Kolkata do not face any trouble. So I am not complaining, I love reading the brochures…I thrive in this atmosphere”.
Anubhati Basu, a student of cinema rues the lack of enthusiasm among the youth. She feels that “Cinema, or for that matter any form of art, cannot survive without the patronage of the youth. The fact that none of my classmates are here is very significant, and I am disillusioned…”
Nihar Gupta, a businessman, says, “The film festival is a good place to see uncensored films.”
Shakuntala Barua, a popular film and television actress feels that the Film Festival is a pilgrimage for her. She finds the experience of discovering different films and cultures “humbling”.
Jigme Bhutia, content writer, is here because it’s a “cool place to be seen in. I fail to understand why should we treat the festival as a pilgrimage. After all it’s about people isn’t it? Why make it a pretentious orgy of intellectual musings?”
Parambrata Chatterjee, a popular actor and an up and coming filmmaker, feels that the Festival like everything in Kolkata is a celebration of its people. “ It’s like a Puja Pandal here and that’s wonderful. I love discovering new films here…” like a true student of cinema, this young filmmaker loves studying the subtler nuances of filmmaking. He finds the prospects of discovering new cultures through films “ exciting and inspiring”.
Arpita Bagchi and Siddharth Bagchi have been patrons of this festival from its very inception. They were regulars in the quadrennial International Film Festival of India (which is now an annual event in Goa) too. Their love for cinema is enduring to say the least. As Mrs.Bagchi fondly reminiscences “I still remember the joy of discovering Godard, Bergman and Adoor Gopalakrishnan…the festival is something we eagerly look forward to every year.”
Dipak Das, a tea seller in the Festival Grounds says “ I have served cups of tea to many luminaries with my own hands during the Kolkata Film Festival. I probably am not educated enough to fully comprehend their work but I make it a point to see them. Initially they didn’t make sense but today I think Bergman is a beautiful filmmaker.”
Chandan Sen a reputed theatre personality feels that the Film Festival is a good platform to “understand the thought process of the world personae.”
Probably, in between these somewhat conflicting views, I have found the true (and not the mythical) Kolkata Intellectual…or at least his/her shadow
On every second week of November people from all walks of life in Kolkata come together for a cause célèbre; a week of celluloid revelry through which Kolkata celebrates her most enduring aspect: her mythical middle class intellectual who swears by Godard and dotes on Fellini.
Therefore one wouldn’t be too off the mark if one decides to track the “mythical intellectual” in the melee of Nandan Multiplex grounds. Armed with a note pad and a pen, yours truly decided to hunt him/her down and the results were surprising to say the least.
Sample these-
Aditya Mondol, a constable with the Kolkata Police, who has been posted as security personnel in the Nandan Complex (where most of the films were screened), says “ I would love to watch movies from different parts of the world, but I also realize that as a security person my duty is to ensure that cinema lovers of Kolkata do not face any trouble. So I am not complaining, I love reading the brochures…I thrive in this atmosphere”.
Anubhati Basu, a student of cinema rues the lack of enthusiasm among the youth. She feels that “Cinema, or for that matter any form of art, cannot survive without the patronage of the youth. The fact that none of my classmates are here is very significant, and I am disillusioned…”
Nihar Gupta, a businessman, says, “The film festival is a good place to see uncensored films.”
Shakuntala Barua, a popular film and television actress feels that the Film Festival is a pilgrimage for her. She finds the experience of discovering different films and cultures “humbling”.
Jigme Bhutia, content writer, is here because it’s a “cool place to be seen in. I fail to understand why should we treat the festival as a pilgrimage. After all it’s about people isn’t it? Why make it a pretentious orgy of intellectual musings?”
Parambrata Chatterjee, a popular actor and an up and coming filmmaker, feels that the Festival like everything in Kolkata is a celebration of its people. “ It’s like a Puja Pandal here and that’s wonderful. I love discovering new films here…” like a true student of cinema, this young filmmaker loves studying the subtler nuances of filmmaking. He finds the prospects of discovering new cultures through films “ exciting and inspiring”.
Arpita Bagchi and Siddharth Bagchi have been patrons of this festival from its very inception. They were regulars in the quadrennial International Film Festival of India (which is now an annual event in Goa) too. Their love for cinema is enduring to say the least. As Mrs.Bagchi fondly reminiscences “I still remember the joy of discovering Godard, Bergman and Adoor Gopalakrishnan…the festival is something we eagerly look forward to every year.”
Dipak Das, a tea seller in the Festival Grounds says “ I have served cups of tea to many luminaries with my own hands during the Kolkata Film Festival. I probably am not educated enough to fully comprehend their work but I make it a point to see them. Initially they didn’t make sense but today I think Bergman is a beautiful filmmaker.”
Chandan Sen a reputed theatre personality feels that the Film Festival is a good platform to “understand the thought process of the world personae.”
Probably, in between these somewhat conflicting views, I have found the true (and not the mythical) Kolkata Intellectual…or at least his/her shadow
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