Kaifi Azmi — the poet of love, revolution & regeneration
Darshana Goswami | Jan 14
A great synthesizer of idyllic romance and revolutionary ideologies, of battle cries and patriotic hymns, and of tradition and modernity, Kaifi Azmi’s flexibility and versatility held him in perfect balance between modern Urdu literature and the Hindi film industry…
… Even when isolated from the context of their respective cinematic narrative, his lyrics for films such as Kagaz ke Phool, Haqeeqat, Aarth, and Manthan emit the essential flavor of poetic concerto, in which specially chosen diction and images precede thought and meaning…
… The poetic voice of the invisible and the oppressed, Kaifi Azmi shall be remembered and revered so long as the ideas of love, revolution, freedom and equality remain relevant.
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Saeed Jaffrey — the transcultural beacon
Darshana Goswami | Jan 08
Jaffrey was the truest representative of the global culture that took the whole world in a whirlwind in the 1960s and 1970s, a phenomenon in which territorial distances diminished and cultural alienation made way for a synthesis of all sensibilities, bringing the East, West, North and South together, up on a common platform.
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Film festival in the time of corona
S Viswanath | Jan 30
As one daintily steps into 2021 harbouring much hopes that the year will bring in its wake a resurrection and revival of sorts, the core concept of a film festival, celebrated and savoured since nearly seven decades, has taken a virtual 360-degree turn. While the virtual world makes for a temporary solution, hopefully it would never replace the real-life happenings.
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Film festivals — a platform for gender parity
S Viswanath | Feb 28
Film festivals have become a great equaliser… That finally, now, there is a conscious attempt in the West to give women their due is a welcome augury. This is a definitive development. And it is hoped that as women representation gains in strength and their voices are heard, seen, appreciated and accoladed, it would ensure that women filmmakers would eventually turn into a great force to be reckoned with.
Documentary films: local narratives /global issues
Parthajit Baruah | Feb 28
A recent shift in cultural, technological, stylistic, and social aspect has been discerned in documentary filmmaking.