“The National Museum of Indian Cinema is a fantastic facility and though Bangladesh has some sort of film archive and film department, it is yet to have a facility like that. It’s an inspiring project and we will try to emulate it in our country”, said Member of Parliament of Bangladesh Sufi Faruq Ibne Abubakar in Mumbai today. He was one of the members of the high-powered delegation from Bangladesh, comprising MPs and young leaders, which visited National Museum of Indian Cinema, Mumbai today. Noted film-maker Shri Shyam Benegal was also present on this occasion.
Speaking to the delegation from Bangladesh, Shri Shyam Benegal said: “The history of cinema of East Asia is only three years younger than that of the rest of the world. The very first film made in India was Return of Wrangler Paranjpye (1902), a silent documentary film by H. S. Bhatavdekar. Indians are very bad in conserving things, especially film artefacts; this creates many hurdles in film preservation. Globally, artefacts for film museums are gathered from junkyards; our efforts should be towards conserving instruments and cameras used in film-making. Though India is among the major countries having cinema museums in the world, there is a need for more efforts in collecting artefacts from personal collections and similar sources”.
Shri Shyam Benegal spoke also about the film that he wants to make on the life and works of Bangladesh’s Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. For the movie to look realistic, the major cast and crew should be from Bangladesh; the writer also should be Bangladeshi and the dialogues should show Bengali as spoken in Bangladesh, rather than as spoken in India, said Shri Benegal. The movie will be made in Bengali and subtitles of other languages can always be added later on, he added.
Director General, Films Division, Shri Prashant Pathrabe gave the delegation a brief of the department: “Films Division is a department under the Films Wing of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India. It produces documentary films. It has regional offices in Bengaluru, Chennai and Delhi. It was set up in the year 1948 to disseminate public policies among the general public. Since there was no television at that time, film was a major medium of communication. Films Division was mandated with covering VVIP visits and has rare footages of important leaders. Films Division also produces short films and animation films. The Division has a very professional technical and production set-up. It has a very well-equipped camera section, editing section and state-of-the-art sound studio. So the entire sequence of work involved in making a film, television commercial, documentary or animation film can be performed here. It also has a treasure-trove of rare footage which can be accessed by film-makers for study and reference.”
DJM/MC/SP
PRESS RELEASE
Films Division, Mumbai
Film screenings to mark International Women’s Day
Screening of a film on the courage and struggle of a Polish woman to help refugees from Poland find a safe home in India during World War II and documentary films on women empowerment in India will mark the International Women’s Day celebrations on 8th March, 2019 at Films Division, Pedder Road, Mumbai.
The Consulate General of Republic of Poland, Mumbai in collaboration with Films Division, is screening “My Home India” (44 min) directed by Anjali Bhushan, well known film maker and social/environmental activist. The film is about the phenomenal struggle of fragile but stubborn and strong willed Kira Banasinska (wife of the first Consul General of Poland in Bombay) to make a home for the Polish war refugees in India in the aftermath of World War II. The film is a rare collection of previously unseen archives combined with first hand testimonies from the survivors – a discovery of the extra ordinary in the ordinary. The screening will be held at the Audi II at the New Museum Building at 7.00 p.m.
FICCI FLO, an All India organisation for women, is jointly organising with Films Division a talk on Role of Women in India followed by screening of two FD documentary films, “And whose image is this, anyway?” (37 min./ Premraj Achari) which probes the crisis between identity and portrayal of Indian womanhood on screen and “The Exceptional Runner – Shalini Saraswati (07 min./Pratibha Kaur Pasricha), a film on the life of Shalini Saraswati who, despite losing her limbs to a dangerous viral infection, betters her life by concentrating on her home, career and finally in the sports of running where she has set a goal of participating in 2020 Olympics. The talk and screenings will be held at the RR-II Theatre on the 6th floor of Film Bhawan-2 from 2.00 to 3.30 p.m.
Earlier in the day, the women cell of Films Division will celebrate the International Women’s Day by organising cultural programmes and screening of two films on the theme of women empowerment at the JB Hall from 2.00p.m.-5:00p.m.
.
The screenings are free and on first come first served basis.
The print and electronic media are cordially invited to the events with a request for wide coverage, before and after the screenings.
AK Maharaja
Branch Manager & PRO,
Films Division, 24-Pedder Road, Mumbai-26
022-23551411/ 8451900384
PM inaugurates National Museum of Indian Cinema
The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated National Museum of Indian Cinema in Mumbai today.
Governor of Maharashtra Shri C. Vidyasagar Rao, CM of Maharashtra Shri Devendra Fadnavis, Union Minister of State Shri Ramdas Athawale and Union Minister of State Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore (Retd.) along with other dignitaries were present on the occasion.
In his address, the Prime Minister said that the National Museum of Indian Cinema will provide a wonderful opportunity for the younger generation to understand and learn about Indian cinema. He added that the Museum will have detailed information about the history of Indian entertainment industry, along with tales of struggles of various film personalities.
Stating that film and society are a reflection of each other, Prime Minister said that whatever happens in the society are reflected by the movies on screen while the images from the films are also mirrored in the society.
Talking about trends he said there are many films now which depict both the problem and the solution which is a positive sign as compared to earlier years when only the helplessness was displayed.
Mr. Modi said that India is now confident of finding its own solutions to the problems it faces and this he said is a sign of a New India which is confident and capable of taking issues head on and resolving them.
The Prime Minister in his address highlighted the global reach of Indian Cinema. In this context he mentioned his interaction with various global leaders who can even sing Indian songs.
He extended best wishes to the film fraternity for creating the characters that have captured the imaginations of young generations. He said that due to global appeal of such characters, India’s youngsters are now not just fans of Batman, but also of Bahubali.
The Prime Minister said that the Indian Cinema has a big role in enhancing India’s soft power, its credibility and building the Brand India across the world. He said that through Cinema important social issues such as sanitation, women empowerment, sports etc are now reaching to people. Cinema plays an important role in nation Building and strengthens the feeling of Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat. PM said that the film Industry has a huge potential of contributing in the growth of Tourism in the country.
He mentioned that Government is working to provide facility of ‘Ease of Filming’ by putting in place a Single Window Clearance system, for Film Shooting approvals in different parts of the country. Prime Minister said Government is working on amending Cinematograph Act 1952 to check the problem of Film Piracy.
PM said Government is also working towards setting up a National Centre for Excellence for Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said that a fully dedicated university for Communication and Entertainment is a need of hour and urged Film personalities to suggest and contribute on this. He also suggested the idea of Global Film Summit similar to Davos Summit which would focus on the expansion of market for Indian Cinema.
PRESS RELEASE
24th December, 2018
Films Division in association with Ms. Ratnottama Sengupta & WMC is organizing a special screening of the film “And They Made Classics” directed by Ratnottma Sengupta, daughter of Bengali litterateur and screen writer Nabendu Gosh. The screening will be at Audi-II Theatre, New NMIC Building, Films Division, Mumbai at 5:30pm on Wednesday, 26th December, 2018. Please find details and poster of the film as attached for publishing/listing in the UNWIND page of Mumbai Mirror dated 26th December, 2018.
Nabendu Ghosh shared a unique bonding with his film-guru, Bimal Roy.
In 1951, when the celluloid master went to Bombay to make ‘Maa’ for Bombay Talkies, he took the Bengali litterateur turned screen writer in his team. And in 1964 the director’s last film Bandini, that won a silver trophy at Karlovy Vary, was scripted by screen playwright Nabendu Ghosh. In between they had created such timeless classics as Baap-Beti, Parineeta, Naukri, Biraj-Bahu, Devdas, Yahudi and Sujata.
How did the writer-director duo work? And what made their unique association work? ‘And They Made Classics’ goes behind the scenes with an interview with Nabendu Ghosh that was taken by Joy Bimal Roy in 2005, as he prepared to make ‘Remembering Bimal Roy’. Ratnottama Sengupta revisits the stories in a Centennial Tribute to Nabendu Ghosh (27 March 1917 – 15 December 2007).
An additional layer of the film has the writer’s colleagues such as Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Nutan, Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt and Gulzar, and students such as Jaya Bachchan, Saeed Mirza, Girish Kasaravalli, Ravi Ojha and Vikas Desai talking about his art and his contribution to moulding the New Indian Cinema. This makes this Centennial Film a storehouse of information, anecdotes, and comments of archival value.
“And They Made Classics…” produced by Dr. Debasis Sengupta, has so far been screened in six international film festivals, in Kolkata, Dhaka, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar and Delhi. This is its first screening in Mumbai – the karma bhoomi of the writer and his filmguru.
Director will be there to present the film and interact with the audience.
Screening is open to all and first come, first seated.
Festival & Outreach Cell
Films Division, Mumbai
publicity@filmsdivision.org
022-23551410/ 23522252
Four Films Division documentaries bag IDPA Awards
Mumbai / July 25, 2017
‘Kapila’ and ‘Living the Natural Way’, the two documentaries produced by Films Division, Mumbai, have won the Gold at the 12th IDPA Awards in up to 60 minutes and above 60 minutes category, striking a rare double honour.
‘Kapila’ an eponymous film by Sanju Surendran explores Koodiyattam – the classical theatrical art form of Kerala, through the life and recitals of young exponent Kapila Venu. The 62 minute documentary by the FTII alumnus captures the genius of the artiste through performances, rehearsals, memories and desires. This is the fourth award for Kapila, having already bagged 62nd National Film Award, Special Jury Award at Vision du Reel, Switzerland, 2016 and Best Documentary Award at 9th SiGNS film awards, Kerala.
Kapila Venu is a disciple of the Koodiyattam maestro Guru Ammannur Madhava Chakyar and is considered the torch bearer of the art form.
‘Living The Natural Way’ by Sanjib Parashar, winner of Golden Award in the Best film under non-fiction above 60 minutes unfolds the miraculous and tender process of the creation of a big river island with rich biodiversity on the barren sand deposits of river Brahmaputra by a tribal person over a period of 30 years. It also focuses on the destruction of the largest river island, Majuli in Assam.
Two more documentaries produced by Films Division of India have also been honoured.
While ‘Earth Crusader’ by Shabnam Sukhdev won the Certificate of Merit, ‘Silent Voices’ by Pritha Chatterjee got the honour of Jury’s Special Mention.
‘Earth Crusaders’ unveils the life and ideology of internationally renowned architect Didi Contractor, known for working and experimenting with sustainability in building homes driven by a strong Gandhian ideology. For the past two decades Didi Contractor has been passionately implementing her architectural visions in the Kangra Valley, at the foot hills of the Himalayas combining rural traditions with modern requirements
Pritha Chatterjee’s ‘Silent Voices’ tries to dig into three young Bengali women’s lives in respect of the sociological stand point and system of marriage.
Films Division, the oldest media unit under the Information & Broadcasting Ministry has been encouraging independent documentary production through funding, mentoring and finding outreach for issue based documentary films.
The IDPA Awards, instituted by the Indian Documentary Producers’ Association, the apex body of documentary makers, are considered prestigious by film makers. Every year, IDPA gives awards recognizing excellence in documentary films production, student films, animation films, public service films and a slew of technical categories.
The Films Division under the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also joined the ‘Green Maharashtra’ drive today by planting a number of saplings in its sprawling complex on Pedder Road in Mumbai. A total of 40 saplings were planted, with the hope of increasing the green cover at the complex, where the prestigious National Museum of Indian Cinema is also coming up.
Chairman, Central Board of Film Certification, Pahlaj Nihalani and other senior officials of the I&B Ministry media units including DG, Films Division Manish Desai, Director Swati Pandey, Addl. DG, Doordarshan, Sudarshan Pantode, CEO, CBFC, Anurag Srivastava and CEO, Children’s Films Society, Shravan Kumar also planted saplings.
Maharashtra forest department has launched an ambitious campaign of planting 5.5 crore saplings during this month. Out of this, 2.0 crore saplings are being planted in non-forest areas. Over 4,000 saplings will be planted in Mumbai city alone. To make tree plantation a mass movement, the state government has been making extensive use of mass media and digital media to propagate the ‘green Maharashtra’ message.
Films Division has prepared a two-and-a-half minute AV, ‘Harit Maharashtra’ incorporating appeals of Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao, CM Devendra Fadnavis, Forest Minister Mungantiwar and Brand Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, which is currently being screened in cinema theatres across Maharashtra. Maharashtra Minister for Finance, Planning and Forests, Sudhir Mungantiwar in his message has said “today, Maharashtra has a forest cover of only 20%. We need to increase it to 33%. Every single tree planted will increase the tree cover and help reduce the carbon foot print . In this regard, Films Division initiative is welcome”.
Your cart is empty.
