NEW DELHI: In more good news for the Assamese film industry, a movie on children raised during a violent period in Assam has received as many as eight nominations at a US festival.
"Xhoihobote Dhemalite" (Rainbow fields) directed by Bidyut Kotoky has received nominations for best feature film, director, screenplay, actor (Nakul Vaid), actress (Dipannita Sharma), supporting actor (Victor Banerjee), cinematography (Satya Prakash Rath) and score (Anurag Saikia) at the Love International Film Festival (LIFF), Los Angeles.
The awards will be announced on July 7 at a ceremony in Beverly Hills.
"It is indeed an honour. These recognitions are especially satisfying as it came from a festival whose goal is to bring the world closer together and promote love and healing through cinema," says Mumbai-based Kotoky.
The film, based on true events, narrates the psychological trauma children went through during the Assam agitation in the 1980s. The film also features seasoned actors like Naved Aslam, Nipon Goswami and Nikumoni Barua.
In 2017, the film won the 'Best Foreign Film Award' in the Hollywood International CineFest. It was premiered in the Indian Panorama of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa.
"Xhoihobote Dhemalite" is semi-autobiographical in nature, inspired by true incidents from Kotoky's life. It is produced by India Stories, a Mumbai-based production house, and co-produced by Kotoky's Dhruv Creative Productions and Kurmasana Kreates, a US-based production house.
The LIFF was founded by Ata Servati, poet, playwright and activist in 2016. US First Ladies Michelle Obama and Laura Bush were honoured in the first year as the 'Ambassadors of Love & Peace' for their work with children.
All proceeds from this year's LIFF will go to The Lotus Light Children's Charity (TLLCC) whose mission is "to build a league of empowered, educated, proactive individuals who will have the necessary resources to be able to reach out to impoverished children throughout the world".
At the recently-announced National Award, Assamese film "Village Rockstars" was named the best feature film. Directed by Rima Das, the critically-acclaimed film about a village girl who dreams of making it big, also won awards for best location, sound recordist, editing and best child artiste (Bhanita Das).