NEW DELHI: “I am really excited for my film Life As It Is to be screened in India. As the film was inspired by my own experience, I hope that the specificity of the film can be relatable to the audiences here,” says Singaporean film director Victor Gyan in a conversation with The Morning Standard ahead of the Singapore Film Festival in the capital city, starting next week.
He further adds, “I also look forward to showcasing a small part of Singapore’s culture through the rites and rituals that a part of the population partakes in. Finally, I hope that my film will allow the audience to think about their own relationships with their families.”
Organised by the Singapore High Commission in New Delhi, the fourth edition of the festival will feature three feature-length films and three short films. The screenings will be followed by dialogues with filmmakers and film critics. Regarding the three-day event Ong Chong Hui, First Secretary at the Singapore High Commission, says, “The films have been carefully curated to feature diverse aspects of life in Singapore. As such it is difficult to zoom in on any one particular highlight. But all of the films guarantee a fun and enriching experience for the Delhi audience.”On the first day, attendees can watch Chennai 2 Singapore, a film by Abbas Akbar. Adding to the shared cultural heritage of cultural heritage of India and Singapore, the film features an Indian director who makes his way to Singapore to look for investors. Akbar is a screenwriter and actor and has worked in Tamil films and TV.
Day Two is dedicated to three short films. While Melodi is an award winning short film is about a lonely boy infatuated with his new neighbour, BTO, named after Singapore’s Build-To-Order public housing scheme popular with newly-married couples, is about a newlywed couple breaking off their wedding and giving up their new apartment. Gyan’s Life As It Is is set during the gathering of the family on the occasion of the grandmother’s funeral. Ramen Teh directed by Eric Khoo, will also be screened. Khoo is credited with reviving the Singapore film industry in the 1990s. After the screening, critic Murtuza Ali Khan will discuss the film. On the third day, visitors can learn about the life of Taiwanese singer Fong FeiFei through a film titled 3688. Directed by Royston Tan the film is about a parking attendant dreaming of becoming a singer like her famous namesake. Anugyan Nag, Assistant Professor, Media and Cultural Studies at AJK Mass Communication, Jamia will be discussing this movie.