“I have noticed that most of the films showcased in Delhi are the ones which we call ‘mainstream’. So people here are not aware about the exceptional movies regional cinema is making,” says Bina Paul in a telephonic conversation with The Morning Standard.
The acclaimed film editor has curated nine regional films for a Delhi event, titled Regional Film Festival: New Genres in Indian Cinema. These critically-acclaimed films address issues of gender, displacement and unemployment among others.
Paul says, “Indian cinema is not just limited to Bollywood. And festivals like these attempt to break this one-dimensional thought. Here we will showcase important films such as Bulbul Can Sing, an Assamese title.” Made by a terrific director Rima Das, it is the story of three teenage best friends in rural Assam who are navigating their way through outdated cultural traditions.
“Similarly, the Tamil film Kattumaram for the festival has many difficult questions about life. My attempt was to bring movies by including new voices along with those of stalwarts like Adoor Gopalakrishnan and Buddhadeb Dasgupta,” says the Trivandrum-based film editor, who is a recipient of the National Award for Mitr-My Friend, directed by Revathi in 2002.
To bring awareness about the spectacular films made in from far and wide corners in India, she says. “First of all, the audience in Delhi needs to understand that regional films are great as well. With so much happening in the independent cinema, it is imperative that people take this leap of faith.”
Needless to say, Paul is passionate about her craft. “For editing, you are given a script and you have to edit the film. But the real thrill begins when the visuals come along and you need to rediscover the script from those visuals. You have a filmmaker who has the vision for the film and you are someone who realise this vision.”
On: August 30, 31 and September 1
At: Max Mueller Bhavan
30.08.2019
15:30
Ka Kha Ga Gha (2018)
(Director: Sherin Govindan, Malayalam)
17:30
Bulbul Can Sing (2018)
(Director: Rima Das, Assamese)
31.08.2019
12:00
Kattumaram (2019)
(Director: Swarnavel Eswaran, Tamil)
14:30
Sukhantyam (2018)
(Director: Adoor Gopalakrishnan Malayalam)
15:00
Widow of Silence (2018)
(Director: Praveen Morchhale, Urdu)
17:30
Sweet Requiem (2018)
(Director: Ritu Sarin & Tenzing Soham, Tibetan)
01.08.2019
12:00
The Flight (2018)
(Director: Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Bengali)
15:30
And What is the Summer Saying? (2018)
(Director: Payal Kapadia, Marathi)
15:00
Bebaak (2018)
(Director: Shazia Iqbal, Urdu/Hindi)