Final-Film Festival-13-11-08.p65 - Directorate of Film Festivals

BUDDHADEB DASGUPTAAn economics professor by trainingBuddhadeb Dasgupta today holds an enviableposition as one of India's most renowned andaccomplished directors. A celebrated poet andnovelist, Budhadeb has won numerous laurelsfor his craft in India and abroad. A specialjury prize for direction at the 2000 VeniceInternational Film Festival for Uttara ( TheWrestlers) and now countless others later, he continues to directamazing cinema year after year. Some of his prominent filmsinclude Dooratwa (Distance 1978), Grihajuddha(Crossroads1982), Phera,(The Return1986), Bagh Bahadur,(TheTiger Man 1989), Tahader Katha (Their Story 1992),Charachar,(The Shelter of the Wings 1993), Lal Darja, (The RedDoors 1996),Mondo Meyer Upakhyan,( A Tale of a NaughtyGirl 2002), Swapner Din, (Chased by Dreams 2004),Kaalpurush,(Memories in the Mist2005) and Ami Iyasin Ar Amar Madhubala,(The Voyeurs 2007).DIRECTOR'S STATEMENTI reached Mumbai a few days after, 29 April, to meet Nuashadfor the first time, for this film and heard he was hospitalized thatvery morning. Naushad passed away on immediately after I wasback to Calcutta from Mumbai. I believed that this film couldn’tbe made now. But I remembered my conversation with NaushadSahab over telephone. I remembered he wanted me to start thefilm with an alap sung by Bade Ghulam Ali from ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ and the notes of that alap along with Naushad’s telephonicvoice came back to me often and I realized very strongly thatthe film has to be made because Nuashad cant die, these notescant, the melody has to continue…SYNOPSISNGAIHAK LAMBIDA(along the way. . .)35mm /colour/Manipuri/ 19 minutes/ESTManileima, a 35-year-old independent woman is the secondwife of a contractor. She lives separately with her mother andson. One day her son injures his hand and is hospitalized. In thehospital different people come to their help, but one man, astranger, helps them the most. This stranger and her nephew,Geet, start sharing a close bond. Slowly Manileima gets attractedto this stranger through Geet's stories and the stranger's affectionfor her child but they never meet face-to-face. Days pass andfinally on the day of her son's discharge; she decides to make achoice for herself.CAST AND CREDITSProducer:Director :Cinematography:S. R. F. T. I. KolkataHaobam Paban KumarShehnad Jalal84 85