Indian Films At Toronto a Sparkling Quartet
By Pickle August 29, 2019
Share:
India’s ‘fabulous four’ in the 44th Toronto International Film Festival represent exciting and distinct cinematic voices. These films, three of which will be world premiering in TIFF, have compelling stories, employing methods that stem from unique sensibilities. At one end
is the story of a real-life urban couple learning life lessons from a terminally ill but spirited daughter (Shonali Bose’s The Sky is Pink) and at the other a tale of a buffalo that escapes from its butcher-owner and sparks a frenzy in a small town in Kerala (Lijo Jose Pellissery’s Jallikattu),
The other two Indian films present divergent takes on Mumbai: Gitanjali Rao’s animated feature Bombay Rose and Geetu Mohandas’ gritty yet life-affirming drama Moothon (The Elder One).
It is a strong year in TIFF for Indian female directors. Three of the titles in this quartet have been directed by women. That apart, Priyanka Chopra, who toplines the cast of The Sky is Pink, is one of the four Indian ambassadors of TIFF’s ‘Share Her Journey’ campaign, which is aimed
at promoting gender parity in the movie industry both in front of and behind the camera. The other three are filmmakers Mira Nair, Deepa Mehta and Rima Das. Das’s last two films (Village Rockstars and Bulbul Can Sing) premiered in TIFF. She will be attending the festival this year too, to take part in the campaign launched in 2017, the year she debuted here.
THE SKY IS PINK by Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Producer(s): Ronnie Screwvala, Siddharth Roy Kapur
Shonali Bose’s The Sky is Pink, which also features Farhan Akhtar and Zaira Wasim in stellar roles, is part of the festival’s Gala Presentations. Bose is a TIFF veteran. Each of the three films that she has helmed has screened in North America’s premier festival.The Sky is Pink is scheduled for release on October 11, a month after its world premiere in TIFF on September 13.
The poignant film portrays 25 years in the life of a married couple whose relationship is depicted from the perspective of their just-deceased teenage daughter. It is inspired by the tragic true story of Aisha Chaudhary, who was diagnosed with severe immune-deficiency and had to battle through every day of her life for survival. But even as she counted her days, she never stopped living in the moment. She became a motivational speaker and wrote a book that was published a day before her death.
Bose’s first two films, Amu (2005) and Margarita with a Straw (2015), both critically acclaimed cinematic essays drawn from real life, also played in Toronto.
India | 2019 | Hindi WORLD PREMIERE 134 minutes
Director | Shonali Bose
Cinematography | Kartik Vijay, Nick Cooke, Andrew Litt, Andre Menezes, Ravi Varman
Editing | Manas Mittal
Executive Producers | Nilesh Maniyar, Deepak Gawade, John Penotti, Michael Hogan, Robert Friedland
Production Companies | Roy Kapur Films, RSVP, Ivanhoe Pictures, Purple Pebble Pictures
Production Designer | Aradhana Seth
Screenplay | Shonali Bose, Nilesh Maniyar
Sound |Anish John
Distributor | RSVP
BOMBAY ROSE by Gitanjali Rao
Cast: Cayli Vivek Khare, Amit Deondi, Gargi Shitole, Makrand Deshpnde
Producer(s): Rohit Khattar, Anand Mahindra
At the other end of the India’s TIFF spectrum this year is Gitanjali Rao, a globally celebrated animation filmmaker who has carved her own niche in a nation where animated films are not only rare but are also usually seen as entertainment meant only for children. She employs the medium to tell complex, layered stories about her city and its people, especially those who need to retreat into dream worlds to escape the soul-destroying urban grind that they must inevitably undergo on a day-to-day basis.
Rao’s first feature, Bombay Rose, which has made TIFF’s Contemporary World Cinema cut, arrives in Toronto from Venice, where it was the opening film of the Critics Week. The film looks at street-dwellers who live on the margins of the megapolis. “I have always wanted to tell stories,” Rao says in her director’s note, “about the unsung heroes who live and love in Mumbai, never become success stories, yet their struggle for survival makes heroes out of them.” Bombay Rose is composed of frame-by-frame painted animation, a painstaking process that took all of two years.
Bombay Rose is only the second Indian animation film to screen in TIFF. In 2103, Shilpa Ranade’s Goopy Gawaiya Bagha Bajaiya made it to the festival programme.
India, United Kingdom, Qatar, France, 2019 | Hindi NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE 93 minutes
Director | Gitanjali Rao
Editing |Gitanjali Rao
Executive Producers | Deborah Sathe, Tessa Inkelaar, Charlotte Uzu, Serge Lalou
Production Companies | Cinestaan Film Company, Les Films d’Ici
Animation Studio | Paperboat
Production Designer | Rupali Gatti
Screenplay | Gitanjali Rao
Sound | P.M. Satheesh
MOOTHON by Geetu Mohandas
Cast: Nivin Pauly, Sobhita Dhulipala, Shashank Arora
Producer(s): Anurag Kashyap, Vinod Kumar, Ajay G. Rai, Alan McAlex
Mumbai also plays a key role in actress-turned-filmmaker Geetu Mohandas’ Malayalam-Hindi bilingual film, Moothon (The Elder One), which revolves around a 14-year-old Lakshadweep island boy, Mulla, who travels at great personal risk to the bustling city to look for his big brother, Akbar, armed only with a phone number. The film follows the parallel arcs of the two siblings while it focuses on the hope and despair that they have to grapple with in a city where life can be rough when the guards are down.
Although Mohandas is a TIFF first-timer, her maiden feature, Liar’s Dice (2013), had premiered in the Sundance Film Festival and was India’s official nomination for the Oscars.
Moothon, which has Nivin Pauly, Sobhita Dhulipala and Shashank Arora in key onscreen roles, is co-produced by Anurag Kashyap, who has also penned the Hindi dialogues of the film. For Kashyap, TIFF is a bit of an annual ritual. His last two films, Mukkabaaz and Manmarziyaan, were both in the festival.
India | 2019 Malayalam, Hindi WORLD PREMIERE 110 minutes
Director | Geetu Mohandas
Cinematography | Rajeev Ravi
Editing | Ajithkumar B., Kiran Das
Production Companies | JAR Pictures, Mini Studio
Production Designer | Abid T. P.
Screenplay | Geetu Mohandas
Sound | Kunal Sharma
Original Score | Sagar Desai
JALLIKATTU by Lijo Jose Pellissery
Cast: Antony Varghese, Vinayakan, Sabumon Abdusamad
Producer(s): O. Thomas Panicker
Lijo Jose Pellissery, one of the most exciting flag-bearers of the new Malayalam cinema, is in this year’s lineup with Jallikattu, based on a short story, Maoist, written by S. Hareesh. The maker of Angamaly Diaries and Ee.Ma.Yau focusses on a butcher’s buffalo that flees from his owner’s clutches on the eve of its planned slaughter. As the people of the town in Kerala’s Idukki district set out to recapture the animal, dormant animosities bubble to the surface and unleash unsettling violence. Like his previous two film, Lijo’s new outing blends heady energy with an unwavering sense of formal cinematic proportion.
Jallikattu – the title is derived from the ancient Tamil bull-running tradition that has sparked much debate in recent times – allows for a deep dive into the heart of a politically volatile state that, pretty much like the people in the story that the film narrates – are increasingly being divided along destructively emotive lines.
India | 2019 Malayalam WORLD PREMIERE 91 minutes
Director | Lijo Jose Pellissery
Cinematography | Gireesh Gangadharan
Editing | Deepu Joseph
Production Company | Opus Penta
Production Designer | Gokul Das
Screenplay | S Hareesh, R Jayakumar
Sound | Renganath Ravee
Publicist | Opus Penta
Original Score | Prashant Pillai
Highlights
FDI cap of 26% for News Aggregators Under Consideration
Uday Shankar forms New Tech and Media Venture with James Murdoch
CII Seeks Industry Status for M&E in Union Budget
51st IFFI Will Capture New Narratives in Cinema
15 Films Compete for Golden Peacock at #IFFI51
Top IFFI Picks: Another Round, Mehrunisa, Wife of A Spy
Hybrid IFFI From January 16
CII BIG PICTURE SUMMIT 2012: Growth Triggers From Ronnie
What Media Guru Amit Khanna Said in CII BIG PICTURE SUMMIT 2012
LATAM Market Ventana Sur from November 30
Blue Efficience Roped in For Ventana Sur
Films to watch @ Ventana Sur
India Rolls out Red Carpet to Foreign Filmmakers
Ramesh Sharma’s New Documentary Film on Gandhi at AFM
The Warrior Queen of Jhansi at AFM
With Film Visa, Global Producers Can Now Shoot in India
www.cinemarket.io – Buy, Sell & Engage
Embracing Cinema Through Screens of all Sizes
Nomadland wins People’s Choice at Toronto
MIPCOM 2020 Goes Entirely Online
South Korea will be MIPCOM 2020 country of honor
India, the Window of Opportunity
Get Ready for Hybrid IFFI
Film Making Centres of India
Get Your Film Take Wings at Virtual Film Bazaar
Make at least Ten co-productions in a year
Filmmakers Should Make use of India-Canada Treaty
TIFF: The Show and Business Goes on
Navigating Toronto Film Festival and Industry
Make in India, Show the World
Be Part of the Pickle India Focused Toronto Edition
ads2OTT set to Launch in Oct 2020
MovieSaints to release Memories of a Forgotten War
Truth Is Dead
Submissions Open For Berlinale Co-Production Market
Gender Equality-Berlinale Eliminates Silver Bear for Best Actor and Best Actress
All3Media, A+E Networks, BBC Studios, ZDF Join MIPCOM 2020 Global UPFRONTS Lineup
NürnbergMesse’s Content India Show from October 29-31
Berlinale 2021 Will be a Physical Festival; EFM in Hybrid Format
Best of 2020: A Dazzling Dozen
Striking the Right Chord
Ishaan Khatter looking ‘beyond clouds’ with promising upcoming projects
IFFI 2020 Adopts Hybrid Online-Physical Edition
India Unbound
20 Films That Make us Believe Freedom is Priceless
Krishna Janmashtami Special
National Education Policy: Game Changer
18 Must-See Films at Venice 2020
Ayushmann Turns Athlete
Indian Trio in Venice
Blockchain: The Future is Now
Not right time to open cinema halls: Ravi Kottarakara
Meet, ERICA. AI Actor in a SCI-FI Film
Vidya Balan Set to Shine as Shakuntala Devi
Straight Answers From Alexander Shulgin
Content is king for Saregama’s Yoodlee
Nuggets From Animation Thought Leaders
NYIFF Takes Virtual Route
From The Heart Of Disney
New Model of Filmmaking in India
My Journey: How I Did It
Animation in the Age of Art & Tech
Making Filming in India More Easy
Gaurav Banerjee: Star Unveiled
The Changemaker
COVID-19 has Accelerated Digital Shift Towards Across Sectors
No Business as Usual for Film Industry
What’s Wrong With our News Media Today ?
The Fire Inside Regina
Gaming Industry Braves Covid
Disney +Hotstar Leads the Disruption
Taapsee’s takes on OTT, Nepotism & Covid
Oscar Invites QUBE’s Senthil Kumar to be its Member at Large
What’s New Search Engine Neeva Can Do That Google Cannot?
The New Oscar Award Date April 25, 2021
India to Offer Incentive Package for Film Shoots and Co-Production
‘NFDC Film Bazaar Goes to Cannes’
Strings of Genius
A Ray That Still Lights The Way
Best of the Cannes Official Selection 2020 Films
Most Awaited Films of India
56 Films: Cannes Reveals 2020 Lineup
The Making of Cannes 2020 Film Selection Process
Cannes Virtual Film Market Extends Earlybird Registration to June 12
Take a Look at Annecy Competition Lineup
Getting Back to Business, Reveals Media Consumption Pattern
Cannes 2020 to Announce Festival Selection Lineup on June 3
20 Work in Progress Tiltles Unveiled for Goes to Cannes
Annecy VR Works Selections for Digital MIFA Market
Film Bazaar’s Work in Progress Films from India Goes to Cannes Virtual Market
Navigating Virtual Cannes Film Market 2020
Meet the Streamers: HBO Max & Quibi Keynotes at Cannes Virtual Film Market
Dedicated Cannes XR Virtual Edition from June 24-26
Screen Moms; Best Movies to Stream on Mother’s Day
Vijay Deverakonda: The Lovable ‘Rowdy’
Sai Pallavi: Natural Beauty is a Natural Actor Too
Cannes Virtual Film Market Registration Opens May 13
COVID-19: Nuggets from Netflix’s Ted Sarandos on Filming and Safety Protocols
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan is New Sensation in Netflix Original Series Never Have I Ever
The Best Movies of 2001-2019 Not Streaming in OTT Platforms
Best Movies of the New Millennium Streaming Now
Best Movies of the New Millennium Streaming Now
Best Movies of the New Millennium Streaming Now
Best Movies of the New Millennium Streaming Now
Best Movies of the New Millennium Streaming Now
Annecy Unveils Virtual Film Festival and Market in June
Roskino to Host Russian Virtual Digital Content Market from June 8
27 Rishi Kapoor Films to Stream at Home Now
Virtual Nab Show Express will Take Place May 13-14, 2020
51 International Film Festival of India, Goa ( 20 -28 November, 2020)
Films to Watch in 2020
Christopher Nolan Films Tenet in Mumbai
A Call From Uttarakhand For Filmmakers Of The World
FFO Rolls Out Red Carpet For Foreign Filmmakers
INDIA@BERLINALE-Indian Cinema’s Voices Emerging
51st IFFI TO Mark Satyajit Ray’s Centenary Celebrations
Infusing Life With Dubbing AT VR Films & Studios
Sailing well in Animation Waters
Berlinale 2020: India’s Laila Aur Satt Geet Selected for ‘Encounters’ Section
Prateek Vats’ Eeb Allay Ooo! in Berlinale Panaroma
Berlinale Shorts: Ekta Mittal’s ‘Gumnaam Din’ to showcase of pain of separation
Berlinale Talents: Seven Indians Make It to the List
My Salinger Year is the Opening Film at 70th Berlinale
GET READY for EUROPEAN FILM MARKET 2020
BERLIN FILM FESTIVAL 2019 WINNERS
Berlinale Forum Celebrates Golden Jubilee in 2020
Berlinale 2020 Poster Unveiled
British Actor Jeremy Irons Will Be the Jury President of Berlinale 2020
Amit Khanna: The Renaissance Man
Fantastic Friend
THE MEDIA GURU-AMIT KHANNA
STRAIGHT ANSWERS FROM AMIT KHANNA
THE DEFINING DECADE -THE 1990s
10 Achievements of Amit Khanna
Reflections on Amit Khanna
Valuable Moments
India Enchants John Bailey
The Big Bachchan of Bollywood
ETERNAL SUPERSTAR: RAJINIKANTH
IFFI 50 & Fantastic-Lifetime Achievement Award to Isabelle Huppert
INDIA’S FLAGSHIP FILM FESTIVAL TURNS 50
BACK IN BUSINESS WITH A BANG
GET THE BEST OUT OF FILM BAZAAR 2019
Transforming Hollywood from pixels to voxels
Government of India committed to Safeguard IP content: Commerce Secretary
Must do Things at AFM
Why India Attracts Foreign Filmmakers
Pickle at MIPCOM 2019
INDIAN COMPANIES AT MIPCOM
Super Audio: Licensed to Thrill
Jungle Book Season 3 Ready
Issuance of VPL in India
Editor’s Note: 44th Toronto International Film Festival Pickle Sept 2019 Edition
The OSCAR RACE begins HERE…
Seven Indian Indie Filmmakers To Watch
Indian Cinema Of Today: A Culturally Responsive Artifact
Indie Resurgence
Indian Films At Toronto a Sparkling Quartet
IFFI Matters @ 50
Four Indian Films at the Toronto International Film Festival 2019
India Pavilion at Toronto International Film Market 2019
Made in Afghan Film ‘Hava, Maryam, Ayesha’ To Compete at Venice Festival
Keerthy Suresh: The Mahanati of Mahanati. Best Actress, National Film Award
Uttarakhand Bags National Award for Most Film Friendly State
66th National Film Awards Winners for 2018
Watan Adds Colour to Indian Independence Day
dream hampton and Brie Miranda Bryant to Feature in MIPCOM’S Women in Global Entertainment Lunch 2019
Making a Song and Dance of it
NFDC Invites Applications for Production of Films in Indian Languages; Deadline September 8, 2019
IFFI Calls for Entry for Indian Panorama in 50th Edition
Ease of Filming in India
Come, Film In Inida
Why TikTok wants to invest $1 billion in India?
Priyanka Chopra’s The Sky is Pink Set to Premiere in 2019 Toronto Internaitonal Film Festival’s Gala Section
Gitanjali Rao’s Animation Feature Bombay Rose to open Critics’ Week at Venice International Film Festival
76th Venice International Film Festival to Open With Hirokazu Kore-eda’s ‘The Truth’
Indian Cinema’s Soft Power Misses the Mark in Nirmala Sitharaman’s Maiden Budget Speech
Shahid’s Kabir Singh Becomes Top-Grossing Film of 2019
Finance Minister Proposes FDI Norm Relaxation in Media
Media & Entrtainment as Champion Sector Figures in the Economic Survey 2018-19
Indian Cinema’s Steady Rise on Global Stage
Glimpses of the future
IFFI Marching Towards 50th Edition
Cannes or Netflix? Is Netflix an acceptable remediation for Cannes’ decades-long little regard for Indian Cinema?
Play Small & Live Long Did Wonders for Me
Competition Commission of India Gives nod to Takeover of Rupert Murdoch’s Star India Assets
Brio Studio Pvt Ltd
Karunanidhi: A Great Scriptwriter, Poet & Patron
BBC Studios and China’s Tencent Announce New Partnership
Transforming Marketing Models is Top Priority: Accenture
