The Indian film industry is making its presence felt "very strongly" in the Cannes Film Market, with a view to promote the business of movies in India."Last year, there was a focus here on India. This year we have no such advantage. Yet I am confident that as far as market opportunities go, this edition of the Cannes Film Market will be just as exciting and fruitful," Uday Verma, Additional Secretary, Information and Broadcasting Ministry said speaking at the formal opening of the India Pavilion in the Film Market of the 61st Cannes Festival.
The senior official also announced several other initiatives, including setting up of an academy of animation, gaming and visual effects to promote local talent in the fast growing segment of film-making.
The government was also planning to open a Museum of Moving Images, he added.Indian independent filmmakers aim for sky in Cannes While some big guns of the Indian movie industry are preparing for a bull run on the sidelines of the 61st Cannes Film Festival, some independent players are also looking to make a mark via the prestigious platform.
Away from the glitz and glamour of big money and superstars, these filmmakers are making a quiet but well thought-out statement of their own.
Veteran director Ketan Mehta, who is spearheading the new-fangled Independent Indian Filmmakers Worldwide (IIFW) initiative, is in Cannes to promote his latest film ‘Rang Rasiya’.
The film is a period drama about the relationship between legendary painter Raja Ravi Varma and his muse.Randeep Hooda and Nandana Sen play the protagonists of the film."There will be no market screening of Rang Rasiya," says Mehta, "but I will unveil clips from the film at a special event on May 20."
Members of the cast will be in attendance during the promotional bash.’Rang Rasiya’, which also has an English version titled ‘Colours of Passion’, is set for release across India by end-June.
"We will release only the Hindi version to begin with," says the director. The global release of the English version will be done a little while later."Meanwhile, thanks to the sheer size and scope of their unfolding commercial plans, the big guns of the Indian movie industry Reliance Big Entertainment, Eros International and Sahara One Media and Entertainment, are all likely to gather maximum attention.
However, the enthusiasm of independents is noteworthy.Mumbai-based Vivek Singhania, the producer of Karma Crime, Passion, Reincarnation has landed in Cannes along with the films director, M Shahjehan.
Neither is a past master at the global game although Shahjehan has spent a large part of his career as assistant director on international movies shot in India, including Richard Attenboroughs multiple Oscar-winning Gandhi.Karma is being screened in the Cannes Film Market to prospective global buyers.
"I make mainstream movies," says Singhania, whose production credits include titles like ‘Naa Tum Jaano Na Hum’ and ‘Chura Liye Hai Tumne’, "but this is a calculated risk.
If Karma clicks, I will keep the experiment going." Karma is a film shot entirely in India with an international cast and crew, with a Polish-German actress and model Claudia Ciesla playing a key onscreen role.
She is expected to land in Cannes in time for the market screenings of the film.Also, Jag Mundhra, a Cannes Film Market regular, is back on the Croisette this year with Shoot on Sight, a film starring Naseeruddin Shah as a real-life Muslim Scotland yard officer.
"Weve already had a market screening of the film and the response has been encouraging," says Mundhra.For small, independent films, Cannes is the gateway to a world of opportunities.
Nobody knows that better than Mundhra, whose last film, Provoked, starring Aishwarya Rai, began its journey with a well-publicised premiere in the film market in Cannes.
He is hoping for a repeat show with Shoot on Sight. Courtsey : DD NEWS