Feel phenomenally honoured to be the director of the opening film at at IFFI: Director Anand Ekarshi

Attam is very personal, it’s a family project, close to my heart: Actor Vinay Forrt

The Indian Panorama section at IFFI 54 that offers an excellent cinematic experience for the film-lovers, opened yesterday with the Malayalam film Aattam. The directorial venture of Anand Ekarshi, Attam explores the dynamics between an individual and a group when pitted in certain uncomfortable situations.

Director Anand Ekarshi of the film Aattam while interacting with the media at 54^th International Film Festival of India, in Goa, said that the “overarching theme of the film is not specific to any gender or patriarchy as such. It has been conceived in layers of dynamics between the individual and the group, where the group is of men and the individual is a lady.” He adds that the storyline partakes a gender study but the picture in itself is not region or gender specific.

Ekarshi takes the directorial helm of this 140 minutes long cinematic masterpiece, guiding a cast led by the dynamic duo, Vinay Forrt and Zarin Shihab. Talking of the plot of the movie, he adds that it presents an evolving dynamic between an individual and the group. “It is not inspired by 12 Angry Men, rather it was a natural progression but it’s an honour to be compared to the movie”, he added while responding to a query. The idea of the film was conceived during the COVID pandemic period during normal conversation on a trip with friends, he explained on the question of how the movie was conceived.

Vinay Forrt, the lead actor, talking on the conceptualization of this film mentioned that, he was on a trip along with his theatre friends of 20 years where “we decided to represent our friendship, togetherness and art in some way and it was decided to do a film.” The responsibility of it fell upon Anand, who is the most “creative and well-read” in the group, added Forrt. This idea finally took the form of the film Aattam. He expressed, “Attam is very personal, and it’s a family project, close to my heart.”

Forrt commended Anand for his directorial finesse as he “understood the strength and limitation of every individual actor and handled that very well and as a viewer, it translated into great performances.” On the question of what motivates him as an actor, Forrt remarked, “Exciting script, challenging character, and such other factors are important”.

Talking of the movie, Zarin Shihab said that, “the response to the film has been fantastic.” She commends the director and adds, “it is great to see theatre artists coming together for the film and Anand has very smartly used theatrical devices and elements to elevate the storytelling for the screen.”

On this note, the director Ekarshi remarked that this was the debut film for nine of the actors and that “transitioning from theatre to cinema is a task and acting for a shot is a challenge for stage actors. 35 days of scene rehearsals were done before the shoot to get used to the camera and the set, so the rehearsals were the most important thing”.

The sound designer of the movie, Renganath Ravi talked of the challenges of shooting with 13 actors in the same location but how the sound design made it interesting, adding a nuanced layer to the film.

Aattam: This drama film revolves around a woman and twelve men play by a theatre group called Arangu. They get a chance to be recognized internationally when they are given an offer by Chris and Emily, friends of Hari, an actor who was replaced from the lead role previously played by Vinay. Anjaly, the only female artist of the play, is in love with Vinay and informs him that she was mistreated by Hari at a party which was hosted by Chris and Emily. Vinay tries to bring out Hari’s true colors by sharing this information with Madan, who agrees to discuss this with the rest of the team and eventually expels Hari. Friendships are at stake but monetary benefits and success is used as a tool to reward and bribe people’s moral fiber. As the events proceed, reality seems weirder when truths unravel.

Happy and honoured to have represented this story: Actor Laibi Phanjoubam.

Andro Dreams tells the story of Manipur’s people who are unheard and not represented in other media: Director Meena Longjam

A 60 year old Ms. Laibi Phanjoubam runs a handloom and weaving craft shop in a remote village called Andro nestled in the northeast state of Manipur. On the face of it, it seems quite an ordinary story. But Ms Laibi Phanjoubam is no ordinary woman. She runs an all-female football club fighting against the entrenched patriarchy, economic hardships and orthodoxy of her ancient village.

Her trail-blazing tale in a small newspaper article is what caught the National Award winning Director Ms. Meena Longjam’s eye, which today has been brought on the silver screen as Andro Dreams. The documentary is the story of Laibi, an old woman with a spirited soul, and her three decade old, an all girls’ football club Andro Mahila Mandal Association Football Club (AMMA-FC). It captures their challenges and struggles with Nirmala, their most promising young football player in the spotlight.

The Manipuri Film Andro Dreams, a cinematic chronicle of 63 minutes, opened the Non Feature Film Section of the Indian Panorama at 54^th IFFI. The avant-gardist documentary is led by a trinity of a female director, producer and cast.

Speaking of the inspiring story of Laibi Phanjouban, the director Longjam elaborated that she is the fourth girl child in her family who was often disregarded by her family. However, despite the odds, she became the first woman in her village to complete matriculate degree and became a primary school teacher. She has established handloom and weaving craft shops in her village.

Laibi Phanjoubam, the protagonist of the film, expressed her happiness on making of this documentary. The movie presents her reality and struggles, which she has been honoured to present to the world.

“It is a story of our people, who are unheard and not represented in other media,” said Longjam in her media interaction organized by PIB at 54^th International Film Festival of India, in Goa. She added that her “accidental” directorial ventures are an endeavor to show the lives of people of Manipur who remain obscured in the main media. “Andro Dreams captures the real life of Laibi and the girls of her football club fighting against all odds”, said the director of this passion-fuelled project.

Talking on the genre of documentary film-making, Longjam elaborated that, “making a documentary requires building a relationship with the subject over a long period of time and it cannot be a one-off project.” Meena Longjam is a legend-in-the-making, as she became the first Manipuri woman to win a National Award for her other film “Auto Driver” earlier.

“Women are “silent pillars” of society and I want to bring as many to the forefront as possible and provide them the required opportunities. I want to encourage, motivate and support the incredible talent that has skills but lack the funding”, said Jani Viswanath, the executive producer of Andro Dreams, on her motivation to fund such films.

Indian Panorama section at IFFI, that offers an excellent cinematic experience for the film-lovers, opened yesterday with Malayalam film Aattam in the Feature section and the Manipuri film Andro Dreams in the Non-Feature section. This year 25 Feature Films and 20 Non-Feature films will be showcased at the 54^th IFFI which is being held from 20^th-28^th November, 2023.

The Indian Panorama was introduced in 1978 as part of the IFFI umbrella to promote Indian Films along with India’s rich culture and heritage with the help of cinematic art. Since its inception, the Indian Panorama has been completely devoted to showcasing the best Indian films of the year.