Shamayita C (BOMBAY TIMES; November 13, 2017)

Inside, Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and other big names held the audience hypnotised, but outside, some of Bengal’s best talents found themselves excluded from the recent inaugural ceremony of the 23rd Kolkata International Film Festival, which scored a new high in terms of hype, hoopla and crowd mismanagement.

Two directors — both of whom have a festival footprint this year — were not allowed entry into Kolkata’s Netaji Indoor Stadium, despite having delegate cards to the event. While Indrasis Acharya’s Pupa is the only Bengali film competing in the newly-formed Indian Select category, Anindya Banerjee’s experimental film Smug will be screened in the World Premiere section. Both directors were told by policemen at the gates that the stadium was too crowded to let them inside.

Said Indrasis, “I reached the venue at 3.15 pm with my producer. The entry gate mentioned on my card was already blocked. As I tried another gate, a policeman informed me that there was no space on the floor. He asked us to go to the gallery, but I refused. More than watching the inauguration ceremony, I went there to be a part of the festival. My film will be screened and I deserve a bit more respect. I have visited other film festivals and have always seen that directors and crew members who are part of films screened usually get access to the event.” Anindya added, “I was asked to go to the gallery to watch the ceremony. I saw my producer running here and there to get entry. It was very awkward for me.”

Since their films are being screened at the festival, Indrasis and Anindya had collected their special delegate cards from the kiosk of the Information and Cultural Affairs department.

Anindya further said, “Many friends say that the crowd that gathers at the inauguration is there to see the stars. I disagree. I think the carnivalesque approach has created awareness of world cinema among common people. However, I also realise that there is a level of mass hypnotism in this ceremony.”

MUMBAI MIRROR (November 12, 2017)

Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, along with the Bachchan family -- including Amitabh, Jaya, Abhishek and Aishwarya - Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol and actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan, inaugurated the seven-day Kolkata International Film Festival at Netaji Indoor Stadium. Tracing the influences of regional music in Indian cinema, Big B gave examples from the works of Sahir Ludhianvi and Javed Akhtar and lauded the “continued inclusiveness” of the film industry “without sectarian barriers”. He stressed that “the most egalitarian and important aspect of Indian films is reflected in the fact that several Muslim composers have set to tune bhajans eulogising Hindu gods and goddesses”.He pointed out that Naushad’s “Madhuban mein Radhika nache re” from Kohinoor is one such glowing example

Like every year, Shah Rukh delivered his entire speech in Bengali and had the audience in splits. “Too much love and fun at KIFF. Love my Kolkata and as always the warmth of @MamtaOffcial, you are the sweetest,” he tweeted later.

Iranian filmmaker Mostafa Taghizadeh’s Yellow was the opening film of the 23rd edition of the festival which wil; screen 143 films, by 135 directors from 53 countries across 12 venues in Kolkata. This year, while Britain will be the “focus country”, the festival will pay homage to late cinematographer Ramananda Sengupta and actors Om Puri and Tom Alter.

One of the big draws is Jean-Luc Godard’s The Rise and Fall of a Small Film Company (Grandeur et Decadence d’un Petit Commerce de Cinema), made for French television in 1986 and released in a cinematic format in France in October. This will be the first time that the film will be screened outside France.

Another major attraction will be the exhibition of camera and other equipment used by directors like the Lumiere Brothers, Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak.

Eight films in Monpa, Konkani, Kodava, Boro, Dogri, Maithili, Khasi and Chakma languages will feature in the ‘Unheard India: Rare Indian Languages’ section. Saibal Mitra’s 2016 Bengali film Chitrakar and Indrasis Acharya’s Pupa (2017), which were never released commercially will be screened in the Asian Select section. There will also be a six-film retrospective of Brit director Michael Winterbottom.

MUMBAI MIRROR (November 6, 2017)

To commemorate the UK-India Year of Culture 2017, Britain will be the focus country for the 23rd edition of the Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF). India’s second oldest fi lm fest will also pay homage to the late icons of Indian cinema, actors Tom Alter and Om Puri and cinematographer Ramananda Sengupta with films like Shatranj Ke Khiladi, Sadgati and Headmaster.

Kicking off on November 10, KIFF will screen 143 films spanning 53 countries under 16 different categories till November 17. This will include 13 films from UK with a six-film retrospective of acclaimed Brit filmmaker Michael Winterbottom.

Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan will be present at the inaugural ceremony. Kamal Haasan and filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt are also expected to attend the ceremony, to be presided over by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The women’s director’s competition has been replaced by ‘Innovation in Moving Images’ with a prize of Rs 51 lakh for the best film and Rs 21 lakh for best director. The Indian languages competition section has been introduced this year, with 10 films in nine languages in contention for the Hiralal Sen Memorial Award. Eight films in languages like Monpa, Konkani, Kodava, Dogri, Maithili, Khasi and Chakma will be featured in the ‘Unheard India: Rare Indian Languages’ section.

Six films of Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, one of Thailand’s most celebrated directors is also on show, as also an exposition of original equipment used by the Lumiere brothers, Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak.