The alternative view is alive: Apurva Asrani opens Kazhcha festival's second edition

Kazhcha in Malayalam means 'the view' or 'the spectacle'. But when a film festival is named Kazhcha, it means not just the view but also a spectacle of a different kind.

Begun as a counter narrative to the well-established International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), Kazhcha took the concept of a film festival to an entirely new dimension in its inaugural year 2017.

Right from the way it was organized to the films screened, this indie film festival proved to be one for the road not taken. This time, too, the Kazhcha-NIV Indie Film Festival (KNIFF) is up with an array of good movies, both noted as well as obscure.

Apurva Asrani, renowned editor, screenwriter and LGBTQ rights activist, flagged off the event at Lenin Balavadi, Vazhuthakkad, the main venue.

Rather than the formalities and artificiality that usually shrouds any inaugural function, KNIFF began yesterday on a modest yet powerful note.

As the organizers themselves stated, Asrani became the ideal person to inaugurate the function not only because of the films he was a part of, but also because of the way he became a significant voice for the voiceless through his activism.

Asrani shed light on how the theme of the festival – Inclusion – is relevant for our times.

Kannan Nayar, who has been a part of KNIFF from the beginning and who adorned the lead role in S Durga, shed light on how the festival has added the name NIV as an honour to its primary partner. He also added that the theme, inclusion, is an attempt to rope in the marginalized sections, be it on the basis of class, gender, caste or politics.

Filmmaker Jiju Antony, another integral part of the KNIFF team, defined the festival as their attempt to make a statement and include that which the mainstream deftly excludes.

He also encapsulated the various programmes that KNIFF will have, such as Voices that will have distinguished speakers sharing their wisdom on contemporary issues. Bridge is a programme conceptualized to bridge the gap between performer and audience through music, poetry and discussion.

Sangeeta Datta’s insightful film on Rituparno Ghosh, Bird Of Dusk, was the first to be screened after which a discussion with the filmmaker moderated by Sachin Chatte followed.