The two biographical films, vastly different from each other, will be seen at the Australian film festival being held from 6 to 17 June 2018.
Sonal Pandya
Actress-turned-filmmaker Nandita Das’s Manto (2018) had a grand premiere in the Un Certain Regard section at the 71st Cannes International Film Festival. Now, the film is all set to head to Sydney, Australia for its next screening.
Manto, starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui as the talented but troubled writer, Sadat Hasan Manto, who had to relocate to Pakistan after the Partition. Rasika Dugal, Tahir Raj Bhasin and a whole host of celebrity cameos are also a key part of the biographical film.
Mehsampur, directed by Kabir Chowdhury, has been called a ‘hybrid film’. The first film from Chowdhury blurs the line between fiction and reality to explore the deaths of Punjabi folk singers Amar Singh Chamkila and Amarjot Kaur. It stars Navjot Randhawa, Devrath Joshi, Lal Chand and Surinder Sonia.
Chowdhury has worked as an art director on Wake Up Sid (2009) and Aisha (2010). Mehsampur has already been selected for the Docs Against Gravity festival in Poland where it will have its world premiere. The film will also be screened at the London Indian Film Festival in June 2018.
