Don Palathara’s Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam selected for Moscow festival

Malayalam filmmaker Don Palathara’s latest project, Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam (Joyful Mystery), is the only film from India to be selected for the main competition section of the 43rd Moscow International Film Festival.

The film will be competing alongside 12 other titles from across the world for the prestigious top prize. The festival has had a long and illustrious history since its inception in the year 1935.

Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam was screened during the recent 25th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), alongside Palathara's earlier film 1956, Central Travancore (2020).

An 87-minute single-take film, Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam stars Rima Kallingal and Jithin Puthenchery. Described by Cinestaan's contributing reviewer Vidyasree Bindu as a film that “blends popular and experimental filmmaking”, the relationship drama portrays a day in the life of the couple.

Speaking about the film’s selection at the festival, Don Palathara said, “Moscow is an amazing festival with such a great history of screening films that I have always admired. It is very humbling to have got this opportunity. It is also amazing how a film like Joyful Mystery, which portrays what I had imagined as a 'very local' subject, gets an audience in a totally different culture like that of Russia.”

The festival is being held from 22 to 29 April. While a significant part of the festival will be organized offline, some films will be accompanied by online presentations by the filmmakers.