Sahil Bhalla
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Article Maithili
MAMI 2019: Achal Mishra’s Maithili feature Gamak Ghar explores the world of documentary and narrative format
Achal Mishra’s directorial debut will be premiered in the India Gold section of the 21st Mumbai Film Festival.
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Review English
Noblemen review: Stomach-churning tale of bullying in a boys' boarding school
Some may say Noblemen is a feel-good story, but one needs to look under the surface to realize it isn’t.
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Article Hindi
Vandana Kataria’s Noblemen isn’t a feel-good story but a cautionary tale
Production designer-turned-filmmaker Vandana Kataria's debut film is her interpretation of Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice set in an all-boys boarding school.
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Article Hindi
Habitat 2019: Showcasing student films with diverse voices
It is great to see a film festival give a platform for students to showcase their work and for audiences, producers, and others to discover new voices.
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Review Marathi
Dithee review: Visually breathtaking story of loss, grief and healing
The unmoving sombreness of the present, coupled with the breathtaking cinematography, is the secret to the movie’s success. Director Sumitra Bhave chooses to show more than tell. The focus is on the psyche of Ramji and the viewer is drawn towards his sadness.
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Article
Wanphrang K Diengdoh’s debut indie feature Lorni: The Flaneur subverts the noir genre
Meghalaya filmmaker Wanphrang K Diengdoh explains how his documentary filmmaking experience, a great team and 'sheer madness' helped him shoot his first feature on a micro-budget inside 24 days.
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Review Kannada
Ramana Savari review: Simplistic ending ruins an otherwise charming film
This children’s film is what you would call a slow burner, with the director not getting to the crux of the tale until well into the second half.
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Article Malayalam
Habitat 2019: Censorship is a mockery of the public intellect, says Aabhaasam director Jubith Namradath
Engineer-turned-director Jubith Namradath explains why he felt the need to adapt the idea behind his own short film Democracy: To Each His Own for his first feature.
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Article English (India)
An Engineered Dream review: An objective look at the rigours of the Kota coaching institutions
Loneliness and suicide ring throughout the documentary. Yet, Gaba has also managed to inject some light-hearted moments into the 72-minute film.
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Article Malayalam
Habitat 2019: Women in Cinema Collective looks forward to a day when it is not needed
Director Jubith Namradath, actress-producer Rima Kallingal, actress Padmapriya Janakiraman and film critic Anna MM Vetticad were in conversation after Malayalam film Aabhaasam was screened at the Habitat festival.
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Article English (India)
Digital platforms were never plan A for Ashvin Kumar’s No Fathers In Kashmir
Ashvin Kumar, whose film on the missing menfolk in Kashmir opened the 14th Habitat Film Festival, spoke of the 'crisis of compassion' in India and why he wrote his screenplay mainly for millennials.
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Article Hindi
Documentary Tungrus gives insight into a family's relationship with a rooster
Nusrat Bharde brought home the rooster — a newborn — one day and the decision hasn’t settled well with the family six months down the line.
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Article Hindi
7th DIFF comes to a close amidst open screenings, informal chats and unseasonal rains
Dharamshala International Film Festival keeps on getting bigger, year-after-year, despite the lineup being less than stellar this time around.
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Article Tibet
Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam's The Sweet Requiem gets a full house at DIFF
Set amongst the exile Tibetan community in India, The Sweet Requiem is a deeply personal and moving drama.
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Article Ladakhi
Chuskit: A girl's simple true-life tale which was not so easy to tell on film
Director Priya Ramasubban hopes her film will inspire many differently abled children to go to school and live their lives to the fullest.