Posts Tagged ‘synopsis’

Fund A Film (FAF) – Pushpendar Singh’s Lajwanti (The Honor Keeper)

Posted: January 22, 2014 by moifightclub in cinema, FAF (Fund A Film), Indie
Tags: , , , , , ,
1

We have always tried to spread the good word about various crowd-funded projects through our blog. Here’s one more film which looks interesting and you can contribute to its making.

shoot3

Film

Lajwanti (The Honour Keeper) directed by Pushpendra Singh has been selected for the 44th edition of the Berlinale Forum, a section of the Berlin International Film Festival that showcases independent, artistic filmmaking with a disregard for convention. Berlinale Forum will screen twenty-eight world and eight international premieres this year.

Official Synopsis

A group of women, in their daily long walk to collect water, recite songs and exchange words that reveal their hidden desires. But, one day, when a crazy dreamer whose only passion is collecting doves crosses their path, one of them, Lajwanti, starts a journey that will take her out of this closed world. She leaves the group when she cannot tolerate their banter and starts walking the long distance alone.

The silence and determination of the man with the doves becomes a curiosity for her and she decides to find more about him. But when the man does not show much interest in her advances, she feels betrayed by her beauty. Her dreams change from being driven by fear to dreams of courage. The veil starts disappearing and a new world opens to her. Will she overcome her dreams driven by fear to keep the honour of that man’s dream rather than that of the society? Will she be able to undo her social conditioning and find her true self?

Trailer

Filmmaker

An alumnus of the Film &Television Institute of India, Pune and Berlin Talent Campus, Pushpendra began his career as an actor playing one of the leads in AmitDutta’s Venice award winning film ‘Aadmi Ki AuratAur Anya Kahaniya’. He then went on to assist AmitDutta on his next feature ‘Nainsukh’ and the latest ‘SattviSair- The seventh walk’. He has also assisted Anup Singh on his award winning feature ‘Qissa- The ghost is a lonely traveler’.  His other credits include acting in the German feature ‘Asta Transfer’ directed by Maximilian Linz which is in its post-production and in the theatre with Barry John on his Honey Trilogy.

Currently he teaches at the Film & Television Institute of India, Pune. Lajwantiis his first feature film as a director.

Why they need the funding

– You can contribute anything between Rs 99 to 50,000. So far the film has managed to collect just 20% of the funding it needs. So do contribute to its making. Lets make it happen.

– Click here to go to its Catapooolt page where you can read more about the film and can make your contribution.

Nagraj Popatrao Manjule’s “Fandry” gets an official trailer

Posted: January 18, 2014 by moifightclub in cast & crew, cinema, film, first look, Indie, Marathi, Movie Recco, News, Trailer, video
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
5

Fandry

Initially it was the title of the film that made us curious. And strangely, nobody knew the meaning because though it seems like a Marathi word, it isn’t. And then we saw the film at Mumbai Film Festival and loved it. It even featured in our best scenes of the year list.

The film has been written and directed by Nagraj Manjule. The makers have just released the official first trailer of the film. It perfectly captures the mood and the essence of the film. Have a look. And thankfully, it’s with English subtitles.

Official Synopsis

A mesmeric force pulls Jabya onto the other side. The rarest of rare Black Sparrow, he is told, is the cure to his problem. The hypnotic spell of the sparrow makes him wander relentlessly. Completely away from the magical world of Jabya, exists the callous reality of his parents who are working at the most oppressed level of the Indian Class Structure and assume him to do the same work which they have done all their life. The protagonist Jabya has to now struggle between his quest to find the magical sparrow and his parents’ expectations. Will Jabya be successful in his pursuit of the Black Sparrow? Will the magnetic power surpass the class differences between Jabya and Shalu created by centuries of customs.? Will Jabya break the fences and pass onto the other side?

Cast & Crew

Studio – Navalakha Arts and Holy Basil Combine

Director – Nagraj Manjule

Writer – Nagraj Manjule

Screenplay – Nagraj Manjule

Music – Alokananda Dasgupta

Producer – Nilesh Navalakha and Vivek Kajaria

Cast – Kishor Kadam, Chhaya Kadam, Somnath Avghade, Suraj Pawar, Rajshree Kharat,
Sakshi Vyavhare, Aishvarya Shinde, Pravin Tarde, Bhushan Manjule, Nagraj Manjule

– Click here to read our review note from MFF.

– Click here to read Varun Grover and Kushan Nandy’s take on their favourite scenes of the year, both from Fandry.

– Click here to visit film’s official FB page.

And do watch it. It’s releasing on 14h Feb.

Shubhashish Bhutiani’s Kush moves in Top 10 list for Oscar (Live Action Short category)

Posted: November 23, 2013 by moifightclub in Awards, cinema, film, Hollywood, News, short film
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 live action short films will advance in the voting process for the 86th Academy Awards. 120 films  had qualified in the category.

And Shubhashish Bhutiani’s short film Kush is in the shortlist.

The film features Sonika Chopra, Shayaan Sameer and Anil Sharma in the lead. The film had also won the Orizzonti Award For The Best Short film at Venice Fest.
Kush

Synopsis
Inspired by a true story, Kush takes place in 1984, surrounding Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination. Anti-Sikh riots erupt throughout the country. A teacher traveling back from a field trip with her class of 10-year-old students now struggles to protect Kush, the only Sikh student in the class, from the growing violence around him.

Trailer

– Film’s FB page is here.

– To know more about the filmmaker and its making, you can read the director’s interview here.

– The Short Films and Feature Animation Branch Reviewing Committee viewed all the eligible entries for the preliminary round of voting.  Now the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members will select 3-5 nominees from among the 10 titles on the shortlist.

– The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday, January 16, 2014.

– Here’s the complete list of Top 10 shortlisted film (in alphabetical order)

– “Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me),” Esteban Crespo, director (Producciones Africanauan)

– “Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just before Losing Everything),” Xavier Legrand, director, and Alexandre Gavras, producer (KG Productions)

– “Dva (Two),” Mickey Nedimovic, director, and Henner Besuch, director of photography (Filoufilm Dani Barsch)

– “Helium,” Anders Walter, director, and Kim Magnusson, producer (M & M Productions)

– “Kush,” Shubhashish Bhutiani, director (Red Carpet Moving Pictures)

– “Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?),” Selma Vilhunen, director, and Kirsikka Saari, screenwriter (Tuffi Films)

– “Record/Play,” Jesse Atlas, director, and Thom Fennessey, executive producer (Collaboration Factory)

– “Throat Song,” Miranda de Pencier, director (Northwood Productions)

– “Tiger Boy,” Gabriele Mainetti, director (Goon Films)

– “The Voorman Problem,” Mark Gill, director, and Baldwin Li, producer (Honlodge Productions)

First Look : Kamal Swaroop’s Rangbhoomi (Trailer, Synopsis)

Posted: October 23, 2013 by moifightclub in cinema, first look, Indie, Poster, Story / Plot / Synopsis
Tags: , , , ,
0

Kamal Swaroop’s Rangbhoomi will have its premiere at this year’s Rome Film Festival. The film is in competition in the CinemaXXI section of the fest. The first trailer of the film is just out.

Official synopsis

RangbhoomiRangabhoomi follows the filmmaker as he attempts to trace the contours of Dada Saheb Phalke’s life in Varanasi after he withdrew. Disillusioned from the world of cinema, he decided to take up theatre. While in Varanasi, Phalke wrote a semi-autobiographical play titled “Rangabhoomi” which from the core of this cinematic exploration. Set in the visually thrilling landscapes of the old town of Varanasi, the film intertwines the personal engagement of Kamal Swarrop with the story of Phalke with Phalke’s journey and the play, deploying a vibrant palette of sounds, sights and characters in surrealist juxtaposition.

First Look : Sushrut Jain’s documentary ‘Beyond All Boundaries’ on country’s cricket mania

Posted: October 14, 2013 by moifightclub in Documentary, film, Film Festival, first look, Indie, Mumbai Film Festival, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Trailer
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
3

A documentary film titled ‘Beyond All Boundaries’ directed by Sushrut Jain will have its Indian premiere at the Mumbai Film Festival this year. The film is produced by Kunal Nayyar (of Big Bang Theory fame) who also helped Sushrut raise funds for the project.

TRAILER

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS
This 98 minute documentary tells three true life stories of cricket lovers and fanatics who gave up everything to pursue their passion. Woven through the tale of India’s progress in the 2011 World Cup are three separate story arcs that speak of the roles cricket can play in the lives of ordinary Indians, for whom the game becomes a source of aspiration, desperation and devotion.
BABPosterFinalsmallDETAILS
Beyond All Boundaries takes a look at the life of three people
1. Sudhir Kumar Gautam, the well known Indian cricket fan who loves his team, his stars, and at the heart of it, eventually the game.  He is India’s most recognizable fan who turns up at matches, his torso and face painted in the colours of the Indian flag, and “Tendulkar” and the number 10 on his back.
2. Prithvi Shaw, a 12-year-old batting prodigy from one of Mumbai’s distant suburbs, whose life and career are driven by the prototype sporting parent – a single father obsessed with turning his son into a professional cricketer.
3.  Akshaya Surve, an 18-year-old girl trying out for the Mumbai Under-19 team. Cricket is the centre of her existence and a potential exit for her and her mother, trapped in a single room in one of Mumbai’s many narrow bylanes.
– To know more about the film, click here for its website

Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar’s docu “Katiyabaaz” gets a new trailer

Posted: October 7, 2013 by moifightclub in cinema, Documentary, film, Film Festival, first look, Indie, Mumbai Film Festival, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Trailer
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
4

slide4

Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar’s documentary Katiyabaaz (Powerless) was selected for Berlin and Tribeca Film Festival. The film will have its screening at this year’s Mumbai Film Festival. Ahead of the fest, it has got a new trailer. Have a look.

The song in the trailer is sung by Indian Ocean and is written by Varun Grover who is also a regular contributor to this blog.

About the film :

In Kanpur, India, Loha Singh is the local robin-hood, stealing electricity so that homes and businesses could function normally in the face of day-long power-cuts. Meanwhile, the first female chief of the electricity supply company has vowed to rid the town of illegal connections and increase supply. In a summer of crisis, sparks will fly.

Description :

Powerless is a documentary film about the electrical supply shortage in an industrial suburb of Kanpur, India. The story unfurls along miles of tangled copper wires which mirror the diabolical complexity which unfolds in several towns and cities across the country. A picture emerges of a modern dystopia encompassing urban decay and desperation due to the lack of electricity. Underlying the localized crisis in Kanpur is the glaring energy poverty in India, where a third of the population is often without power and the rest grapple with frequent power-cuts that dictate their own terms. Powerless points to the universal need for dependable electrical power while exploring this theme in one of the world’s most ascendant economies.

– To know more about the film, click here to go to its official website.

– To read the Hollywood Reporter’s review of the film from Berlin fest, click here.

First Look : Deepak Dobriyal & Vir Das in Sooper Se Ooper (Trailer, synopsis)

Posted: September 27, 2013 by moifightclub in bollywood, film, first look, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Trailer
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
2

This one has come out of the blue. We had no clue about this film.

Official synosis

A quirky family entertainer for 8 to 80 years, pan India.
Ranvir’s fortune is in dumps and selling his ancestral land in Mumbai is the only way to survive & Kukreja who has put all on stake has to get this land to stay away from the wrath of a ‘bhai’ and also achieve his dream of becoming a builder eventually!
For both Ravir & Kukreja this plot of land means everything and has to be got any which way.
But the key to the land is Ranvir’s mama Madho Singh Rathore, in Mandawa. Since the will wasn’t made in Ranvir’s name, so Mama has to give the NOC. Ranvir has to get his Mama to Mumbai within a month & Kukreja has to stop him from reaching Mumbai.
We see the transformation of our protagonist Ranvir from a materialistic city youth to someone who is all for family & values & antagonist Kukreja from a ‘dalla’ to a gangster through this journey, which has some other real & funny characters as well.
In the 1st half the city goes to a village and in the 2nd the village comes to the city.

Little too much? Forget it, just watch the trailer.

Cast and crew

Cast : Vir Das, Deepak Dobriyal, Gulshan Grover, Kirti Kulhari & Yashpal Sharma
Director : Shekhar Ghosh
Music : Sonu Niigam & Bickram Ghosh
Creative Producer : Rajnish Lall
Release Date : 25th Oct 2013

Anup Singh’s Qissa bags NETPAC Award at TIFF

Posted: September 16, 2013 by moifightclub in Awards, cinema, Film Festival, Indie, News
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

qissa_01

Toronto International Film Festival has come to an end, and has announced the winners  for this year.

Here’s the good news – An Indian co-production, Anup Singh’s Qissa has bagged the NETPAC Award at this year’s fest. The film stars Irrfan Khan, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal and Tisca Chopra. This Punjabi film is written by Anup Singh and Madhuja Mukherjee. And here’s what the official release says –

As selected by a jury from the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema, the NETPAC Award for World or International Asian Film Premiere goes to Anup Singh’s Qissa. Jury members include Jay Jeon (Korea), Intishal Al Timimi (Abu Dhabi) and Freddie Wong (Hong Kong). The jury remarked: “The NETPAC Award for the best Asian film at Festival 2013 goes to Qissa, directed by Anup Singh, for its sensitive portrayal of the issues of identity and displacement that affect people not only in India, but in all parts of the world and for brilliance of cinematic craft and the choice of metaphor that has been employed to tell a moving story that is bound to provoke thoughts, spark debate and give its viewers an intense experience.

TRAILER

TIFF NOTE & SYNOPSIS

Set amidst the ethnic cleansing and general chaos that accompanied India’s partition in 1947, this sweeping drama stars Irrfan Khan — also appearing at the Festival in The Lunchbox — as a Sikh attempting to forge a new life for his family while keeping their true identities a secret from their community.

Beautiful, timeless, and touching the deepest of human impulses, Qissa carries the spirit of a great folk tale. Although it’s set in a particular time and place — the Punjab region that straddles India and Pakistan in the years immediately after partition — it is both deeper and broader than any one moment. As this eerie family drama progresses, it cuts to the heart of eternal desires for honour, empathy, and love.

One of India’s best actors, Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Festival premiere The Lunchbox, and a feature guest in this year’s Mavericks programme) plays Umber Singh, a Sikh uprooted by the religious violence that came with partition in 1947. He and his family move to a safer locale, and it is here that the story takes a remarkable turn. Having already fathered daughters, Singh now wants a son. When his next child is born he celebrates his wish come true, but there is one problem: the baby is in fact a girl.

“Qissa” is originally an Arabic word meaning folk tale. Both the word and the idea migrated from the Gulf into the Punjab, still connected by the ancient oral narratives handed down in communal settings. Working within this tradition, director Anup Singh gives his film both the grand themes and elemental emotions of classic storytelling. As Umber’s daughter is raised as a boy, the characters are propelled with greater and greater urgency towards their inevitable fates.

Part of a new generation of directors with feet firmly planted in India and far beyond, Singh has delivered a film immediately accessible to anyone sensitive to the conflicts that drive classic stories: fear versus hubris, individual need versus social codes. Qissa is a Punjabi story for the whole world.

DIRECTOR

Anup Singh was born in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He has written film reviews for Sight & Sound, directed Indian television, and consulted for BBC Two. His features as director are The Name of a River (02) and Qissa (13).

CAST & CREW

Director: Anup Singh

Countries: Germany / India / Netherlands / France

Year: 2013

Language: Punjabi

Runtime: 109 minutes

Rating: 14A

Producer: Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper

Production Co.: Heimatfilm, National Film Development Corporation of India, Augustus Film, Ciné-Sud Promotion

Principal Cast: Irrfan Khan, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal, Tisca Chopra

Screenplay: Anup Singh, Madhuja Mukherjee

Cinematographer: Sebastian Edschmid

Editor: Bernd Euscher

Sound: Peter Flamman

Music: Béatrice Thiriet

Prod. Designer: Tim Pannen

Int. Sales Agent: The Match Factory

First Look : Anurag Kashyap’s Ugly (Trailer, official synopsis)

Posted: September 13, 2013 by moifightclub in bollywood, cast & crew, cinema, film, first look, News, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Trailer
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

The much awaited trailer of Anurag Kashyap’s new film Ugly is out. Have a look.

It looks damn intriguing. A kidnapping goes wrong and things get ugly.

The film stars Ronit Roy, Rahul Bhat, Tejaswini Kolhapure, Vineet Kumar Singh, Surveen Chawala, Siddhant Kapoor, Anshika Shrivastava & Girish Kulkarni.

Produced by Dar Motion Pictures and Phantom Films, it has music by G V Prakash.

The film had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in the Directors Fortnight section.

UglyOfficial Synopsis

Bose, an Additional Commissioner of Police, is an extremely straight-forward professional. However, these lines are a bit blurred in his relationship with his wife Shalini. Shalini is a clinically depressed person and an alcoholic. Shalini was first married to Rahul, a struggling actor and also has a daughter with him, called Kali. The story starts on a Saturday, which is the day when Rahul is allowed to meet Kali as per court custody arrangements. Rahul leaves her in the car as he goes to meet his friend, and Kali goes missing.

What follows is an endless series of blame game and one up-man ship. A dark psychological thriller on the surface, Ugly is an emotional drama within.

To know more about the film, you can follow its FB page here.

First Look : Anup Singh’s Qissa (trailer, synopsis), premieres at TIFF

Posted: September 7, 2013 by moifightclub in cast & crew, first look, Indie, News, songs & videos, Story / Plot / Synopsis, Trailer
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
3

qissa_01

Anup Singh’s Qissa will have its premiere at the ongoing Toronto International Film Festival. The film stars Irrfan Khan, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal and Tisca Chopra. This Punjabi film is written by Anup Singh and Madhuja Mukherjee.

The first look trailer of the film is just out.

TIFF Note and Synopsis

Set amidst the ethnic cleansing and general chaos that accompanied India’s partition in 1947, this sweeping drama stars Irrfan Khan — also appearing at the Festival in The Lunchbox — as a Sikh attempting to forge a new life for his family while keeping their true identities a secret from their community.

Beautiful, timeless, and touching the deepest of human impulses, Qissa carries the spirit of a great folk tale. Although it’s set in a particular time and place — the Punjab region that straddles India and Pakistan in the years immediately after partition — it is both deeper and broader than any one moment. As this eerie family drama progresses, it cuts to the heart of eternal desires for honour, empathy, and love.

One of India’s best actors, Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Festival premiere The Lunchbox, and a feature guest in this year’s Mavericks programme) plays Umber Singh, a Sikh uprooted by the religious violence that came with partition in 1947. He and his family move to a safer locale, and it is here that the story takes a remarkable turn. Having already fathered daughters, Singh now wants a son. When his next child is born he celebrates his wish come true, but there is one problem: the baby is in fact a girl.

“Qissa” is originally an Arabic word meaning folk tale. Both the word and the idea migrated from the Gulf into the Punjab, still connected by the ancient oral narratives handed down in communal settings. Working within this tradition, director Anup Singh gives his film both the grand themes and elemental emotions of classic storytelling. As Umber’s daughter is raised as a boy, the characters are propelled with greater and greater urgency towards their inevitable fates.

Part of a new generation of directors with feet firmly planted in India and far beyond, Singh has delivered a film immediately accessible to anyone sensitive to the conflicts that drive classic stories: fear versus hubris, individual need versus social codes. Qissa is a Punjabi story for the whole world.

Director : Anup Singh

Anup Singh was born in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He has written film reviews for Sight & Sound, directed Indian television, and consulted for BBC Two. His features as director are The Name of a River (02) and Qissa (13).

Cast and Crew

Director: Anup Singh

Countries: Germany / India / Netherlands / France

Year: 2013

Language: Punjabi

Runtime: 109 minutes

Rating: 14A

Producer: Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper

Production Co.: Heimatfilm, National Film Development Corporation of India, Augustus Film, Ciné-Sud Promotion

Principal Cast: Irrfan Khan, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal, Tisca Chopra Screenplay: Anup Singh, Madhuja Mukherjee

Cinematographer: Sebastian Edschmid

Editor: Bernd Euscher

Sound: Peter Flamman

Music: Béatrice Thiriet

Prod. Designer: Tim Pannen

Int. Sales Agent: The Match Factory

Older Entries
Newer Entries