The much anticipated 'Bulbul Can Sing' releases: Sight & Sound

Prantik Deka

the much anticipated 'bulbul can sing' releases

Award-winning filmmaker Rima Das' Assamese film 'Bulbul Can Sing' has hit the theatres in Assam on September 20, ahead of its pan-India release on September 27.

Infact, it came as a major surprise when Rima Das announced during her interaction with the media that her film, which has received 13 awards, including the National Award for Best Feature Film in Assamese and screened in 40 film festivals from across the globe, has been submitted for selection as an entry for the Academy Awards.

"I'm hopeful that people here would like the film. I have received some really encouraging feedbacks from different quarters of the world. Besides, the film was also screened in different festivals in India where viewers from Assam were also present and they liked it," Das said during the press conference held soon after the film's screening at the PVR, City Centre, Guwahati.

Das said she did not get enough time to promote the film but hoped the audience will support and accept the film with the same enthusiasm and goodwill as they did for 'Village Rockstar'.

"The film must be released by September 28 for being considered as an Oscar entry and that is why we have planned to release the film early", she added.

"We have got less screening space than 'Village Rockstar', but I am sure that if people accept 'Bulbul Can Sing', arrangements can be made to screen the film in every part of the state", she explained. Das further said that she considers it to be "her responsibility to release the film first in Assam and then across the country".

The universally acclaimed 'Village Rockstars', which bagged the Best Feature Film Award at the 65th National Film Awards, was the country's official entry to the Oscars last year.

'Bulbul Can Sing' premiered at the Toronto Film Festival where it received the Jury's Special Mention Award, as well as the Golden Gateway award in the India Gold section of the 20th Mumbai Film Festival.

The film narrates the story of Bulbul, a teenage girl, who grows up in a rural Assam set up. While she is on the verge of discovering her adolescent life, a tragedy strikes her best friend. A spirited Bulbul, then, fights her way through love and loss as she figures out who she really is. The film features Arnali Das, Bonita Thakuriya, Manoranjan Das, Manabendra Das and Pakija Begam, among others. Like her previous ventures, here too, Das is a one-woman film production team, doing the camerawork, editing and production design herself, as well as writing, directing and producing.

"The film has been very special for me as a filmmaker and I am sure the teenagers will identify themselves in it. It is not a simple narrative as 'Village Rockstars', but the characters are very real, who experience the pangs of growing up before they understand the values of life," she told during the press meet. Both 'Village Rockstars' and 'Bulbul Can Sing' portray strong women characters at its heart.

The filmmaker said that she is making a sequel to the 'Village Rockstar', which may not have the same name and plans to begin its shooting from early next year.

assamese short film wins award for 'best music video' at the 7^th indian cine film festival 2019

'Vaishnava - Being Humane' – an Assamese short dance film, has won the award for Best Music Video (Jury) at the 7th Indian Cine Film Festival, 2019, which took place in Mumbai, recently.

The short film has been made by combining Mahatma Gandhi's favourite Bhajan – 'Vaishnav Jan to', composed by the 15th-century poet-saint of Gujarat Adi Kavi Narsinh Mehta, with excerpts from the Kirtan ghosha, composed by the great Vaishnavite saint Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev, which have been synthesised into the unique raga and tala of Borgeet and Sattriya music.

The film has made its official entry in some noted film festivals across the country. It pays tribute to the Father of the Nation on his 150th birth anniversary through Sattriya dance. The film is based on the concept designed by IRS officer Padmapani Bora and noted Sattriya dancer Mridusmita Das, recipient of Sangeet Natak Academy's Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar.

'Vaishnava - Being Humane' has been produced and choreographed by Mridusmita Das and the script has been written by Padmapani Bora. It has been beautifully directed by the talented young director Rukshana Tabassum and its music has been composed by singer Rupam Bhuyan.

pradip kurbah's 'lewduh' to premiere at busan international film festival

Meghalaya filmmaker Pradip Kurbah-directed Khasi film 'Iewduh' is all set to be premiered at the 24th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). The film festival will be held from October 3 to 12, 2019, at Busan, one of the largest cities in South Korea. Inspired by real accounts, the film, produced by Shankar Lall Goenka, is based on a story on the daily lives of the people at Iewduh, also known as Bara bazaar, one of the oldest and largest traditional markets in Shillong.

The film reflects the lifestyle of the people in the congested lanes where life is all about making a living for oneself. The film is teemed with many characters; their stories criss-cross, move apart or converge as the camera travels through the lanes and bylanes. Its about the everyday stories, and everyday lives of those people, not dignified as heroes, but of course, people, who make lives of each other better.

'Iewduh' is also about death, real and metaphorical. It's about how, at times, dreams have to die to set one free.

Shot entirely in Iewduh, which is also a melting pot of cultures, the Khasi language film is of 94 minutes duration. The various artistes in the film are Richard Kharpuri, Enshon Lamare, Lapynhun Sun, Anvil Laloo, Rupam Barua, Dhruba Kalita, Jeetesh Sharma, Denver Pariat, Elmer War, Khambor Nongneng, Lapdiang Syiem and Saju Ahmed.

Filmmaker Pradip Kurbah has already been able to draw attention of film critics by winning two national awards. Kurbah's film 'RI: Homeland of Uncertainty', made in 2013 and his next film 'Onaatah', made in 2016, won national awards.

'Onaatah: Of the Earth' has recently been re-made in Marathi as 'Mann Udhan Vaara' by actor-filmmaker Satish Kaushik. 'Mann Udhan Vaara' is set to release in October 11.

Kurbah, who has 15 years of experience in filmmaking, is a self-taught filmmaker.

jyotirupa's rg baruah drama festival early next year

Socio-cultural organisation Jyotirupa is going to organise its annual one-act play competition and Singhapurush Radha Govinda Baruah Drama Festival in the city during January and February next year. It will also hold an interaction programme with a noted artiste of the State in November. The artiste's name will be announced later.

These decisions were taken at a general meeting of the organisation held recently on the premises of the Assam Tribune buildings, with its president Prafulla Govinda Baruah in the chair. Jyotirupa general secretary Naren Hazarika delivered the welcome address and read out his report.

The meeting also took a number of important decisions and formed a new committee of the organisation.

The new committee comprises PG Baruah as president, Naren Hazarika as general secretary, Minati Choudhury as executive president, Dilip Barua, Bhuban Lahkar, Roman Sarma, Prasad Das, Arati Kalita, Tapash Dutta, Ajit Bej and Ranjan Sarma as vice-presidents, Pradip Thakuria and Dhanjit Medhi as assistant secretaries, Ashim Deka as treasurer, Kamal Deka, Dhanjit Medhi and Chandak Mishra as cultural secretaries, Mahendra Koch, Mousumi Brahma and Hareshwar Talukder as organising secretaries and Jayanta Sarma, Tapash Dutta, Girish Sarma, Tridib Duara, Mala Sarma, Nilakshi Lahkar, Anupam Laskar and Usha Dutta as executive members.