5th Jagran Film Festival: A heady mix

Michael Kristof

There are very few film festivals in our country that boast of a high recall value. Jagran Film Festival (JFF) is certainly one of them.

Michael Kristof. Pic/Shadab Khan

And going by the first day response, it's evident that the event is growing by leaps and bounds. With more than 100 films being shown in two multiplexes over seven days, the event clearly has lots to offer. Travelling to 16 cities across seven states, JFF aims to bring the rich movie culture to its audiences across the country. It will be held in Mumbai from September 22 to 28 at PVR Andheri and Cinemax Versova. India's only travelling film festival, JFF covers the largest geographical area.

Day one saw National Award-winning actor Irrfan and actress Neetu Chandra inaugurate the fifth edition of the festival - taking place for the second time in Mumbai - at PVR Cinema in Andheri. Also present on the stage were Manoj Srivastava, Strategic Consultant, JFF and Vinod Srivastava of the Jagran Group.

Irrfan applauded the film festival's endeavour to bring out little-known films for mass audiences. Chandra too spoke about the impact JFF has made despite its relatively young presence in the city. The two lit the lamp to inaugurate the festival.

Opening the festival was Austrian-Slovenian World War I drama, The Woods Are Still Green, that had its India premiere. The film marks the centenary of the first World War. The film's lead actor Michael Kristof may not have attended the screening due to flight delay, but the actor was more than happy to interact with the media once he walked in.

The lineup on the opening day also included the Asian premiere of Jack Zagha Kababie's One For the Road. This 91-minute Spanish film mainly attracted film students. Richard Attenborough's Gandhi screening too saw many people throng the theatre. Following this, Bangladeshi War drama Children of War was screened at Cinemax Versova; director Mrityunjaya Devvrat was spotted giving interviews where he explained his vision. As the evening progressed, more cine-lovers poured in to watch Tomislav Mrsic's Croatian film, Cowboys. Mary Kom, featuring Priyanka Chopra in the lead role, grabbed maximum eyeballs. The biopic, based on the life of India's boxing champion, was lapped by the audience.

All in all, the opening day of JFF was one action-packed day.

More than just screenings
There were also intriguing discussions held on topics ranging from advances in cinematography to how independent cinema is gradually making its presence felt in the country. The Q&A session saw many curious students get their queries answered.