Tagore Film Festival - Khudito Pashan: Hungry Stones (Sat 5 May)

Khudito Pashan (1960)

English Title: Hungry Stones

117 minutes

Director: Tapan Sinha

Writers: Rabindranath Tagore (story), Tapan Sinha (Scenario)

Stars: Arundhati Devi, Soumitra Chatterjee and Chhabi Biswas

The film is adapted from a story called Hungry Stones by Rabindranath Tagore. A tax collector posted to a small town puts up at a mansion feared by the locals because it is haunted. As time passes he grows more consumed by the mansion and its air of romance, and the spirits that haunt it, especially a beautiful woman. Written by Ravenus, India 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054005/plotsummary  

Tagore Film Festival - Kabuliwala (Thurs 3 May)

Kabuliwala (1961)

95 minutes

Director: Hemen Gupta

Writers: Rabindranath Tagore (story), Vishram Bedekar and S. Khalil (screenplay)

Stars: Balraj Sahni, Sonu and Usha Kiran

Abdur Rehman Khan (Balraj Sahni), a middle-aged dry fruit seller from Afghanistan, comes to Calcutta to hawk his merchandise and befriends a small Bengali girl called Mini (Sonu) who reminds him of his own daughter Amina back in Afghanistan. He puts up at a boarding house along with his countrymen. Since he is short of money he decides to sell his goods on credit for increasing his business. Later, when he goes to collect his money, one of his customers abuses him and in the fight that ensues Rehman warns that he will not tolerate abuse and stabs the man when he does not stop the abuse. In the court Rehman's lawyer tries to obfuscate the facts but in his characteristic and simple fashion Rehman states the truth in a matter of fact way. The judge, pleased with Rehman's honesty, gives him 10 years' rigorous imprisonment instead of the death sentence. On the day of his release, he goes to meet Mini but discovers that she has grown up into a woman and is about to get married. Mini does not recognize Rehman, who realises that his own daughter must have forgotten him too. Mini's father gives Rehman the money for travelling back to Afghanistan out of Mini's wedding budget to which Mini agrees; she also sends a gift for Rehman's daughter. The film ends with Rehman travelling back to his homeland.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabuliwala_%281961_film%29

Tagore Film Festival - Charulata: The Lonely Wife (Wed 2 May)

Charulata: The Lonely Wife (1964)

Drama/ Romance

117 minutes

Director: Satyajit Ray

Writers: Satyajit Ray, Rabindranath Tagore (story)

Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Madhabi Mukherjee and Shailen Mukherjee

 

Set in British India in the 19th century, the film revolves around Charulata, the beautiful wife of a learned Calcutta intellectual. She sits at home alone while her wealthy husband Bhupati runs his English language newspaper. Upon recognizing her profound loneliness, Bhupati invites his brother-in-law Umapada and wife Mandakini as house guests. Amal, his handsome younger cousin also comes for a visit following his graduation from college. Charu and Amal spend hours reminiscing over literature, poetry and the arts while Bhupati works on his paper. For a short time everyone is content. Then, a tragedy occurs. Umapada absconds with Bhupati's savings, leaving the entrepreneur in terrible debt. But the betrayed man soon realizes that something much more precious than his money is lost. Written by alfiehitchie and Arun K Barua

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057935/ 

Tagore Film Festival

2012 Student Photography Exhibition

Call for submissions for the ttff/12

Presented by Flow, the trinidad+tobago film festival (ttff) seeks to highlight excellence in filmmaking through the exhibition of films made in the Caribbean region, including Latin American countries in the Caribbean Basin; by Caribbean people of the diaspora; and by international filmmakers that reflect Caribbean culture and way of life both in the region and the diaspora.

The ttff/12 will be held from 19 September to 02 October.

Selected films screened at the Festival are eligible for the following five jury prizes: best narrative feature film (US$4,000); best documentary feature film (US$4,000); best short film (US$2,000); best local feature film (TT$20,000); and best local short film (TT$10,000).

There are also three people’s choice awards, for best dramatic feature, best documentary and best short, each worth TT$5,000.

All selected films are also eligible for screening on Flow’s video on demand service after the Festival.

There is a submission fee of TT$60 (or US$10) per entry.

The Festival screens films in digital and 35mm formats. Entries of various lengths are accepted.

All initial submissions should be made either in digital format (for example, via Dropbox, Yousendit, FTP, Vimeo, Cinando, Festivalscope or personal secure online link), or in NTSC DVD format and must be in English or with English subtitles.

You may also submit via www.withoutabox.com, trinidad+tobago film festival.

All submissions must be accompanied by:

• Synopsis
• Running time
• Year of production (not before 2010)
• Country of origin
• Language, and if subtitled
• Genre
• Name of director, producer and cast (if appropriate)
• Short biography of director
• Festivals screened at/awards won (if any)
• Contact information

Digital submissions should be sent to annabelle@ttfilmfestival.com

DVD submissions should be sent to:

Annabelle Alcazar
Programme Director
trinidad + tobago film festival
199 Belmont Circular Road
Port of Spain
Trinidad & Tobago

Submitted materials will not be returned.

THE DEADLINE FOR ALL SUBMISSIONS IS 31 MAY 2012. THIS DEADLINE WILL BE STRICTLY FOLLOWED. PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT FILMS THAT DO NOT FULFILL THE STATED CRITERIA.

ttff/12 reserves the right to determine the eligibility of the submissions to be screened at the Festival, the appropriate venues and time slots for the screening of films, and to use excerpts of the films for publicity purposes. All films submitted must have applicable clearances and the Festival will not be held liable.

The ttff seeks to make all screenings at the Festival T&T premieres. Occasionally, however, the Festival considers films that have already been shown in T&T. Please contact us if you have a film that falls into this category.

Please note that there are usually many more submissions than spaces available in the Festival lineup and therefore not all films can be accommodated. This does not necessarily imply that a film has not met the Festival’s criteria or is of poor quality. It may be that we have already selected a film on a similar topic, or that a film is deemed to have already received sufficient public exposure.

The ttff, which is in its seventh year, is held annually in September and receives leading sponsorship from RBC Royal Bank and bpTT, and supporting sponsorship from the Trinidad & Tobago Film Company, the Ministry of Arts and Multiculturalism, the Tourism Development Corporation, the Tobago House of Assembly and the National Gas Company.

ttff/12 Screening on Campus