Latest news with #AbilityFEST2025
New Indian Express
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Now Showing: Movies for all with audio descriptions
The waves crash against the shore as a small boat scrapes onto the sand. Dharmadas helps his wife, Vasanthi, and their two sons, Nithushan and Mulli, onto the unfamiliar beach. The air smells of salt and damp earth. Behind them lies Valvettithurai as a memory now. Ahead, Rameswaram and a sense of hope. This opening scene in Tourist Family, a Tamil film, was screened with audio description at AbilityFEST2025 in Chennai. It is rich with mood and movement, which most of us can easily understand — with wholesome visuals, emotions, and sounds. But what happens when someone can't see the screen? Or hear the nuance in a voice? After watching a movie, many cinema buffs share thoughts about it the moment they walk out of the theatre. They post Instagram stories, write reviews on Letterboxd, or talk about it with friends. But for many Persons with Disabilities (PwD), even this basic connection to a story — the joy of reacting to a scene or simply followingwhat's going on — depends on something far more fundamental: access.
The Hindu
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
AbilityFEST2025 draws to an emotional close with Sitaare Zameen Par
The air buzzed with anticipation, eyes on the entrance, waiting for the stars to arrive. But these are not your typical red carpet regulars – they were the young athletes from Sitare Zameen Par, the breakout hit that's taken the country by storm. Backed by Aamir Khan Productions, the film about neurodivergent children discovering their strength through sport (basketball here) has garnered a lot of love and affection from the audience and critics alike. The film is known to have opened up vital conversations about inclusion and ability, where the young cast now shines as a beacon of resilience and a new kind of heroism. Screened at PVR-INOX Sathyam Cinemas recently, Sitare Zameen Par was the final screening for AbilityFEST2025, presented by Ability Foundation. Present at the screening were the director, RS Prasanna, writer Divy Nidhi Sharma, and co-producer Aparna Purohit. In conversation with the festival chairperson, Revathy, Prasanna spoke about how this film was 'more than a movie,' that it 'goes beyond the constructs of a movie and goes to the heart'. The most poignant moment was when he asked the parents of the stars to stand up, addressing them as the 'real stars.' He spoke about how, because of them, the cast were already primed with talent, and the filmmakers merely 'did our bit, you know, like coaches do.' Adapted from a Spanish movie called Campeones, writer Divy Nidhi spoke of how the team tried to keep the emotional core of the original film intact, but also Indianise it for the audience. 'We are often asked how it was to work with these actors, and I would like to put it on record that this is the most focussed, most disciplined bunch we have ever worked with,' he further added. The event also saw the announcement of the winners of the '60 Seconds to Fame!' All-India one-minute film competition on disability. This year's theme, 'Through Your Lens: A Celebration of Disability Inclusion,' inspired a range of creative responses. The 17 shortlisted films were screened throughout the four-day festival from July 7 to 10. The best film was handed to The Menu by filmmaker Nikita Konari, which showed how braille menus can be introduced to make eateries more accessible.
The Hindu
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
AbilityFEST 2025 to conclude on Thursday
The AbilityFEST 2025-India International Disability Film Festival will come to an end on Thursday with the screening of Sitaare Zameen Par. The four-day film festival showcased a number of award-winning short films, documentaries, and features from around the world. AbilityFEST 2025 featured short film, documentaries and feature films from 11 countries by and about people with disabilities. The winners of '60 Seconds to Fame!' an all-India one-minute film competition on disability held by the Ability Foundation will be awarded on Thursday. The one minute film competition aimed to encourage people to think creatively about disability in just one minute. The theme this year was 'Through your lens: A celebration of disability inclusion'. The winning entries from '60 Seconds to Fame! will be screened, followed by a session with festival chairperson Revathy, R.S. Prasanna, director of Sitaare Zameen Par, Divy Nidhi Sharma, writer of Sitaare Zameen Par with the basketball athletes featured in the film. The film festival also featured the screening of the Tamil film Tourist Family with audio description for the blind, alongside Hindi film Ahaan. International titles at the fest include films from Italy, the Netherlands, Mongolia, the U.K., Iran, the U.S., and Poland. On Wednesday, a discussion with Revathy with the director of Ahaan, Nikhil Pherwani was also held.
