Latest news with #KolkataInternationalFilmFestival
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Coming to Kolkata feels like coming to my mother's place: Kajol
Kolkata is abuzz with Bollywood star Kajol's arrival. She is in the city to promote her upcoming film. On Thursday morning, fans and devotees alike were delighted to catch a glimpse of the actress as she visited Dakshineswar Temple. Embodying grace and traditional elegance, Kajol was spotted in a beautiful peach-pink saree, perfectly blending devotion with her signature charm. Her visit to the iconic temple marks a spiritual start to her promotional tour, adding a touch of serene beauty to the vibrant city. While interacting with the media the actress said, 'I love coming to Kolkata. Whenever I am here, it feels like I have come to my mother's place. ' The actress's visit underscores the deep connection she has consistently displayed with Kolkata, a city with which she shares strong familial ties through her Bengali heritage. Her visits, whether for film promotions like Salaam Venky and Helicopter Eela , or as a guest at events like the Kolkata International Film Festival , have always been marked by her warmth and candid affection for the city. One step to a healthier you—join Times Health+ Yoga and feel the change
Pink Villa
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
'Achi film aap dabbe mein rakhoge': Kennedy's Rahul Bhat is disappointed over delay in film's release; calls it Anurag Kashyap's 'love letter' to city
It has been quite a long time since Anurag Kashyap's Kennedy has been awaiting its release. The noir thriller screened at the Cannes 2023 features Rahul Bhat and Sunny Leone in the lead roles. Despite significant acclaim, the film continues to face a delay in its release and reflecting on the same Bhat recently expressed his disappointment. Rahul Bhat is currently attending Cannes Film Festival 2025 for the third time. He is there to unveil the first look of his Hollywood debut film, Lost and Found in Kumbh. While speaking with Sucharita Tyagi, Rahul Bhat also talked about his delayed release, Kennedy, directed by Anurag Kashyap. He reflected on the love their film has received, he remembered thousands of people clapping in Mumbai's Mahim during the screening. Despite lathi charge, he shared people attended Kolkata International Film Festival because somehow people wanted to watch it. He expressed his disappointment, noting how studios don't understand this aspect. "Log bolte hain achi filmein banate nahin hain, toh jab achi film aap dabbe mein rakhoge to kya hoga(People complain they don't make good films but when good films would be canceled then what will happen)? I can't understand what does it take to wake up some people," he said. The Black Warrant actor pointed out how Kennedy is one of the most travelled films all over the world. He cited names of the countries including Toronto, Australia and New York Film Festival being the latest one where he has been nominated. Bhat remembered people from NYFF telling him that it was a houseful. He further admitted feeling disheartened and sad about the delay as he further hoped for people to see it. According to him, noir-thriller is a "quintessential" Anurag Kashyap film. "It is you know uski jo mohabbat hai usko is city se mohabbat, vo jo uska ek nazar hai ek uska point of view hai city ka (It is his love for this city and his point of view of this city) and Kennedy is also one of the point of views Anurag's you know... it's a love letter to the city," he further added. On a concluding note, Bhat shared that he has heard the film will be released soon.
The Hindu
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Director Bhaskhar Maurya: ‘Muthayya' was born out of my fear
'I believed that my film would find its audience even if it took time,' says Bhaskhar Maurya, who has written and directed the Telugu indie film Muthayya. The film, which will stream on ETV Win from May 1, narrates the story of a 70-year-old man from rural Telangana with a long-cherished dream of seeing himself as an actor on the large screen. Call it serendipity, but the rather painstaking wait of this film, which began its journey in 2022 to reach its audience resonates with the film's story and tagline, 'it is never too late to dream big'. Muthayya, headlined by Sudhakar Reddy of Balagam fame, was filmed in and around Wanaparthy in Telangana. Produced by Hylife Entertainments and Fictionary Entertainment, the film was shot at a stretch in 15 days, starring several locals in supporting parts. Soon after its completion in early 2022, Muthayya premiered at the UK Asian Film Festival in London. It won the best feature film in Indian languages at the Kolkata International Film Festival. Bhaskhar bagged the award for best debut director at the Meta Film Fest, Dubai. The makers also won the best feature film jury award at the Indic Film Utsav. The seed for Muthayya was sown when Bhaskhar, who had chased filmmaking dreams in Hyderabad, returned home to Wanaparthy. 'I noticed people making reels and short films using their mobile phones and uploading them on YouTube and social media. They were not trained in filmmaking, but that did not dampen their enthusiasm.' Bhaskhar learnt about a few natives who nurtured dreams of a career in cinema but never made it, consumed by responsibilities at home. The thought that Bhaskhar could also end up like one of them, burying his directorial dreams, gnawed at him. He channeled that fear into writing a story of realising one's dreams, age no bar. 'Muthayya stemmed from the fear that I might end up growing old, without becoming a director. I wanted to make an entertaining film, not arthouse cinema.' Bhaskhar wrote the screenplay, since he did not have resources to pay anyone else. Once done with the first draft, he narrated the story to friends and used the feedback to finetune the screenplay. Hailing from a family of teachers, Bhaskhar pursued a diploma course in acting and direction at the Roshan Taneja School of Acting in Hyderabad. 'I learnt the basics,' he says, adding, 'I could not afford the fee at other larger film schools.' Armed with the diploma, in 2012-13, he tried to make inroads into Telugu cinema as an assistant director, in vain. Returning to Wanaparthy, he was amused by the emerging short film culture. Drawing from his knowledge gained at the film school, he began making short films. Bhaskhar also collaborated with his friends who were working on independent films, and spent the next three years learning screenwriting and script development. 'I had not paid enough attention to the writing process at the film school. I realised its importance when I ventured out on my own.' When Bhaskhar approached producers with the script of Muthayya, even those who liked the story wanted to tweak it to make it more commercially viable. Bhaskhar did not want to dilute the essence of the story. 'Ultimately I found the right producers — Vamsi Karumanchi, Vrinda Prasad and Hemanth Kumar — who gave me 100% creative freedom.' Cinematographer Divakar Mani, music composer Karthik Rodriguez, editor Sai Murali and sound designer Vamsi Priya Rasineni came on board. Bhaskhar says in gratitude, 'One cannot make this kind of authentic cinema without the right people.' Actors were chosen through auditions. Incidentally, Sudhakar Reddy's knowledge of Telugu theatre and some of his personality traits came in handy for his character portrayal. 'Arun Raj who was cast as his younger friend, Malli, is a native of a village in Mahbubnagar. His body language and dialogue delivery were apt for the character. We chose Mounica, Poorna and others through auditions. We wanted people who would be in sync with the film's setting.' Bhaskhar spent several days rehearsing with the actors and discussing the technical aspects with the crew. 'Divakar Mani is among the best cinematographers and was a boon to our film. We decided to shoot in Wanaparthy and nearby villages since it was familiar terrain for me.' After a location recce, the team began filming Muthayya during early monsoon in 2021. 'We had overcast weather conditions throughout, but it did not pour. Thanks to the rehearsals and good coordination in the crew, we completed filming in 15 days, as against the 25 days we had planned,' says Bhaskar. With the sound engineer, he also ensured that the film reflects the authenticity of the region, with ambient sounds. The real test began once the film was completed. Digital platforms that were until then open to smaller films, began changing their pattern of acquisition. The film's release fate hung in balance, and Bhaskhar moved on to take up more work. 'By then, several people in the film industry had heard about Muthayya and there was respect for the team.' Bhaskhar then directed the web series Sivarapalle, the Telugu adaptation of Panchayat, for Amazon Prime Video. Next, he is writing a film that is to be made on a larger scale for theatrical release.
