Bhubaneswar Film Festival: Packed Audiences Lap Up Classical Odia Movies On Day 1

Bhubaneswar: Odia film lovers made a beeline for Jayadev Bhawan where the three-day Bhubaneswar Film Festival (BFF) kicked off on Friday.

The maiden screening at the exclusive Odia festival was ‘Maya Miriga’, by Nirad Mahapatra.

Four other nationally and internationally acclaimed movies followed — ‘Chha Mana Atha Guntha’ by Parbati Ghose, ‘Bhija Matira Swarga’ by Manmohan Mahapatra, ‘Hello Arsi’ by Sambit Mohanty and ‘Remembering Promod Pati’ by Films Division.

There was a full house for the Odia classics with the audience at Jayadev Bhawan showing great enthusiasm.

BFF, hosted under the banner of Bhubaneswar Film Circle, brought together a distinguished lineup from the Odia and Mumbai film fraternity for the formal inaugural ceremony in the evening.

“We’ve been discussing the importance of culture, and cinema as undeniably the most powerful tool humans have ever created to express. Cinema is a medium that allows us to showcase the very best of our cultural heritage, and that’s something we need to celebrate continuously. Thus, a crucial balance should be maintained between the commercial and cultural aspects of cinema,” said renowned director Ketan Mehta, who was the chief guest.

Director Prashanta Nanda, cinematographer and director A K Bir, actor and producer Deepa Sahi, actor and director of National School of Drama (NSD) Chittaranjan Tripathy were among others present at the opening ceremony.

“Indian cinema, especially the regional industries will thrive only when the people visit theatres to watch films. This love by the audience will not only support filmmakers to come up with good cinemas but also boast the entire entertainment ecosystem,” said Tripathy.

Veteran personalities like actress Namrata Das, cinematographer Surendra Sahu, music director Mohammad Mushir, lyricist Sachi Mohanty and make-up Artist Samaresh Pal were felicitated for their enormous contribution to Odia film industry, as was Bollywood director Amit Rai.

A scholarly publication titled ‘Odia Cinema@90’ was launched on the occasion. The collection of essays, written bilingually, explores different aspects of Odia filmmaking covering nine decades since its beginning in 1936.