Opening Film Saand Ki Aankh is an excellent piece on women empowerment: Jury, Indian Panorama

Goa:17/1/21; At the ongoing 51st edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, the Chairperson of the Feature Films, Jury of Indian Panorama Shri John Mathew Matthan, Chairperson of Indian Panorama, Non-Feature Films Haobam Paban Kumar, and Jury Member Feature Films, Jadumoni Dutta along with other jury members participated in a press conference today in Goa.

“I thank the Government of India and Directorate of Film festivals for holding IFFI-51 even amid the pandemic situation. There were 180 films (of which 20 films were selected under feature films) and it was an enormous task for every Jury member. However the films were selected unanimously without any dispute”, said John Mathew Matthan.

The Feature Jury comprises 12 Members who individually represent various acclaimed films, film bodies, and professions, whereas collectively representing the diverse Indian film making fraternity:

While speaking about the entries received under Non-feature films, Haobam Paban Kumar, Chairperson, Non-Feature Films mentioned that “the festival had very few documentaries when compared to previous years. The only thing lacking this time was there were very few documentaries and more short films.” Mr. Paban Kumar suggested to change the term Non-Feature film category to Documentary and Short Films, and also insisted that the documentaries are very important.

“Under Non-Feature film section, 20 out of 143 films were selected for screening. It was so fun working with all jury members and I never felt exhausted,” he added.

He also stated that there are many young filmmakers this year. “More than 60-70 people are new filmmakers which is a good sign. Even the opening film, Saand Ki Aankh, is also made by a young filmmaker.”

The Jury members, when asked about choosing ‘Saand Ki Aankh’ by Tushar Hiranandani as the opening film of Indian Panorama, stated that the film has a number of aspects that touched the heart of the Jury. The member also appreciated the music, Cinematography, Editing and the script that made it to be chosen unanimously as the opening film. Also, the film is set in the backdrop of a village where women are restricted to go out of their homes, who eventually break all barriers to achieve big in life. The Jury member also mentioned that this movie is a great encouragement to women not only in villages but also in urban centers. Choreographer and Jury Member-feature Films, Kala Master appreciated the entire crew of Saand Ki Aankh.

Filmmaker and Journalist and also one of the Jury members, Sanghamitra Chaudhuri, lauded the efforts of debutant film directors (of IFFI-51) who have come up with contemporary ideas.

Gujarati film Paanchika by Ankit Kothari is the opening film in the Indian Panorama Non-feature section

All Jury members of the Indian Panorama thanked the Government of India and the Directorate of Film Festivals for conducting the 51st IFFI even amid the pandemic situation.

“All films were selected unanimously for IFFI-51”

Following are the members of the Indian Panorama – Feature Films:

1. Dominic Sangma, Filmmaker, and Screenwriter
2. Jadumoni Dutta, Filmmaker, Screenwriter, and Producer
3. Kala Master, Choreographer
4. Kumar Sohoni, Filmmaker and writer
5. Rama Vij, Actor and Producer
6. Ramamurthy B, Filmmaker
7. Sanghamitra Chaudhuri, Filmmaker, and Journalist
8. Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan, Filmmaker
9. Satinder Mohan, Film Critic, and Journalist
10. Sudhakar Vasantha, Filmmaker, and Producer
11. T Prasanna Kumar, Film Producer
12. U Radhakrishnan, Ex-Secretary, FFSI

“We need more documentaries”

Following are the Jury members of Indian Panorama – Non-feature films:

1. Atul Gangwar, Director, Screenwriter, and Producer
2. Jwngdao Bodosa, Filmmaker
3. Mandar Talauliker, Filmmaker
4. Sajin Babu, Filmmaker
5. Satish Pande, Producer and Director
6. Vaijayanti Apte, Scriptwriter, and Producer