Marathi short film ‘Arjun’ wins first prize
In order to offer opportunities to new film makers, Planet Marathi had organized ‘Planet Marathi Short Film Festival’ ( PMSFF) recently. This festival had received a very good response with 1600 entries. Out of which five short films were selected for awards. The judges of this competition were Sanjay Jadhav, Mrunal Kulkarni, Kiran Yadnyopavit, Nikhil Mahajan and Sarvesh Parab.
Madhuban Film’s ‘Arjun’ bagged the first prize comprising of Rs. 5 lakhs. The second prize of Rs. 3 lakhs was awarded to ‘Arjun’s story’ made by Rakhadi Sudios, while the third prize of Rs. 2 lakhs went to Rakhadi Studios ‘Avanti’. The consolation prizes of Rs. 50,000/- were awarded to Rakhadi Studios’ ‘Abhi- Anu’ and Rs. 30,000/- ‘ Amar Gore and Akbar Sayyad’s short film ‘Aatman’.
Planet Marathi founder Mr. Akshay Bardapurkar expressed his happiness for the overwhelming response received from new film makers for this short film festival, which was organized by them for the first time. “All the films were well presented with variety of subjects and had very good artistes. So, it was a difficult task for the judges to shortlist five films . But, they did their job very well,” he said.
Poster of timely short film ‘Sankraman ‘ unveiled
Today is the time of digital world. Most of the people sitting at home are watching web series, instead of watching old serials and films, for their entertainment. Even short films are finding good viewership, as in a shortest time these films are able to convey a message very effectively. In fact the makers of short films are very creative people as they try to cover the happenings around us in a simple way. And this is the strength of a short film.
Kavya Dream Movies and Ms. Kiran Ningurkar are presenting one such timely short film suitably titled ‘Sankraman’, which talks about the dangers of corona virus. The film has actually shown how corona virus is spread giving an example of a youngster approaching a senior citizen in the neighbourhood for contribution to community Ganapati festival celebration. The film will be released soon on OTT platform and stars Pradeep Kadu, Pratish Sonavane, Sunil Jadhav, Aniket kadu, Ashok Kadu, Praveen kadu and Ashish Ningurkar.
Vijay Kamble will be making his debut in direction through this film, while the script is written by Ashish Ningurkar. Camera by Siddhesh Dalvi and editing by Vijay kamble are the other credits. The poster of this film is designed by Sumedh Gaikwad.
‘Chitrafit’ – Will the bold hold good in Marathi?
Rating: ★★ ½
Studio / Presenter: Jafraan Films Producer: Rahul Borse, Abdul Aarasi Writer, Director: Diwakar Vishwanath Ghodke Music Composers: Yug Bhusal Cinematographer: Sachin Kabir Cast: Ashish Pathode, Seema Azmi, Vipul Patil, Ravi Patwardhan, Gauri Shankar, Shefali Maydeo, Dansing Rajput, Meenal Chirankar, Nerav Soni, Mahesh Rale, Sachin Kabir Movie Review by: Ulhas Shirke |
Marilyn Monroe once said, “Sex is a part of nature. I go along with nature.” Based on this philosophy, producers Rahul Borse, Abdul R.C., Somnath Devkar and Jeevan Patil, perhaps thought of producing this Marathi film ‘Chitrafit- 3.0 Megapixel’ and with the help of writer, director and editor Diwakar Vishwanath Ghodke, they gave a cinematic form to this subject. But, care was taken to pass a social message, by cautioning the young girls, about the hidden cameras, which could capture their private life, even in the mountain forest , during a trek.
Set on the backdrop of a picturesque hilly area called Parini , the film literally takes you on a trek to a adivasi village housed on a mountain and in search of ancient caves located on the top of the mountain . So, you feel, as if you are also travelling along with Shavla (Seema Azmi) a visiting young anthropology student and Sandesh (Ashish Pathode) a fine arts student, who is her guide cum escort. In between their journey, the director gives a hint that every movement of Shavla is being captured, through a hidden camera.
Then we notice Sandesh and Shavla reaching their first destination, for a brief halt at a adivasi village. Here, we notice a typical Hindi film scene of 60s and 70s film, with Shavla dressing up as an adivasi girl and enjoying their group dance and even a drink. The film’s screenplay proceeds further, with Shavla and Sandesh reaching their final destination i.e. the ancient cave with stone carvings and paintings. It is at this place, we come to know the real game plan of sandesh. Perhaps, the use of ‘date rape drug’ (DRD) , mixed with her drink, makes it easy for him.
It is only after few days , while working on her laptop, Shavla discovers her own nude film on a social networking site. Though Sandesh happens to be her distant relative and a friend on social networking site, she informs the police and gets him arrested, for this heinous crime. But, the question that remains in our mind, is whether any young girl would dare to spend a night at an isolated place, in the company of a boy, whom she doesn’t know well ?
‘Chitrafit- 3.0 Megapixel’ is actually a short film, with a message. And, with the above mentioned story of Sandesh and Shavla, it would have ended in 60 to 70 minutes. But, the director perhaps thought of adding few porno film scenes into it, to indicate the ‘blue film’ business of Sandesh and his modus operandi, trapping new girls, to make such films and sell them to overseas buyers at a big price. It is in the concluding part, the film looks like a typical Porn film. No wonder, it has received ‘A’ certification.
There was enough scope for the director to pay attention on Shavla taking revenge in a different way. But, that did not happen. The arrest of Sandesh by Special branch Police, is shown in just one short concluding scene, in this 84 minute length film. Both Ashish Pathode and Seema Azmi have performed their roles convincingly. Ashish is recently seen in Zee Marathi’s serial ‘Ka Re Durava’ in a character role. Hence, a familiar face, while we have seen Seema as one of the girls in the hockey team of ‘Chak De India!’. She is basically from NSD and a stage artist. This was her bold debut in Marathi films. Her voice has been dubbed in Marathi by some one else.
Wonderful camera work, Excellent sound design and superb back ground music add value to this film. This is a first bold attempt in Marathi on this subject. So, it remains to be seen, whether the ‘bold will hold good’ in Marathi?