Gurvinder Singh's tribute to Mani Kaul

A film on the plight of Indian farmers, which won three National Awards last year, will finally see a release in the city. Director Gurvinder Singh's debut project Anhe Ghore Da Daan (AGDD) has been screen at various international film festivals. The film has received NFDC's active support and is being dedicated to the late auteur Mani Kaul.

Gurvinder feels that with the rising multiplexes, smaller theatres are becoming more and more obsolete. "For films such as ours, we need an alternate pattern of film distribution. In Europe and America, they have a parallel setup for non-mainstream cinema," he says.u00a0The reason why it took so long to release is because the film had been travelling across the globe, being screened in various cities. However, the director of the film thinks that bagging the National Award was a great fillip.

On why the project is dedicated to the memory of Mani Kaul, Gurvinder highlights the fact that the late filmmaker was his mentor as well as the creative producer of the film. He further adds, "Just two months after his passing away, AGDD became the first Punjabi film to be showcased at Venice Film Festival. His loss shall always be felt, so the dedication is but natural."

Nina Lath Gupta of NFDC points out that the language is immaterial when the story is universal. "This film portrays the problems faced by Indian farmers as well as the landlords in the outskirts of Punjab. But the conditions could well be the same in any other state. It resonates with our current situation," she notes.u00a0