Catch a screening of a restored classic at the iconic Regal cinema this week

Walk down Colaba Causeway and the Art Deco influences on the faccedilades of Regal cinema are impossible to miss Once the heart of glamorous premieres of films by Dev Anand to Raj Kapoor it is among the last bastions for lovers of the singlescreen cinema experience This week its interiors will rewind time as they host forgotten films now restored and screened for a new generationldquoYou might never have another chance to watch Raging Bull or In The Mood For Love on the big screen like thisrdquo shares Shivendra Singh Dungarpur filmmaker and founder Film Heritage Foundation The foundation is hosting a weeklong workshop alongside these screenings on the art of film restoration and preservation Several of the films being screened at the event are products of restoration effortsA moment from the silent film Behula at the screeningAmong them is the 101yearold silent film Behula directed by Camille Legrand in 1921 featuring Indiarsquos first female superstar Patience Cooper The film which was screened on Monday has an interesting connection to the city Dungarpur reveals ldquoThe producer of the film was Parsi magnate JF Madan who moved from Bombay to Calcutta and made films based on stories from Parsi theatrerdquo he says The film was discovered and restored by the Foundation Jeacuterocircme SeydouxPatheacute in France and will return to the country for the first time since its screening days in the 1920sEach show will be preceded by an introduction that will detail the filmrsquos context role and the restoration efforts that went into it The seventh edition of the workshop is being held in the city for the first time since it was launched in 2015 This edition includes courses on photograph and film conservation and object restoration among others under the supervision of experts from the Academy and the Metropolitan Museum of Art New York Dungarpur adds that this time the workshops are scheduled to take place across the art and cultural precinct of South Mumbai with the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya CMSVS and KR Cama Institute as the chosen venuesFrom left Dr Yusuf Hamied chairman of Cipla actor Boman Irani and lyricist Gulzar at the opening session Pics CourtesyFilm Heritage FoundationBut for film lovers Regal should be the place to be The cinema will host a series of five films over the week including G Aravindanrsquos Thamp 1978 Martin Scorsesersquos Raging Bull 1980 Vittorio Storarorsquos Il Conformista 1970 Wong Kar Wairsquos In The Mood For Love 2000The opportunity is rarer still since the event has a free firstcomefirstserve offer for the screenings Recalling his own experience of watching classics on the big screen in London and New York Dungarpur says ldquoThe idea is to create an alternative for people to watch classic films on the big screen Even if there are 10 people who wish to watch they should not be denied the joyrdquoShivendra Singh DungarpurEvidence supports his theory The foundation recently ran a successful experiment of screening a retrospective of Amitabh Bachchan films to great success and is replicating it with a similar one on Dilip Kumarrsquos films as well at select theatres ldquoThere is nothing called an old film It is how you present and curate the listrdquo the filmmaker addsThe hallrsquos projection was calibrated and upgraded for the purpose along with a refurbishment of its seats for the event Dungarpur says ldquoRegal has an oldstyle screen with a larger aspect ratio It is a temple for cinemardquo he notes The opening ceremony last Sunday saw actor Boman Irani and directorlyricist Gulzar among others attend a screening of The Beatlesrsquo classic A Hard Dayrsquos Night 1964 at the theatre The actor Dungarpur reveals was sentimental ldquoIrani recalled how it was at Regal that he would watch films including A Hard Dayrsquos Nightrdquo he says For once the sentimental in this writer would choose to agree After all can you ever go wrong with a Wong Kar Wai story to destress on a weekdayTill December 10 630 pm onwardsAt Screenings Regal cinema SBS Marg ColabaLog on to filmheritagefoundation or filmheritagefoundationcoin