Best Indian Language
Motion Picture
Here it is, the
biggie.
Whether it is at
home or around the world, today slowly and steadily Indian cinema is gaining a
grand reputation beyond conventions yet within the bounds of what is
authentically Indian.
Visaranai went to
the Oscars, though it did not crack the final rounds; it gained nice traction
and mileage
Chauthi Koot has
become a celebrated film at festivals around the world including the Mumbai
Film Festival in 2015 [where I managed to catch it]
Equally lauded was
Kannada piece Thithi which ended up finally confirming the fact that the winds
of change are high on Sandalwood cinema.
Kammatipadam was a
bumper hit and a huge showcase was made about it beyond the south, with star
actor Dulquer Salman looking like a future prospect of Indian cinema in
general.
Cinemawala reminds
us that even though the heyday may have passed long ago, there still is rich
content and talent in Bengali cinema looking to thrive.
Netflix tapped into
the English language Indian market bringing out a fun side to the obscure Q
with Brahman Naman
Finally Sairat
dominated the box office, where Hollywood constantly trumped big Hindi projects
with little substance, Sairat turned out to be a dark horse gem that changed
and propelled the face of Marathi cinema.
Each of these films,
different languages but one unified thought; they were all great pieces of
cinema.
So enough of their
praise, and now onto more praise. But before that, some honourable mentions...
Maheshinte
Prathikaram [Malyalam]-I missed this one just by a whisker, viewing it just
after the nominees were announced. I wont say which of this or Kammatipadam is
better, but this was a fun mystery film with Fahad Fasil giving a stellar lead
turn.
Iraivi [Tamil]-The
also ran, I've said enough on this film so let's just move on.
Ventilator
[Marathi]-Family dysfunction isn't reserved for just Hindi cinema, in Priyanka
Chopra's maiden venture; a family comes together when their eldest member
suffers a stroke and is put on a ventilator. Hilarious without a fault and
absolutely wonderfully woven characters.
There is more I'm
sure, but this is all for now.
So onto the
nominees...
Prem Menon for Kammatipaadam
[Malayalam]
Rajeev Ravi's
thrilling Kammatipaadam is a multi layered film charting the evolution of
Ernakulum from a small rural collective to the concrete jungle it is today.
How did it become
so?
Well according to
the film, empires are built on the bodies of the subjugated and Ernakulum was
created from the blood of hapless
dalits; ironically being threatened by their own naive/blindly obedient kind.
At the center might
be the upper caste protagonist Krishnan and his search for his missing friend
in this structured maze, but the films real focus and show stealers are the
suffering dark skinned dalits and their complete degradation and dissension
into the bestial as represented by Ganga.
The torn friendship
between the two a point of heady contention, the romantic entanglements and
even the slight darkly comic vibe all add up to a slow burning and time hopping
film that manages to entertain, educate and enthrall into its intoxicating snare.
Dhanush and Vetrimaaran
for Visaranai [Tamil]
At it's most
conventional yet experimental, Visaranai is a sign that cinema need not cater
to each side of the equation exclusively, especially Indian cinema.
A film that relays
the sense of desperation but heroism in underdog protagonists, the leader of
the pack in a touching romantic sub plot and more importantly with multi-layered supporting characters on both
sides of their equation.
Yet the film is
never conventional, instead with a distinct mirror structure between two halves
that are vaguely similar yet account for character progression and a film
assemble into a cinematic treat of visuals and action;
Visaranai becomes
the best of both worlds.
Kartikeya Narayan Singh for Chauthi Koot [Punjabi]
With Chauthi Koot,
there is a proof that there is Punjabi cinema beyond the conventional
comedy/romantic movies or the ocassional melodrama.
Instead in the
fourth direction [pun intended] we find cinema that addresses the wounds of a
broken Punjab of the past, with intimacy and honesty. The take on a post Blue
Star Operation Punjab is filled with an atmospheric mood of tension and
paranoia.
It seeps itself into
the smallest of corners, turning itself into a simplistic play of dilemma as
protagonist Joginder must consider the safety of his family amidst a broken
fearful mind and against his innocent howling dog, he has to forcefully put
down.
Haunting at its
finest and poignant when the film stalls and lets the audience immerse into the
tense world of fear.
Pratap Reddy and Sunmin
Park for Thithi [Kannada]
With its documentary
like guerrilla approach, Thithi becomes more of an examination of life
ironically during the rituals of post-death than a cinematic piece.
With a dozen or so
[not] quirky rather real yet funny set of characters, Thithi explores the idea
of a fractured communion and the generation gap within a village in stasis
through its three protagonists all of a progressive generation in a family.
The film isn't about
the family as it is about the dysfunctionality within them and the way the
world of the film is crafted, it envelopes you into an adventure that may seem
stagnant but is exposing the viewer to a world view and a way of living.
A way of living,
again on the throes of death. Poetry.
Steve Barron, John
Herbert and Celine Loop for Brahman Naman [English]
Brahman Naman is the
funniest comedy of the year hands down.
Hilarious to a fault
with its idiotic genius lead characters, completely sexually charged. However
what could have been a coming of age piece that paid back to its characters
evolutions from slimy sleazeballs with double the brain into honest good men turns
into a meta reflection that neither lets them win nor judges them.
Instead the Brahman,
Naman ends up back in his bubble of superiority turning into a hilarious
examination of youthful exuberance and sexual drive without putting the
protagonists and characters through any kind of exam, apart from the quiz
contest.
It's just good
harmful fun.
Nittin Keni and Nikhil
Sane for Sairat [Marathi]
Revelling in the
conventions of Indian Romantic cinema yet purposefully baiting you and then
pulling out the rug from underneath, Sairat leaves one with a lump in the
throat and a stark message to the horrors of the caste system as well as honour
killing.
The film starts
light, sucking you into its youthful romance; the kind you've either seen or
felt around you, enhanced by stunning music that echoes the glories of Indian
cinema as well as flowing the story forward into a river of darkness.
As reality hits,
convention goes out the window and Nagraj Manjule creates the very film he is
comfortable; raw, grungy, real and with consequences. Yet in the end romance
wins out and then it loses again.
The see-saw ride is
an example of why Sairat is Wild, it's about the wildness of love, of rebellion
and of family and with it of a system that still haunts the innocence of India
to this day.
Shrikant Mohta and Mahendra Soni for Cinemawala
[Bengali]
It's ironic that it
takes a stellar film of a modern make and even cinematic outlook to cry and rue
about the loss of the art of cinema; in it's aesthetic and more importantly
technology.
Probably the most
aptly titled film of the year, Cinemawala becomes an examination of the
burdened egos that clash between an inevitable future of cinema [whether good
or bad, legal or illegal; it doesn't judge explicitly] and the glorious past of
films.
Movie going used to
be such a grand moment, a festival of sorts and Cinemawala captures that very
same notion with a tinge of a fractured dichotomy and at its centre a father
and son; separated by a generation gap, yet more importantly by the realities of
life [the son, seeing cinema as an objective tool to success by hook or crook]
and the grandeur of movies [a father, lost in time; stuck with the idea of
rusting tools of movie making and screening of old].
It's a tale of
heart, relationships, morals and the passion for movies that is imbibed by
generation after generation no matter in which form and how.
And the Winner is...
Dhanush and Vetrimaaran for Visaranai!!!
As a bonus, this years finest films from an overall standpoint have come from Tamil cinema, so glory glory.
Visaranai wins its fourth award to secure the best picture win. Not to take anything away from the other films and winners...here is the list;
Movie
|
Nominations
|
Wins
|
Visaranai
|
6
|
4
|
Sairat
|
6
|
2
|
Iraivi
|
10
|
1
|
Brahman Naman
|
7
|
1
|
Chauthi Koot
|
4
|
1
|
Cinemawala
|
4
|
1
|
Kammatipaadam
|
6
|
0
|
Thithi
|
3
|
0
|
Natsamrat
|
2
|
0
|
Amma Kannaku
|
2
|
0
|
Irudhi Suttru
|
2
|
0
|
And so there are the Indian Language awards.
Up Next: To the ensemble and the breakthrough's...a mix of nominees and surprise winners.
'Nuff Said,
Aneesh Raikundalia
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