Kannada cinema, also known as Sandalwood, or Chandana Chitra, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Kannada language widely spoken in the state of Karnataka. The 1934 film Sati Sulochana directed by Y. V. Rao was the first talkie film in the Kannada language. It was also the first film starring Subbaiah Naidu and Tripuramba, and was the first motion picture screened in the erstwhile Mysore Kingdom. The film was produced by Chamanlal Doongaji, who in 1932 founded South India Movietone in Bangalore.
Shyam Benegal is an Indian film director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker. Often regarded as the pioneer of parallel cinema, he is widely considered as one of the greatest filmmakers post 1970s. He has received several accolades, including eighteen National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award and a Nandi Award. In 2005, he was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India's highest award in the field of cinema. In 1976, he was honoured by the Government of India with the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian honour of the country, and in 1991, he was awarded Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian honour for his contributions in the field of arts.
Sooni Taraporevala is an Indian screenwriter, photographer and filmmaker who is the screenwriter of Mississippi Masala, The Namesake and Oscar-nominated Salaam Bombay! (1988), all directed by Mira Nair. She also adapted Rohinton Mistry's novel Such A Long Journey(2000) wrote the films Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar her directorial debut Little Zizou as well as her latest film Yeh Ballet (2020) A Netflix Original that she wrote and directed.
Dev Benegal is an Indian filmmaker and screenwriter, most known for his debut film English, August (1994), which won the Best Feature Film in English at the 42nd National Film Awards.
Kavery Kaul, formerly known as Kavery Dutta, is an American filmmaker, born in India. Her directing and producing credits include Back Walking Forward, Long Way from Home, Cuban Canvas, One Hand Don’t Clap, and First Look.
Today's Special is a 2009 independent comedy film loosely inspired by Aasif Mandvi's play, Sakina's Restaurant. The film was directed by David Kaplan. The script was adapted by Aasif Mandvi and Jonathan Bines, and stars Mandvi, Madhur Jaffrey, Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah, Jess Weixler, Harish Patel, Kevin Corrigan, Dean Winters, and Ajay Naidu. The film was developed and produced by Nimitt Mankad of Inimitable Pictures, and Lillian LaSalle of Sweet 180.
The Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC) is an American non-profit cultural organization that promotes Indian theatre, art, film, fashion, music, dance, and literature in the United States. The Council was established in 1998 in New York City and is headed by Aroon Shivdasani. IAAC hosts cultural and artistic events throughout the year, including the annual New York Indian Film Festival, which showcases Indian and diaspora-related films.
Shonali Bose is an Indian film director, writer and film producer. Having made her feature film debut in 2005, she has since won such accolades as a National Film Award, a Bridgestone Narrative Award, and a Sundance Mahindra Global Filmmaker Award.
Kanaala Nanjunda Tirumala Sastry was an Indian film critic, screenwriter, director, littérateur, and producer, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He has garnered six National Film Awards, three Nandi Awards and three International honors.
Thiladaanam is a 2000 Indian Telugu-language drama film, written, and directed by film-critic K. N. T. Sastry in his debut directorial, based on the story by Rentala Nageswara Rao. The film features H. G. Dattatreya, Brahmaji, Tanikella Bharani, and Jaya Seal in pivotal roles.
Ship of Theseus is a 2012 Indian drama film written and directed by Anand Gandhi, and produced by actor Sohum Shah. The film explores "questions of identity, justice, beauty, meaning and death through the stories of an experimental photographer, an ailing monk and an enterprising stockbroker", played by Aida El-Kashef, Neeraj Kabi and Sohum Shah.
The Ladakh International Film Festival (LIFF) is an international film festival that is held annually in Ladakh, India. Inaugurated in 2012, it is the first international film festival to be held in Ladakh. It is held in the Himalayan town of Leh, the largest town in Ladakh, at an altitude of more than 11,000 feet, making it the highest-altitude film festival in the world. A major theme of the festival is wildlife conservation. In partnership with the Snow Leopard Conservancy India Trust, the festival offers the Snow Leopard Trophy for the most educational or inspiring film about an endangered species.
An Insignificant Man is a 2016 Hindi/English Indian socio-political documentary co-produced and directed by Khushboo Ranka and Vinay Shukla and also co-produced by filmmaker Anand Gandhi. and is about the rise of anti-corruption protests in India and the formation and rise to power of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). The film received a standing ovation at its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and has gone on to have sold out screenings at major festival across the world including the BFI London Film Festival & Busan International Film Festival.
Devashish Makhija is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, graphic artist, fiction writer and poet. He is best known for writing and directing the full-length feature films: Ajji, Oonga, and Bhonsle. He also authored the bestselling children's books, When Ali Became Bajrangbali and Why Paploo was Perplexed, along with a series of 49 short stories published as an anthology, Forgetting, published by HarperCollins. He has also worked on the films Black Friday and Bunty Aur Babli.He has also directed the new and upcoming film Joram.
The Cinema of Manipur is the film industry based in Manipur, India. It includes not only Meitei language movies but all the films made in different languages of the different communities in Manipur. The Manipuri film industry was born when Matamgi Manipur was released on 9 April 1972. Before this, there were many attempts to make a film in the state, the most significant being Mainu Pemcha in 1948 which was left incomplete due to various problems.
Swati Bhise is a Bharatanatyam dancer, choreographer, educator, producer, director, writer and promoter of the arts.
K. Manikandan is an Indian film writer, actor and director who works in the Tamil film industry.
The 51st International Film Festival of India was held from 16 to 24 January 2021 in Goa. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the festival went hybrid, there was physical and virtual screening of 50 films out of 224 films across various categories. Bangladesh was country of focus in the festival with four films of the country included in 'country of focus' section.
The 52nd International Film Festival of India opened on 20 November 2021 with The King of All the World by Carlos Saura in Goa. Like 51st edition this edition was also held in hybrid format, that combined online and face-to-face participation. BRICS Film Festival is being held alongside main festival, in which films from BRICS nations, namely Brazil, Russia, South Africa, China and India are showcased. These five countries are 'country of focus' in the 52nd edition of the festival.
Sohil Vaidya is an Indian writer and film director. His films have screened at top tier festivals including Rotterdam, Chicago, Raindance, Melbourne, International Film Festival India, Flickers Rhode Island International Film Festival, LA Asian Pacific and have won him awards like Directors Guild of America's Best Asian American Student Filmmaker Award, Grand Prix for Best Short at Melbourne International Film Festival, Platinum Remi at Worldfest Houston, Leo Award at DaVinci International Film Festival.
