41ST INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF INDIA: Nov. 22 to Dec. 2, 2010
By: Jitin Hingorani

Set against the idyllic backdrop of floating casinos and fishing markets along the muddy Mandovi River in the capital city of Goa, Panjim, the 41st International Film Festival of India was like a United Colors of Benetton ad for movies. Filmmakers and actors from India, Pakistan, China, Taiwan, Brazil, El Salvador, Mexico, Turkey, Greece, France, Italy, New Zealand, Switzerland, America, Canada, and England all showcased their latest projects, while attending press conferences, master class workshops, after parties, and special screenings. The 100 plus features, shorts, and documentaries were shown over a span of 10 days on six screens spread out in an Olympic Village, of sorts. The city came alive in the evenings as artisans hawked their wares, food vendors sold scrumptious roadside treats, and bands performed live music to the beats of Bollywood songs from the last three decades. The entire experience was like stepping foot onto a movie set where the actors keep on acting, the dancers keep on dancing, and the director never calls “cut.”

While I sat through many good (and not-so-good) films, I want to focus on the highlight of my stay in Goa. On my first day at the festival, I accidentally bumped into an Italian gentleman at the Kingfisher beer stand (fortunately, our beers remained intact). His understated attire, mop of curly salt-and-pepper hair, and unmistakable accent screamed “filmmaker.” After polite introductions, I asked him which film he was representing at the festival, and he meekly said, “Gangor…have you heard of it?” I excitedly replied that I had heard great things about the film from Samrat Chakrabarti (plays Ujan), had recently been e-introduced to Tillotama Shome (plays Medha) over Facebook through my colleague Nina Rothe, and had interviewed Seema Rehmani (plays Sheetal Puri) on the MIAAC Film Festival red carpet in New York.  To this, the gentleman replied, “Oh good! Now you have also met the director of the film. My name is Italo Spinelli.”

I was awe-struck. I had missed the film at the festival because I got there a few days late, and I was disappointed that I could not make more conversation with Spinelli about Gangor. Besides the fact that it received an eight-minute standing ovation at its worldwide premiere at the Rome Film Festival last month, I didn’t know much more about the film.  After seeing a terrible Brazilian movie (which will remain unnamed) together, Spinelli invited me to watch Gangor in his hotel room, and I gladly accepted his kind offer (after all, how often does one get an invitation to a private screening by the director of the film himself).

The script is based on a short story by Indian literary legend Mahasweta Devi called “Choli Ke Peeche” (Behind the Bodice), which was published shortly after the song of the same title became an overnight sensation all over India in the early 90s. Co-produced by Italian production houses Bibi Film TV Srl and Isaria Productions, in association with RAI Cinema, as well as Nirvana Motion Pictures Limited in India, the film revolves around photojournalist Upin Patel (played masterfully by Adil Hussain) as he travels to Purulia, West Bengal, to cover the exploitation of tribal people. There he comes across a dark-skinned, exotic beauty named “Gangor” (played by the sultry Priyanka Bose) and takes pictures of her breast feeding her child. After one picture appears in a newspaper, Gangor’s life is turned upside down by a series of turbulent events that, ultimately, end in tragedy, sadly reminding the viewer that a woman’s status in rural India is still worse than animals, at times.

The first few frames of the film – sexual images from the “Kama Sutra” depicted on the walls of ancient temples, followed by a very disturbed Upin wildly running through the streets to call his assistant and beg him to come back to Purulia immediately – had me hooked. I was then immersed into a plot that thickened faster than curry over a simmering stove. Spinelli’s keen eye and experience as a documentary filmmaker for the past decade are evident through his clear, precise camera movements that reveal such honesty in these characters. The rural landscape of West Bengal is captured beautifully, and some of the scenes are so disturbing that I actually had to look away. At one point during the film, Spinelli handed me half of the cheese sandwich and beer he ordered from room service, but I was so engrossed that I don’t remember eating or drinking the treats. Every time I thought ‘wow, that was an amazing scene,’ another more disturbing scene followed, and the last few minutes truly left me hoping that EVERY Indian has a chance to watch this film.

“I have grown to love India very much during my visits over the past 25 years,” says Spinelli, “and I wanted to make a film that would shed light on the important issue of gender-based violence and women’s rights, in hopes of making this country a better place to live for everyone. I’ve been told by a prominent Indian director that no Indian director could ever have made a film like this.”

Without giving away too much more, I wish to reminisce on the superb acting, being especially blown away by Hussain (Kaminay, Ishqiya) and Bose (Love, Sex aur Dhokha, Guzaarish), who deliver career-defining performances playing an artist and his muse. The sexual tension between these two characters is palpable, and in one scene, it seems as though Upin is making love to Gangor through his camera. The climactic scene between these two actors left me with a pain in my gut so visceral, as though they had both reached through the screen and punched me themselves. If people don’t know who Hussain and Bose are already, they certainly will after this film.

In an email interview with Bose about the difficulty playing a tribal woman who has to expose her breasts numerous times in the film, she says, “When I got offered this film, I was still breast feeding my 10-month-old, so naturally there was an emotional connection to this film. Being a dancer almost all my life, I’m comfortable with my body, and the risqué parts, when they were on paper, were not a problem. It was very difficult once I was preparing and shooting for it. The subject is something I instinctively wanted everyone to see because it is a story aching to be discovered and made.”

I was personally proud to see our very own New York indie king Samrat Chakrabarti (The Waiting City, Ashes) play such a unique role as Ujan, the budding assistant who has his own preconceived notions about tribal people. His reserved, yet powerful, portrayal of a middle-class apprentice devoted to his guru leaves you with a newfound respect for this sacred relationship. Another young actor, Tillotama Shome (Monsoon Wedding, The Waiting City) made quite an impression as a women’s rights advocate during the few minutes she was on screen. Seema Rehmani (Sins, Loins of Punjab), who plays Upin’s wife Sheetal, was perhaps the weakest link for me, as she seemed a bit disconnected from the rest of the cast. Her American accent went in and out at times, and I wasn’t sure if she was playing an NRI, a world traveler, or both.  More importantly, I never got the sense that she was truly in love with her husband or genuinely concerned about his well-being.

With a perfectly-paced, Indian classical score by Iqbal Darbar, Gangor juxtaposes the documentary-style “shock-and-awe” technique to create awareness about an issue that affects us all. It is a film that will, hopefully, change attitudes and behaviors, and it needs to be introduced to Indian politicians and lawmakers who are capable of improving the plight of all the Gangors who merely “exist” in rural India.

“Everyone underestimated the potential of this film,” says Bose. “Since we’ve gotten some confidence at the Rome Film Festival, we want more and more festivals to accept us so that everyone gets a glimpse of the subject matter. You can love it or criticize it, but you have to have an opinion either way.”