From provocative to cult to indie to sci-fi: different genres of cinema will come together at the Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) later this month with a wide array of documentaries, movies and short films.
A controversial documentary on the Russian feminist rock band Pussy Riot, ‘Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer’ by Mike Lerner and Maxim Pozdorovkin will be premiered at the festival. ‘Lasting’ by Polish filmmaker Jacek Borcuch, a winner at the Sundance Film Festival, sci-fi ‘Lore’ by British artist Shehzad Dawood and ‘Bushido Man’ by the Japanese cult director Takanori Tsujimoto will also be featured. The festival will be attended by filmmakers, producers, film-lovers, film critics, film festival directors and celebrate independent film making.
Representing the Indian indie films will be movies of social relevance. Nishtha Jain, director of ‘Gulabi Gang’- based on the real life group of women vigilantes from Bundelkhand district of Uttar Pradesh, will screen her documentary at DIFF this year. The movie deals with the prevalent caste issues, gender violence and corruption. Amit Virmani’s ‘Menstrual Man’, where the protagonist (a man) sets about to educate women around the country on sanitation and health related to menstruation and the use of sanitary napkins, Anand Patwardhan’s ‘Jai Bhim Comrade’, shot over 14 years based on the police firing on Dalit activists in Mumbai in 1997 will also be screened.
The festival is on between October 24 and 27.
