“We couldn’t screen the film ‘Muhammad: The Messenger of God’ by Majid Majidi in
the IFFK because the Central Government did not give us permission to screen
it”, said Bina Paul, artistic director, IFFK.
The film which screened
in various international film festivals including the Kolkata International
Film Festival couldn’t be screened in Kerala due to censorship issues. The film
festival coordinators were in a legal bind. “The Central Government, on the
film’s screening have not said a ‘No’, but not a ‘Yes’ either. It seems like a
game the Centre is playing with the state, because a ‘No’, will definitely trigger
a protest from Kerala”, clarified Bina Paul who is also the Vice Chairperson of
Kerala State Chalachitra Academy. She was talking in the Open Forum segment on
‘Art as a Resistance: Lessons from IFFK’.
“The primary viewpoint of IFFK is inclusion,
not exclusion. All the films screened in the fest put forward the same
perspective. Especially, films like ‘Roma’ and ‘Pope Francis: A Man of His
Word’ are of great importance, not only because of their cinematic value but also
because of what they are talking about. These films talk about the greatest
threats we are facing”, added she.
The message of this
year’s fest is ‘Together, Art and Culture Rebuild’. “IFFK in the past has
ignited protests, paving ideal platforms for discussions and debates in socio-cultural
issues like women in public space and cinema, and playing national anthem compulsorily
in theatres. The fest this year has been an initiative to rebuild Kerala, after
the calamities that hit the state, to resist the challenges and grow together”,
said Kamal, Chairman, Kerala State Chalachitra Academy. He also expressed his
gratitude to all the delegates, who were integral in making the fest a huge
success.
Mahesh Panju, K P
Kumaran, V K Joseph, Sibi Malayil, C S Venkiteswaran, G P Ramachandran, and
Madhu Janardhanan participated in the session.
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