New vistas now for cinemagoers

By Lakshmi Balakrishnan

NEW DELHI, APRIL 14. Exotic perfumes, starched cotton saris, FabIndia kurtas, high-profile names and a good film that brings all those names together. ``Classy'' in short. But how long really can one keep the masses away from a medium that is more or less about the different classes of the masses?

An year after the fast-growing India Habitat Centre here launched a Film Club to cater to the varied tastes of its audience, it has decided to throw open its doors to all cinema- lovers.

In an attempt to boost its present clientele of 1,500 members, IHC has opened up its Film Club to IHC non-members. ``The idea was to involve all film buffs in the city in a manner that is both interactive and entertaining. Ever since the Film Club's inauguration, people had been requesting us to throw open the membership for all, and since all other programmes of IHC are open to non-IHC members, we decided to open up this one too,'' says Mr.Rajesh Lalwani, associated with IHC's Film Club.

Over the past one year, the Film Club claims to have recreated the magic of the golden times and also given a peek into what the future holds for cinema-lovers by hosting the Digital Talkies Festival. Add to it the opportunity of coming face to face with screen idols like Shashi Kapoor, Sharmila Tagore, Shyam Benegal, Amol Palekar and Gulzar and it is the perfect icing that any cinemagoer can ask for.

But the start has not been without hiccups. The very first event of April -- an interactive session with Mr.Ramesh Sippy of ``Sholay'' fame and Ms.Anupama Chopra, the author of ``Sholay: The Making of a Classic'' -- had to be cancelled as Mr.Sippy could not make it to the event. Mr.Shashi Kapoor, scheduled to come for a session on April 11, will now come on April 19 for an interactive session before the screening of his ``Kalyug''.

Though it is rather early to say whether the move will pay off in the long run, IHC's bag of events seems to have something for everyone. While April is host to a festival of Mr.Shashi Kapoor's films, May will focus on Ms.Sharmila Tagore's.

Promising the audience a chance ``to catch both sides of cinema'', the Film Club is working hard to ensure a balance in its packages. A good mix of commercial and art films is what its festivals have been presenting in the past. The Shashi Kapoor treat includes films like ``Junoon'', ``Deewar'', ``Kabhie Kabhie,'' ``In Custody'' and ``36 Chowringhee Lane'' that can be counted among the actor's top ten films.

The coming months will bring not just Indian films and stars but cinema from abroad too. In the offing are festivals from Japan, Germany, France and Austria. Also expected are previews of avant garde films.

``Apart from the retrospectives and festivals, we are now planning to add workshops and film appreciation courses for cinemagoers. Lectures will be in too,'' adds Mr.Lalwani.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Other States
Previous : Mahesh Bhatt is back with women again
Next     : Remission for TADA prisoners in Punjab