Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Cinema should reflect reality: Amos Gitai

Photo: S. Gopakumar

Interaction: IFFK jury chairperson Lucia Murat, moderator V.C. Harris and Israeli film-maker Amos Gitai at a ‘Meet-the-directors’ programme in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday. –

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Renowned Israeli film-maker Amos Gitai has said that lack of political will on either side is one of the major impediments in resolving the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.

Talking to presspersons at a ‘Meet-the-directors’ programme held as part of the 13th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) here on Thursday, Mr. Gitai said he was optimistic about resolving the crisis between the two countries, even though the reality gave the wrong signals.

“I once asked a Palestinian Mayor whether he was optimistic about resolving the conflict. He replied that it was luxurious to be pessimistic,” Mr. Gitai said.

He said that cinema should not be seen merely as a showbiz, but also as a medium to reflect the reality. “Film-makers must make use of their medium to ask questions. Everybody might not like it when they ask questions. But that is okay,” he said.

He said that both the Israeli and Palestinian people were now behaving like spoilt kids of the media, as almost 70 per cent of the international news was about them. “In fact, when the tsunami occurred, everyone in West Asia was upset because they had lost their slot in the media,” Mr. Gitai said in a lighter vein.

Lucia Murat, Brazilian film-maker and jury chairperson of the 13th IFFK, script-writer of Kazakhstan film ‘Farewell Gulsary’ Erlan Nurmuhambetov and debutant film-maker Anjali Menon were the other participants of the programme.

Ms. Lucia Murat said that cinema had helped her to survive her difficult youth, when she was arrested and tortured for opposing the dictatorship in Brazil. “When I survived the experiences of my youth I thought that it was important to talk about them,” she said.

Talking about the new generation of Latin American film-makers, Ms. Murat said the film industry in South American, especially Brazil, was going through a second revolution now after the Cinema Novo of the 1960s. “There are a number of promising young film-makers coming up now and they are making some really interesting films,” she said. Ms. Murat said she was enjoying her experience at the IFFK.

Script-writer Erlan Nurmuhambetov said his film ‘Farewell Gulsary’ being screened in the competition section of IFFK, was based on a novel by Kazakh writer Chingiz Aitmatov. “This is basically a story of a man living in Soviet Kazakhstan. The film has to do with the history of Russia when Kazakhstan was a part of Russia,” he said.

Anjali Menon, director of Manjadikkur, said her film was about a journey of a man who visited his village after a long time to attend his grandfather’s funeral. ‘Manjadikkuru’ was premiered in the ‘Malayalam Cinema Today’ category of the festival. “It is the story of a non-resident Keralite. I believe that many times even if you are away from your country you can still have strong feelings for your homeland. This project has helped me to re-discover my native place better,” she said.

Ms. Menon said although the film did have a certain amount of reference to her childhood, it was not entirely autobiographical. She said that she intended to release the film in theatres in Kerala, ahead of which the music of the film would be released. The songs of ‘Manajdikkuru’ were written by Kavalam Narayana Panicker and composed by Ramesh Narayan.

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