Padatik
Director: Srijit Mukherji Starring: Akshay Kapoor, Chanchal Chowdhury, Korak Samanta, Monami Ghosh Run time: 125 mins | Recommended Certificate: 12A Language: Bengali with English subtitles | Year: 2023 | Country: India
Closing Gala
Director Srijit Mukherji returns to the festival with this biopic of one of India’s greatest directors, Mrinal Sen, which is guaranteed to leave no dry eyes in the house. We follow him from his early days around the time of India’s independence, where he is a struggling political idealist with an all-consuming hunger for cinema but unable to feed himself or his young wife, to 1950s Calcutta, where (alongside Satyajit Ray) he helped start the Indian New Wave cinema movement. Mukherji deftly delves into the heart and spirit of a cinematic genius, with glimpses of Sen’s iconic films like Bhuvan Shome – which propelled him to international fame while his own family were left to suffer. Lovingly crafted, with brilliant performances from an ensemble cast, this film is a delightful and fitting tribute to Sen on the 100th anniversary of his birth.
Q&A with Director Srijit Mukherji
Director
Srijit Mukherji
Nationally acclaimed filmmaker, actor and screenwriter, having won 5 national awards. He has made 22 films and 6 web series to date
His fifth film Jaatishwar won 4 national awards at India's 61st National Film Awards (2014) and he has won the National Film Award for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for his sixth film Chotushkone at India's 62nd National Film Awards. His film Ek Je Chhilo Raja won the National award for the best feature film in Bengali at the 66th National Film Awards (2019) and his 2019 film Gumnaami won him the Best Bengali Film and Best Adapted Screenplay Awards at the 67th National Film Awards. His films have travelled to 66 International, Asian and Indian film festivals around the world including Busan, Palm Springs, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Glasgow, Florence, New York, Barcelona, London, Melbourne, Stuttgart, Madrid, Toronto, Edmonton, Singapore, Dhaka, Goa, Mumbai, Kerala, New Delhi and Chennai. His films have also won 217 awards in total including 10 National Awards, 12 Filmfare Awards and 36 BFJA Awards.
15 of his 21 released films have been box office blockbusters. His films have been remade in two Indian languages till now - Rajkahini into Begum Jaan in Hindi starring Vidya Balan and Hemlock Society in Marathi into Welcome Zindagi starring Swapnil Joshi. Also, Malayalam remake rights for Autograph & Malayalam, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu remake rights for Vinci Da have been sold. His critically acclaimed series, Ray, for Netflix International, was nominated at the Busan International Film Festival.
Feludar Goyendagiri- Darjeeling Jawmjawmat has become the most watched series on Hoichoi so far with record number of views. Recently, he shot the BBC India Sherlock in Hindi, starring Kay Kay Menon, Ranvir Shorey and Rasika Dugal.
Apart from the immensely prestigious accolades that he has to his name, it is his love for the craft and sheer excellence that define Srijit Mukherji..
Film Screenings
European Premiere
London | Regent Street Cinema
November 4, 2023 7:45 pm
Q&A with special guest
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