3rd Annual Film Festival on Rural Development at NIRD & PR gets underway
The 3rd National Film Festival on Rural Development got off to a flying start at the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRD &PR) at Rajendranagar, Hyderabad on Monday (November 19.)
Panel discussions involving eminent faces, screening of short films and documentaries and mobile filmmaking contest marked the opening day of the event, which is being organised as a platform to inspire young filmmakers to showcase their talent and promote films based on rural issues and document films on rural development.
The day’s proceedings started at Vikas auditorium on the Institute premises with national Anthem and lighting of lamp by the dignitaries.
Smt. Radhika Rastogi, IAS, Deputy Director General, NIRD &PR, delivered the opening address at the inaugural ceremony. Stressing on the influence of cinema, she demanded tapping full potential of the medium to spread the government’s messages to people.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. W. R. Reddy, IAS, Director General, NIRD&PR, said the event is envisaged as an effort to use creativity for accelerating the process of rural development. Noting that majority of the mainstream movies are highlighting the negative shades among politicians, he said the medium should be effectively utilised to celebrate the success stories that brought smiles on the face of the people.
Shri Bhupendra Kainthola, Director, Film & Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, who was also the chief guest of the inaugural session, was the last to address the audience. “Cinema is no longer just an entertainment. Of late, with the advent of multiplexes, it has become a package of screening and dining,’ he opined. He further put forth a suggestion of FTII cooperating with NIRD & PR to produce targeted and focussed documentaries narrating NIRD & PR’s own stories.
The inaugural session was followed by panel discussions on two topics – ‘Movies as Catalysts Bridging the Urban-Rural Divide’ and ‘Depiction and Reception of Female Leads in Contemporary Movies-Truth and Reality.’
Moderated by Dr. Usha Raman, Professor, Department of Communication, University of Hyderabad, the discussions saw productive and active involvement of Shri Abhijit Dasgupta, Dean, Electronic & Digital Media Management, Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute, Kolkata, Shri Siva Koratala, filmmaker, Smt. C Vanaja, journalist and filmmaker, apart from Shri BhupendraKainthola.
The panellists provided the audience comprising academicians and students associated with rural developmentenough food for thought and shed light on several little-explored facets.
The Director General and Deputy Director General honoured the panellists with shawls and memento. Dr. Akanksha Shukla, Head (i/c), Centre for Development Documentation and Communication, and Coordinator of the Film Festival, proposed vote of thanks.
The jury of the film festival Shri Shyam Kishor Sahay, Editor, Lok Sabha TV, Shri Nimish Kapoor, Scientist ‘E’, VigyanPrasar and Division Head, Science Film Festival, and Shri Rizwan Ahmad, Director, IMC, Maulana Azad National Urdu University were also present at the inaugural session.
The post lunch session of the first day saw screening of entries that made it into the final round and mobile film making contest for the students. The screening of entries will be continued on the second day and the valedictory will begin at 4 PM on Tuesday.