Films:

Entertaining, enlightening, experiencing, experimenting

by K. S. Sivakumaran

Having seen 41 films in Goa and 33 in Kerala (two states in India) during the Festival of International Films held by the Central Government and the State Government of that country respectively during November 22 - December 02 and again from December 12 to December 19, yours truly returned to his country last Sunday.

I spent 40 days in the Indian subcontinent having visited the states of Thamilnadu, Puthuvai (a separate State, south of Thamilnadu), Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. My visit to Chennai, the capital of Thamilnadu also included a journey to Kanchipuram, a suburban town, a few miles away from Chennai and Coiambuththoor. I spent some time in Goa (Panaji) and Karnataka (Bangalore).

I made a trip to receive the blessings of Sri Sathya Sai Baaba in Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh. My last destination was the capital of Kerala (Thiuvananthapuram)

What have I gained by this memorable journey?

Experience while facing unpredictable situations, splendid feeling in bright pleasant atmosphere and situations; meeting different colourful personalities from various parts of the globe (academics, intellectuals, artistes, artists, teachers, knowledgeable cineastes, and finally acquiring new knowledge on Cinema etc.

Talking about some of the best films in the international scene that include those from India itself, one feels gratified.

However it is impossible for me to write detailed analysis of all the 74 films I had seen.

Nevertheless I could see some significant themes in these films:

In line with the contemporary reality the films try to portray misguided politics and the resultant damages to life and property, clogged perceptions and clueless and chaotic administrations, racial and ethnic tensions, upsetting traditional basic human values, criminality, horrible violence, free and cheap sexual behaviours, drug trafficking and the like took the centre stage in films produced in India and elsewhere.

The two Festivals focused on seriousness and artistic films as far as possible from Asia, Africa and Latin America as the films of Europe, America and Australia were few in number. Such films were categorised under Retrospectives and Tributes etc.

The Directorates of these two Festivals had rightly selected packages of films that had the segments mentioned above,

However, as a Lankan witnessing for more than a quarter century the continuous ethnic violence, I personally dislike the replay of violence and the injustice caused to people who fell victim to the onslaughts. And these people belong to the protagonists and the antagonists.

At the same time one noticed that in almost all the films the underlying positive aspect in most of the films was Love and Truth.

The kind of love was not only romantic or sexual, but also lost love regained, bonds and re-reestablishment of basic decency and human values.

This had a subliminal response within me.

Apart from the content the filmmakers of international cinema, especially the cinematographers take you to places which you have not had the opportunity to visit some distant places in the far end of the globe.

Slices of life and living educate me and make me more empathetic towards humans and even animals that struggle to exist in dire adverse situations and worse predicaments.

I enjoyed most the films that gave a psychological interpretation of characters that figured in the stories and dramas in the medium of artistic cinema. I was enthralled with films that had music as the central component in films.

I shall select a few films that spells out the themes mentioned as illustrations on another occasion.