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THE
PEACOCK
WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021
2 WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 DAMODAR MAUZO : SAHITYA
Location Goa
W
Among them are Johar-Mehmood in Goa (1965), Bombay to
ay back when I was just twelve years old, I Goa (1972), Ek Duje Ke Liye (1981), Shaukeen (1982), Julie (1975),
saw the movie Jaal (1952). Dev Anand was my Sagar (1985), Khamoshi (1996) and the famous Raj Kapoor
favourite hero then. I remember how there was movie, Bobby (1973). The English movie Coffin Maker (2013)
a distinct resemblance in the scenery with where was also based on and shot in Goa.
I lived – especially the scenes with fishing boats along the sea Our stunning locations have also attracted many English
shore – but the younger me thought it could not possibly be language movies. Some of the more famous among them are
the real Goa. Turns out, I was wrong. The Sea Wolves (1980) and The Bourne Supremacy (2004) by Paul
Quite soon after 1961, post-Liberation Goa became one the Greengrass.
most sought-after film locations in this country, but I have It is evident that Goa locations, and shooting in Goa, is
learned that at least three early Hindi movies were shot in our also widely preferred by actors, especially the big names
state even during the colonial era. from Hindi movies, who find the Goans much less likely
Jaal, directed by Guru Dutt, was the first. Then, in 1952, it to crowd around them and create the kind of chaos that
was Rahi by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, followed by Char Dil Char regularly ensues in other parts of the country. Our biggest
Rahein (1959) again by the same director. How the erstwhile stars, from Amitabh Bachchan to Ranveer Singh, and
colonial rulers, who enforced stringent censorship on the Hema Malini to Deepika Padukone, talk about our state
rest of us, at a time when even wedding cards were censored, as their second home.
allowed such filming in public places remains something of a In my experience, most producers and directors express
mystery to me. But obviously the producers must have given their happiness over the congeniality of the Goan people.
an undertaking that they would abide by the colonial rule of But there is no doubt we can turn unfriendly when abused
the land, and the Portuguese probably satisfied themselves or taken for granted. I recall how, right in the midst of
that the film had nothing about the freedom movement. It is our pandemic crisis, when neighbouring states imposed
perhaps in a kind of atonement that Abbas, within eight years restrictions, many filmmakers chose to shoot in Goa. A
of liberation, filmed his Saat Hindustani (1969) which projected substantial proportion callously ignored standard operating
the freedom movement of Goa. procedures. As a result, Covid-19 spread and we went into a
Among the first few filmmakers who gauged Goa’s potential health emergency. Naturally the locals were irritated.
of becoming a magnificent location for films, was the veteran Nonetheless, we are happy that filmmakers find Goan
film personality Shyam Benegal. The Konkani speaking man locations ideal, and right at this very moment there are films
(as was Guru Dutt earlier) found and smelt his roots in this being shot in many different parts of our state.
soil, as he could trace his ancestors who left the shores of Goa For our part, we are on the verge of an exponential increase
more than four centuries ago. of Goan films made by our own people, although there is
Benegal shot his milestone features Trikaal (1985) and no doubt there is concern and distress amongst us that our
Bhumika (1977), and hundreds of others have followed a repeated requests for improved production facilities in-state
nh
suit, each one finding the place and people congenial and oro have been consistently ignored. At one point, Manohar
N
hospitable. Riza Parrikar had suggested the idea of a “film city” here, and at
However, though many films are shot in Goa, only a few y the inaugural function this year his successor Pramod Sawant
onb
of their stories have a Goan background, except for Konkani ati has made the same promise. Let us hope this dream project
films. str
lI lu gets started soon.
THE PEACOCK WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 3
The Return Of
Campion
BY URVASHI BAHUGUNA character played by Kirsten Dunst dragged to the
J
border of insanity.
ane Campion is that rare name which draws Savage grew up on ranches in Montana, and drew
both avid cinephiles and general viewers. heavily on those experiences to write his visually
Her best-known film may be the multiple arresting and disturbing novel about a pair of
Academy Award winner Piano (1993), but her brothers working in a hypermasculine space, rearing
most popular production is arguably the crime cattle and horses with a team made up entirely of
mini-series, Top of the Lake (2013-2017), which was men. Campion visited each of the ranches Savage
helmed by the reliably engrossing Elisabeth Moss. lived in and had her male actors learn “roping,
One of the show’s opening visuals is of a child riding, horseshoeing, whittling, banjo and bull-calf
standing eerily silent, ribs-deep in a calm lake, with castration” as reported by the New York Times.
a brooding sky and dark mountains in the distance. The Power of the Dog is interested in the kind of
Shot in Glenorchy and Queenstown in New Zealand, masculinity that draws its power and identity from
the show is powered by Campion’s characteristic ruggedness, extreme self-sufficiency, unbroken
use of dramatic landscapes to establish tone and brashness of manner, enforced normativity, and an
manipulate mood. unwavering distrust of anyone who isn’t like them.
Without the literal and figurative remoteness the When the gentler brother, George, marries and
location provides, the story would lack a depth and brings his better educated and more sophisticated
magnetism Campion knows to plumb to her film’s wife, Rose, to the home he shares with his brother,
advantage. It’s a technique that has long been used Phil, it invites a schism into their world.
by writers to provide clues as to a protagonist’s Played by Benedict Cumberbatch, Phil weaponizes
state of mind, and impending danger or reprieve. It this masculinity against Rose, who he sees as an
is also used as an amplifier to reiterate stakes and interloper in his world as well as a threat and
reinforce the urgency of the frame, such as in Jane affront to his way of life in her differences from
Harper’s bestselling crime novels, The Dry (2016) him. The escalation of Phil’s machinations, and the
and The Lost Man (2018). unravelling of Rose, are fascinating in tandem. There
In The Power of the Dog (2021), her first film in is something tragically familiar about watching a
twelve years, Campion turns to the browns, yellows, woman fall apart in the shadow of a capricious and
and greys of the Montana countryside, drawing out cruel man.
a film that critics have described as “masterful” and The sunbaked, nearly spellbinding expanse of the
“extraordinary” and has won her a Silver Lion at the Montana landscape allows Campion to tap into the
Venice Film Festival. remoteness of the place to highlight the particular
The official selection for Mid-Fest Film at IFFI, isolation that comes with living outside of a city,
Campion’s latest returns to one of her obsessions particularly somewhere where one does not have
– the evil some men are capable of when provided established roots.
the opportunity and motivation. The evil in this film The film is guaranteed to be a visual feast, but
is a quieter, and in some ways more terrifying, beast it wouldn’t be a Campion experence if it did not
than the kinds she’s previously explored in Piano, simultaneously put the audience through the
Top of the Lake, or In The Cut (2003). wringer. Fictional suffering can feel gratuitous
The film is based on Thomas Savage’s 1967 novel, and engineered. But this director’s handling of
with its title from Psalms 22:20: “Deliver my soul complex themes veers towards the revelatory and
from the sword; my darling from the power of the instructive, utterly impossible to look away from.
dog.” There is always a quest for deliverance with
Campion’s protagonists, but The Power of the Dog The Power of the Dog is playing at INOX Screen I in
may be her most spiritual work to date, with the Panjim at 20:15 today.
We’ve come all I have got the Some people told The Masterclass
the way from the opportunity to talk us there would by Mr. Prasoon
other side of the to famous directors be rickshaws to Joshi was eye
world and we’re like Prasoon Joshi travel between -opening. He
excited to be here and Ketan Mehta venues but then emphasised the
in India. Goa is so which has been the we realized there importance to be
full of color. highlight for me were only buses. disciplined and
so far. There seems to be focused in the
some miscommu- creative process.
nication, but other
than that the festi-
val is amazing.
Anirudh Surendar
Chouthmol Padmini Mutharasan
Magda Garcés Cinematographer, Ramachandran Film Student,
Producer, Ecuador Bhopal Professor, Kerala Chennai
4 WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 THE PEACOCK
The Cinematic Playing Field
BY KARISHMA D’MELLO Championship in 2014.
T
The film is set in 2013-14, the year of the
here is a fine line between Euromaidan protests, when the Ukrainians
dedication and obsession, discipline rebelled against their president Viktor
and rigidity, encouragement and Yanukovych (the events are often referred
coercion; all of which can blur to as the “Revolution of Dignity”). That
when your sport requires you to pursue is why Olga is compelled to pursue her
the extreme in order to be the best. Each gymnastic quest in an environment beset
of the four international sports films being by political unrest and violence. In many
screened at the 52nd International Film ways the movie mirrors the real-life impact
Festival of India depict one or more of of the protest on various sportspersons
these themes to varying degrees as they in Ukraine, some of whom, like the
explore the triumphs and trials of being a alpine skier Bohdana Matsotska, refused
professional athlete. to represent their country in the 2014
Here in India, where sports was once Olympics as a mark of solidarity against the
largely synonymous with only men’s cricket, many victims of the violence.
the athletic arena is now propelled by Olga is a subtle testament to the physical
women and minorities in disciplines as and mental resilience of women, whether
diverse and varied as the peoples of our depicted through the teen gymnast’s
country. It seems only fitting that two of unrelenting determination throughout the
the four sports films being screened at IFFI film, or her journalist mother’s rebellious
feature women protagonists. Both explore efforts against the Ukrainian government.
the physical and mental resilience it takes Maciej Barczewski’s The Champion
to perform at competitive levels alongside (2020) is a pre-war film based on the
the deadly game of simply existing as a boxer Tadeusz “Teddy” Pietrzykowski,
woman. one of the first inmates at the Auschwitz
Jero Yun’s Fighter (2020), winner of the concentration camp, who boxed with
NETPAC award at the Busan International prisoners and guards as a way to survive
Film Festival, was screened on the first the war and entertain the commandants
day of IFFI. The film follows Jina, a North who controlled his life. The film is shot at
Korean refugee who is working two jobs to the actual prison site in Auschwitz with an
earn enough to bring her father to South emphasis on the oppression of the Polish by
Korea. Inspired by the grit and power the Nazis.
of the women boxers at the gym where While these three films explore the lives of
she is employed, this young protagonist athletes and the personal impact of political
eventually (albeit, almost reluctantly) unrest, Flemish director Lieven Van Baelen’s
becomes a pugilist. debut film Rookie (2021) explores racing with
Sometime in the second half of the just the kind of stereotypically adrenaline-
festival (details were not available at the charged atmosphere one might associate
time of writing) will be Elie Grappe’s debut with dirt bikes.
feature, the drama Olga (2021) which was It is not long before friendship transitions
the Swiss entry for the Best International into rivalry, when competition is at the heart
Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, of your sports.
and won the SACD award for best script at Taken together, the sports films at IFFI
Cannes in 2021. 2021 offer perspectives into the challenges
With the title role played by the of athletes with a shared and fierce
Ukrainian national gymnast Anastasia dedication to their sports, exploring the
Budiashkina, Olga tells the story of a inherent necessity of pushing their bodies
dedicated 15-year-old gymnast on her way and minds to their limits, and the wonders
to represent her country at the European and horrors that follow.
I hope the I look forward I loved Godavari. The Masterclasses
audience can to watching the The performance have been really
learn a lot about Tamil film Pebbles and acting helpful, specifi-
Ecuador from my which was selected was great. I’m cally Mr. Madhur
film The Preacher, as India’s official looking forward Bandarkar’s ses-
and similarly I entry to the 2022 to attending the sion on handling
hope to learn a lot Oscar’s. It’s a Masterclass by filmmaking. I am
about India from proud moment for Nitesh Tiwari and eagerly waiting
Indian films. us. hoping to gain to see the movie
more insight on Naad for its amaz-
filmmaking. ing visuals.
Tito Jara Pavithra A Sandeep Kumar N. Karthick
Filmmaker, Film Student, Filmmaker, Film Student,
Ecuador Chennai Mumbai Chennai
THE PEACOCK WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 5
Silence In Uttarakhand
BY IMPANA KULKARNI boys lived the village life for a fortnight,
M
spoke to the locals about their most
any years ago, Rohit Rawal pressing issues, and then got together
and Rahul Rawal’s families with their scriptwriter Anuj Bisht to
migrated from Uttarakhand craft the screenplay narrative.
to Delhi in search of jobs. At once insiders and outsiders in
When they grew into their mid-20s, their own ancestral land, they were
these two Delhi boys went back to dismayed by the social and cultural
Rahul’s village to take stock, and erosion of their native villages. Rahul
examine their roots once again. They says, “our villages are getting empty.
began to feel the need to give voice to 1500 villages are now ghost villages.
their people through film. There was a time when there was
“Uttarakhand lacks in many basic a society and culture there, we are
amenities,” says Rahul, “even 20 years now losing all that. Cinema plays an
after separating from Uttar Pradesh, important role in keeping behavior,
there is desperate need for better culture, and values intact. Films in a
schools and hospitals in the hills.” The way give direction to a society, we
director of Sunpat (2021), said to be subconsciously learn from them. These
the first movie made in Uttarakhand villages don’t even have access to
to make it to the International Film films.”
Festival of India, he explained, “people They evolved their story to then
go from cities to the mountains in touch upon migration – about a past
search of good air and peace. Why that is getting lost, a future that is
would anyone want to leave the beauty separating families, and a ‘silence’
and purity of such places? However, the (sunpat) that is enveloping the hills.
mountain people are having to leave Rohit explained, “We visited nearly
and move to cities only because they 200 schools, auditioned children over
don’t have enough job opportunities 20 days, then trained the two selected
and good education there.” boys for 10 days before we started
Rahul says he was moved to make shooting.” The two child actors − Sujal
this film when a perturbed drunken Gusain and Ashish Negi − are both 14
man accosted him at a tea shop on a years old, and turned out to be naturals
visit to Uttarakhand three years ago, before the camera.
and lamented about all his problems: “The boys executed all their scenes
“Noticing the camera hanging from my within three to four takes,” said an
shoulders, the old man mistook me to appreciative Rahul. “In fact one of them
be from the press and shared his woes even instructed the lights-man to turn
regarding the government, hoping I’d the light so that his face was well lit,
publish it. I didn’t work for the news on the third day of shoot itself. The
media, but I thought one day, if I make children in the village have immense
a film, I’d like to make it around what potential, they just need more
he spoke about.” opportunities.”
Having assisted and produced Completed in December 2020, the
advertisements and short films for film has already visited other festivals
the past ten years, Sunpat is Rahul’s in Japan, Toronto, New York, and Jaipur,
first film. It is a 35-minute story in the albeit on online platforms only. Today,
Garhwali language, shot on location in at IFFI, will be the very first physical
Pauri Garhwal. screening.
Rahul, along with his friend, the
producer Rohit, first headed to the hills Sunpat is screening on 24th Nov, 1700
in search of a story. These city-bred hrs at INOX Panjim, Auditorium 2.
I’m extremely Unbalanced is such I’m very impressed I’m excited to
honoured that our a wonderful film. with how well watch Bebia, and
film Teen Adhyay As a writer, I felt the Covid films from the
is selected for the I could relate to protocols are Indian Panorama
festival. It was a it on a personal being followed. I section which
great experience level. I am looking enjoyed watching are usually very
to make this forward to Hi, Mom because it good. I also hope
film with Subash watching All The gave me a chance to attend some
Sahoo who shot Money in the World to laugh after Masterclasses this
the film from his and Hi,Mom next. watching a few year.
home during the serious movies
Covid lockdown. back to back.
Manish Pingle
Music and Sound Meera Toms K.S Dilipkumar Ajanta Burman
Director, Mumbai Author, Bangalore Artist, Kerala Chef, Goa
6 WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 THE PEACOCK
Housefull Cinemas,
Inshallah!
Illustration by Govit Morajkar
BY SACHIN CHATTE Hungarian filmmaker whose retrospective
A
is being held at IFFI this year. His style
fter the fateful month of March involves languid shots and long takes. Some
2020, when the world took a turn screen theatres have a charm of their own, the new content we consume at home on of his acclaimed work includes Werckmeister
for the worse with the declaration often with quaint histories. They also have a OTT platforms meld and flow into each other Harmonies (2000) which is a 145-minute film
of the Covid-19 outbreak as a more sincere audience who come to watch like so many soap opera episodes. with 39 shots, and The Turin Horse (2011)
global pandemic – from which it still hasn’t movies, unlike multiplexes, where some There is something about collective which is just 30 shots at over 155 minutes,
recovered fully – IFFI 2021 has somewhat people come more to consume nachos, viewing that makes the experience of cinema making the average shot over five minutes
unexpectedly given us a semblance of popcorn, and pizza in disturbing quantities. unique; to give an example (perhaps with each. Can anyone really concentrate and
normalcy, at least in terms of the movie- While initially the lockdown had appeared the lowest common denominator), one can enjoy this kind of work in all its glory on a
watching experience. to be a welcome break, albeit a forced one, understand why Rohit Shetty did not opt for computer or mobile screen? Very unlikely.
For someone who had spent every we gradually started yearning for movies an OTT release of Sooryavanshi. The impact Nolan’s Tenet brought us back to the
weekend watching an average of at least in theatres. There was a plethora of new of a grand onscreen entry by Ajay Devgn or theatres in October last year, albeit cautiously
three movies in theatres for over 25 years, content on OTT platforms, of course, but Ranveer Singh is just not the same if you are and with fifty percent capacity. We had the
the pandemic era delivered an especially most often that was more about quantity watching it at home, as compared to in a 51st edition of IFFI as well in January, but
disruptive blow. I distinctly remember the than quality. OTT content is largely about theatre. with thin attendance. The joy of watching
last one, just before cinema doors clanged consumption – that is why platforms that Just imagine watching a Rolling Stones or films in the theatre was short-lived as the
shut. It was unironically Friday the 13th (of paid big moolah for movies like Salman Pink Floyd concert at Wembley with a crowd second wave struck soon after, but now
March), and the film was Irfan Khan’s Angrezi Khan’s Radhe and Akshay Kumar’s Laxmii of fans, and on a Blu-Ray at home. You may hopefully the worst is behind us. When
Medium. burnt their fingers; both the films had big have the most expensive sound system, but Sooryavanshi became the first big Bollywood
At the time, I was in Rajkot doing radio stars and both were insufferable. it is still not the same as watching it live. release in 20 months, it was heartening
commentary for the Ranji Trophy final The way cinema was conceived and has Watching cinema collectively is somewhat to see the theatre almost packed to (50%)
between Saurashtra and Bengal. The match evolved, I doubt if filmmakers have ever similar. capacity for an early morning show.
got over by afternoon, and I stepped out designed their films to be viewed from the And it’s not only about commercial cinema, The 52nd edition of IFFI has reset
to watch the film at Galaxy, a single-screen couch with a 40 inch or bigger TV, or laptops, because art house films are equally difficult everything.
theatre. They are always my preference over or – even more disastrously – on the mobile to enjoy at home in solitude, unless one is We are actually getting to see films with
multiplexes in malls, which are all the same phone. We remember dialogues and scenes watching them for professional or academic almost every seat occupied; life feels normal
no matter where you go, whereas single- from films we have seen in the theatre, but reasons. Take Béla Tarr, the acclaimed and, Inshallah, it will stay that way.
ASSAVRI KULKARNI : IFFI STYLEBOOK WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 7
8 WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 FERNANDO VELHO: CIDADE
Macau’s Cautionary Tale For Goa
M
acau and Goa are both tiny 16th abroad. The deep impact it had on children and other everyday folk. The circumstances At almost the same period, at the turn of
century Portuguese colonies like Yi Cheung is well explored in The Patio of of their departure, the effects of migration the millennium, the casino industry entered
which have been turned into Illusion. on their families and their struggles abroad Macau and Goa in a big way. While the
pleasure peripheries, after Here in Goa, we too have an old and are rarely explored in a sensitive manner. intrusion into Panjim still remains relatively
being subsumed into powerful and giant storied diaspora that has spread across the Instead the textures of life abroad are low key, although extremely disruptive to
post-colonial countries. Partly as a result, world, built on the backs of seafarers, maids, either passionately celebrated, or met with the character of its waterfront, the dominant
despite their very different contemporary blue collar workers, clerical professionals, derision. visual culture of contemporary Macau is
political systems, the shared experiences of something else entirely, almost a mix of the
ordinary citizens of Macau and Goa remain bylanes of Fontainhas and the skyscrapers of
remarkably similar. The Patio of Illusion Las Vegas.
(2021) directed by Shangshi Chen, which The sheer scale of casino operations in
was screened at IFFI earlier this week, is an Macau resulted in it attracting a
illustrative case in point. diverse set of professionals.
Chen’s movie is the love story of Yi Cheung At times in The Patio of
and Mei. It depicts romantic college Illusion, it seems like
love, and the difficulties of sustaining all the characters are
marriages and families in a territory either working in the
that is rapidly transforming itself gambling “industry”
on the back of a giant casino or associated with it
industry. in some other crucial
Yi Cheung is a sensitive arts way. Yi Cheung and Mei
teacher with an abandonment too leave the careers they
complex, whose personality is love, and take on jobs there.
shaped from being brought up by They are able to better provide
an artistic opera singing father for their families, but begin
and a mother who leaves to work drifting apart from each other,
overseas as a caregiver to support spending long hours away from
the family. Like many professionals each other and their kids. The
in Macau before him, he too same sense of abandonment Yi
develops a longing to leave the Cheung felt as a child is passed down to
territory, but his long-term another generation. The family and their
lover Mei loves her relationships never fully recover, despite
job as a caretaker and their better economic circumstances.
has no such desire. The movie reiterates how casinos
They are passionate are always a mixed bag for cities. They
about each other rapidly increase tax revenues, and open
and supportive of up new avenues in the tourism trade,
each other’s careers, but also make societies less resilient
but making it work by de-industrializing and deskilling
in an economically them. Yi Cheung and Mei are a case
stagnating Macau is in point. They give up their careers
never easy. of choice, and adopt a mercenary
Contemporary Macau attitude to their new work because
is the regional city of contemporary Macau offers them
dreams, which attracts little else.
immigrants from far and wide. Ill The Patio of Illusion is also
However, the period when it us a cautionary tale of modern
tra
was transitioning from colonial tio relationships working in a society
n
rule was a period of serious by that has embraced a hyperreal
Go
economic decline, forcing families vit industry. This story of Macau could
to struggle and contemplate moving M well be Goa’s story too.
or
aj
ka
r
I thought Madhur Godavari is the Raajakumara had I like watching
Bhandarkar was best film I’ve seen a very interesting Indian Panorama
very meticulous. so far. It’s always story about family movies the most.
He explained exciting when a and love. I hope It’s important
the nuances of film from your to watch more to me to watch
filmmaking and state is selected for films that focus on these films to
I was intrigued. such a big festival. women and the learn more about
I hope to watch I am looking issues surrounding the language and
The Untouchables forward to seeing women across the culture from other
because it’s based The Gravedigger’s world. states in India
on true events. Wife next. before exploring
the international
Kavibharathi selection
Sivakumar Mrunal Wankhede
Film Student, Theatre Artist/ Suraiya Naik Girish Gujar
Chennai Actress, Pune Housewife, Goa Artist, Goa
LINA VINCENT: CURATOR’S NOTE WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 9
Shirin Neshat’s Compassionate Lens
I
n 2019, the Gladstone Gallery in NY came thoughts and question the truths of her own
alive with 111 powerful portraits of New reality.
Mexico residents, made by artist and That is when her understanding of feelings
film maker Shirin Neshat as part of her of exile, her struggle to find an identity, to fit
multidisciplinary project “Land of Dreams” in, and realise what she wanted to communi-
(2019) in collaboration with Shoja Azari. cate, all came together organically with her
In Neshat’s inherent style, the images love for poetry. After the enormous success
capture human vulnerability and strength, of the “Women of Allah” series, and wanting
bestowing intense dignity to the subject to challenge herself, she turned towards
and allowing the viewer a glimpse into their experimentation with moving image. Her
internal worlds. breakthrough was the video Turbulent (1998)
Frequently placed against a background that won an award at the 1999 Venice Bien-
of flowing script, the portraits of individuals nale. It was through this project that she met
in different age-groups continue the artist’s and connected with filmmaker Shoja Azari.
poignant visual vocabulary that she first Land of Dreams (New Mexico, 2019 – Shirin
developed in 1994, with the series “Women Neshat and Shoja Azari), showing at IFFI
of Allah” which were performative pictures 2021, is the two-channel film component of
of herself with Arabic text written across a larger multidisciplinary project. The first
the photograph on all visible parts of the film is about a young Iranian art student
body. The evocative black and white pictures named Simin, who photographs people in
began her true journey as an artist, and suburban and rural districts of New Mexico
paved the way for a vast body of work that as she travels through the sublime landscape
critiques acts of political violence, and looks (which also resembles Iran). Simin interviews
at Islamic culture through a feminist lens. these people about their most recent
Neshat has time and again demonstrated dreams, and the film takes the audience
her mastery with photography and film, as into these imagined narratives as the reel
a compassionate eye behind the lens. She progresses.
works with deep awareness of the body as a Land of Dreams has both a documentary
site of commentary and protest, allowing it approach as well as one of fantasy. In the
to tell stories within different settings. second part, Simin’s character is uncovered
From growing up in a small town in Iran, to reveal dramatic details, involving
to making award-winning artwork within her espionage, conspiracy and scientific
studio practice in New York, Neshat has had experiments. With cerebral twists, the films
a complex and inspiring journey. When she explore the relationship between real and
began her arts education at the University of ephemeral, between personal and political
California at Berkeley, she struggled to build ideologies. In Neshat’s poetic style, other
bridges between her native land and new worlds become visible through the minds
domicile. and vision of the protagonists, while as the
She was deeply drawn to the experiences maker, she continues to connect essences of
and expression of other women artists such Iran and America through it.
as Frida Kahlo, Eva Hesse, and Judy Chicago. “It’s very much about this absurd narra-
Then, unhappy with her portfolio when tive, dark humour, satirical look into the
she graduated, Neshat destroyed all her American society and how it’s just going off
work and abandoned the idea of making art. the edge—in the way that my own country
Instead, she worked with the Storefront for had,” Neshat says of documenting contem-
Art and Architecture, an NGO in New York, porary American culture during the tumul-
which gave her purpose. tuous, ‘post-truth’ Trump era. “It was just so
She eventually had the opportunity to ideological and the absurdity of that system
return to Iran after she became a mother, still continues,” she told Hannah Ongley for
and this trip triggered her need to voice her Document Journal.
I come to IFFI This is the first The films My daughter-in-
every year to film festival screened here law is acting in
absorb as much I’m attending are fascinating! Mee Vasantrao,
world culture and it has been IFFI is a great but I was not
as I can. It is an exciting and a place to observe able to book a
important event great learning new concepts ticket. I’m very
for me to update experience. I and techniques disappointed with
and refresh my loved Unbalanced. being used in the complicated
knowledge on It’s about the filmmaking right booking system
filmmaking. pandemic and very now. and organisation.
relevant right now. There should be
more screenings
Saikrishna available.
Biyyapu
Film Writer, Rasika Wakharkar Tanashri Rane Bharati Kelkar
Hyderabad Actress, Mumbai Film Student, Goa Translator, Pune
10 WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 NADIA DE SOUZA : ANIMAL CRACKERS
The Fly Who Loved MeTHE PERCH WEDNESDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 2021 11
Masculinité Toxique
BY VIVEK MENEZES Beauvoir (whose persona is a constant comic Leading the Fight Against the Pandemic: Does
S
presence in Love Songs for Tough Guys), every Gender ‘Really’ Matter? The answer, of course,
ome aspects of Love Songs for Tough life has some value if it attributes value to is yes.
Guys (2021) – the Samuel Benchetrit the life of others. Garikipati and Kambhampati write
film that had its Indian premiere It would be fascinating to know what Ms. that “matched estimations
earlier this week at IFFI – do not de Beauvoir – who died in 1986 – would show a definite and consistent
translate particularly well from its original say about the contemporary framing of pattern, confirming that the
French context. Somewhat ironically, those “toxic masculinity”, our now-ubiquitous number of deaths is lower
difficulties start with the title itself, which understanding of traditionally male cultural in women-led countries
was much more poetically apt as Cette norms like dominance, self-reliance, and than in countries led
musique ne joue pour personne (This music competition as inherently adverse to the by men. This is also
plays for nobody). interests of women, children, and society true of the number
Happily, much else about this continually itself (including, of course, all men). of cases, though here
surprising and hilarious character study According to the American Psychological the significance of
comes across with bountiful universal Association – although similar findings the treatment variable
appeal. For the grizzled veterans who exist in many other countries – the results decreases as we increase
occupy this Perch, its story of middle-aged of more than 40 years of their research the number of matches. This
thugs was especially resonant. We found are undeniable: “traditional masculinity suggests that controlling for
ourselves laughing hard from the very first is psychologically harmful.” They say the GDP per capita, population,
set piece – a poetry circle peopled by highly way most boys are socialized to grow into size of urban population and
familiar archetypes – then pretty much lost men winds up grievously impairing them, of elderly, female-led countries
it uproariously throughout the rest of this their partners, future generations, the perform significantly better
tale of hard men, whose everyday violent environment, and everything else about the than male-led countries.”
routines are unexpectedly enlivened by world we live in. Put as pithily as possible: Toxic masculinity,
personal growth, the allure of art, and the patriarchy kills. indeed.
sappiest of romantic subplots. To be sure, we don’t really need any more
Benchetrit – whose wife, the famous singer reminders about that after our collective
and actress Vanessa Paradis plays an essential Covid-19 pandemic predicament, where
role in one of the sub-plots – handles his female leadership dramatically outperformed
tricky subject matter expertly. This means its male counterpart in every corner of
that nothing and nobody in this essentially the planet, and those of us who are led by
tawdry social, cultural, and economic strongmen have suffered the most.
landscape is quite redeemed. Nonetheless, UK-based scholars Supriya Garikipati
we are left with the inescapable – and, (of the University of Liverpool) and Uma
again, universally resonant – conclusion that Kambhampati (University of Reading)
nuance in humanity always persists, even meticulously analyzed, parsed, and balanced
in the bleakest scenarios. To paraphrase all the available data in their 2020 research
the pioneering feminist theorist Simone de paper that was entitled with a question,
Poem of the Day by Urvashi Bahuguna
Illustration by Chloe Cordeiro
Watching Hindi Movies in
the 90s and early 2000s
was fifty percent “these are our traditions and we won’t let them die”
and fifty percent “stalkers are entertainment.” There were two – okay,
three – kinds of women. Ones who were born daughter-in-law material.
Ones who wore jeans (need some redemption arc in the movie). And
ones sprinting from men obsessed with them towards other…somewhat
better men. There were three doors, and you needed to run like hell towards
door number one. Every other door was just taking the scenic route to Rishikesh.
Okay, I lied. There was a fourth woman. Primary job? Dramatic regurgitation.
Society’s shorthand for she’s pregnant! Out of wedlock! As a widow! This is all
a long way of saying – it would be exhausting to carry around for years afterwards.
But I could not look away as Anjali turned into Tina, Tina pretended to be Pooja,
and Raj and Rahul were unable to tell the difference. At least the stalker could pick
a woman out of a line-up. No one is making movies like they used to.
Publisher: Dr Tariq Thomas for the Entertainment Society of Goa | Editors: José Lourenço, Sachin Chatte, Impana Kulkarni, Vivek Menezes | Cover Art: Bhisaji Gadekar
Columnists: Damodar Mauzo, Lina Vincent, Fernando Velho, Nadia De Souza | Editorial: Patricia Ann Alvares, Urvashi Bahuguna, Karishma D’Mello, Nomita Saldanha, Riza Noronha, Keziah Pereira
Illustration: Govit Morajkar, Chloe Cordeiro | Lead Photographer: Assavri Kulkarni | Photo team: Siddhartha Lall, Michael Praveen | Distribution: Nachiket ShettyPEACOCK PICKS
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Continuing to
flex an almost
unimaginable
range of skills,
Bhisaji Gadekar
created today’s
exclusive cover
artwork for The
Peacock in the
visual vocabulary
of Op-Art (the
term was coined
by Time magazine in 1964, to describe
“abstract art that uses optical illusions”).
Over our historic run of many years, The
Peacock has featured a mind-boggling variety
of artistic styles on well over 50 covers
and even more on its inside pages, but this
minimalist masterpiece is one of a kind!
Find us online https://iffigoa.org/peacock/
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