From negative to screen: Kolkata International Film Festival to showcase restored Indian classics

Scene from Manthan directed by Shyam Benegal starring Girish Karnad and Smita Patil.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

The 30th edition of the Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) is set to screen digitally restored versions of six distinguished 20th century Indian films made by venerated Indian film directors. 

These cult classics include Manthan by Shyam Benegal, Thampu by Govindan Aravindan, Ghatashraddha (The Ritual) by Girish Kasaravalli, Ishanou (The Chosen One) by Aribam Syam Sharma, Maya Miriga (The Mirage) by Nirad N. Mohapatra, and Tero Nadir Parey (Beyond Thirteen Rivers) by Barin Saha. 

These six films, made in various Indian languages like Malayalam, Hindi, Odia, and Manipuri, were produced between 1969 and 1990. They will be screened at KIFF in two venues — Nandan II and Radha Studio — between October 5 and 10 at 11 a.m. 

“These cult classics are a crucial part of our film heritage, and digital restoration enables us to experience them on the big screen in good picture quality,” Goutam Ghose, renowned filmmaker and chairperson of the 30th KIFF told The Hindu. 

The digital restoration of these six films was done at Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s Film Heritage Foundation, Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project, and the joint restoration facility of the National Film Development Corporation and the National Film Archive of India.

“Screening restored classics has become a trend across film festivals like Cannes and Venice. The restoration of celluloid is very important, the new generation should know about our film classics,” Mr. Ghose said. 

He added that film restorers try to restore the films from the original film negatives, which enables the audience to watch classical films on the big screen with improved picture quality. 

“The visual contrast and tonal quality of these films, especially the ones shot in black and white, improve when restored, as the original negatives usually fray with time,” the KIFF chairperson said.

Along with restored classics, the 30th KIFF will also screen certain cult films, like Utaplendu Chakraborty’s 1983 film Chokh (The Eyes), from their original 35mm negatives. Chokh is slated to be screened at Kolkata’s Radha Studio on Friday at 6.30 p.m.

“I took the initiative to bring the Rupayan Film Laboratory to Radha Studio for the projection of these 35mm film negatives. The audience will have a unique film-watching experience as they will witness the shutter moving over the projector and the projector’s flicker on the screen,” Mr. Ghose said.