QUOTE MARTIAL
MAKING WAVES
REVIEWS
SHORT TAKES
SOUTHERN SPICE
ROUGH CUTS
MEMORIES
ARCHIVES
MOVIES CHAT

Gajagamini for London film festival

India's most celebrated painter, M F Husain's maiden celluloid venture Gajagamini has been selected for the prestigious London Film Festival to be held in November.

The film will be released in India around the same time, in November-December, Husain told reporters in Bombay earlier this week. Gajagamini is also scheduled for screening at the Berlin Film Festival next February.

Husain said that his "celluloid on canvas" is not made for festivals, but for the elite class. "I am going to take my labour of love to villages as I sincerely believe that I have made a film for the masses," he added.

The film, made under the banner of Dakshaka Films and starring Madhuri Dixit, is already complete, said Husain. ''It is my first and last effort. I have waited for 60 years to conceive the project which is a tribute to womanhood," he stated.

Elaborating on the film, Husain said it is a combination of realism and illusion. The story and dialogues are told in the dance form. It is colourful and is full of folk music set to tune by Bhupen Hazarika. "I am sure people will like it," said Husain.

He plans to release the film through sponsorship, rather than give the distribution rights to anyone. Many industrial houses have come forward to sponsor the film, he informed the Press.

The film has Madhuri playing five different characters. Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin shah, Farida Jalal and Shah Rukh Khan are the other leading stars in the film.

UNI