River to River Florence Indian Film Festival 2023

La 23esima edizione del River to River Florence Indian Film Festival si svolgerà dal 7 al 12 dicembre 2023. Fra i titoli in cartellone, segnalo Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, Goldfish e Ghoomer (che inaugurerà l'evento). Abhishek Bachchan è l'ospite d'onore. Anche Adil Hussain e R. Balki parteciperanno alla manifestazione.

Aggiornamenti del 13 dicembre 2023: Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani si è aggiudicato il premio del pubblico per il miglior lungometraggio.

- Video ufficiale della partecipazione di Abhishek Bachchan e R. Balki

- Video con Abhishek e Balki

- Video ufficiale della partecipazione di Adil Hussain

- Kalki Koechlin al River to River: "Quanto è difficile essere madri", Barbara Berti, La Nazione, 13 dicembre 2023:

'"Quanto è difficile essere mamme. Ma è anche molto gratificante". A dirlo è l'attrice e modella indiana Kalki Koechlin, ospite del gran finale di "River to River", il festival che esplora il volto contemporaneo dell’India. Al cinema La Compagnia, ieri, in una giornata tutta al femminile, era ospite anche Kalki Koechlin. (...) La 39enne è la protagonista del film "Goldfish" (in anteprima proprio al cinema di Firenze) di Pushan Kripalani: la storia di una donna, Anamika, costretta a confrontarsi con le ferite del passato per affrontare il declino psichico della madre Sadhana, interpretata da Deepti Naval, icona del cinema hindi.

"Goldfish" è la storia di due donne, madre e figlia che si ritrovano dopo 10 anni: come ha lavorato per creare questo tipo di rapporto?

"Attingendo al mio difficile rapporto con mia madre quando ero adolescente, ho trovato spunti familiari nell’atteggiamento del mio personaggio nei confronti di Sadhana, la madre. Ci sono molte cose non dette nel film, che ci siamo, però, confidate durante le prove, così quando la telecamera era davanti a noi sapevamo cosa ’non stavamo dicendo’ tra le righe".

Nella vita reale lei è madre: ciò ha influenzato il suo ruolo sul set?

"Questo è il mio primo film da quando sono mamma. A causa del Covid, quasi per un anno e mezzo sono rimasta a casa con la piccola. Poi è arrivato questo film: sono partita per Londra con ben due settimane d’anticipo rispetto alle riprese, proprio per far ambientare la bimba e trovarle una tata. Ma lei non ne voleva sapere della babysitter. La notte prima delle riprese ero esasperata, stanca e spaventata. La bimba piangeva, alle undici di sera ancora pianti. A un certo punto le ho detto: 'ascolta amore, voglio davvero fare questo film, non lavoro da due anni, ti prometto che starò con te ogni mattina e ogni sera, ma nel frattempo ho bisogno che tu stia con tata Amanda'. La mattina successiva, mia figlia, per prima cosa mi ha chiesto dove era la tata. Ho capito, così, che anche le mamme possono essere vulnerabili e che devono condividere con i figli le emozioni, i desideri e le aspirazioni. Non bisogna essere solo madri forti e tutte d’un pezzo".'

Kalki Koechlin a Milano: evento Furla

Lo scorso 24 settembre Kalki Koechlin era a Milano per la presentazione della nuova collezione di Furla, in occasione della settimana della moda. L'attrice ha dichiarato: 'Furla represents the joyful contemporary Italian lifestyle and I particularly love the design ethos of combining two worlds to make a bag. The day to night bag I am carrying is the answer to any busy woman’s woes'. Ieri Vogue India ha pubblicato una bella serie di fotografie: Following Kalki Koechlin through the streets of Milan, Pahull Bains.

Aggiornamento dell'8 ottobre 2015: il numero di Grazia in edicola la scorsa settimana offriva una breve intervista concessa da Kalki a Fiamma Sanò. Vi propongo alcuni scatti postati nel profilo Twitter della fortunata intervistatrice (che ringrazio per la gentilezza).

Anurag Kashyap: That day after everyday e spot Femina India

[Archivio] Il 29 ottobre 2013 Anurag Kashyap aveva caricato in rete il suo cortometraggio dal titolo That day after everyday, della durata di poco più di venti minuti. Da quella data, il video è stato visionato quasi quattro milioni di volte. E già che sono in argomento, vi propongo anche lo spot commissionato da Femina India, interpretato da Kalki Koechlin, diretto da Kashyap nel 2011.

Rape - It's your fault

Dal 19 settembre 2013, data in cui è stato caricato in YouTube, questo video è stato cliccato quasi 2.800.000 volte. Si tratta di Rape - It's your fault, filmato satirico sul tema della violenza sulle donne diretto da Ashwin Shetty. Al progetto hanno aderito Kalki Koechlin e la VJ Juhi Pande. Vi segnalo anche la versione sottotitolata in italiano condivisa da La Repubblica.

Kalki Koechlin: These boots are meant for walkin'

[Archivio] Riporto di seguito un'intervista concessa da Kalki Koechlin a Vivek Bhatia, pubblicata da iDiva il 25 novembre 2011. These Boots Are Meant For Walkin’: Kalki:

'It’s that smile. It makes you listen to her with rapt attention. Topics pelt you like a hailstorm. She begins with an outsider’s account of the film industry. Then she speaks eloquently about her love for theatre and how she wouldn’t stop trying to make it big in films. Top that with her being Caucasian. She’s aware of strangers ogling at her, while she walks down the street. “They don’t know anything about me. This is my home. I belong here,” she says emphatically. Recently, she married a certain Mr. Kashyap - a divorcee with a 10-year-old daughter named Aaliyah. He’s known to be mercurial and doesn’t hold a pleasant reputation in the industry. “I think he’s quite sorted,” she takes up for her director husband.

We make ourselves comfortable in her new duplex apartment. “It’s an awesome den,” she says, referring to the new house the couple has bought for a steal. “Whenever I need a break, I switch my phone off and sit here in peace. I’ve got one room filled with DVDs and the other with books. It’s like a holiday destination,” she beams. We’re accompanied by her cat. His name is Dosa. “I had another one by the name of Masala, but she went absconding,” she tells me, while caressing her pet. She’s under the weather and gingerly sips on her green tea as we chat.

Kalki’s film That Girl In Yellow Boots (TGIYB) has been a late bloomer. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival last year, where it garnered great reviews. Back home the film saw the light of day quite late. All thanks to its offbeat subject and dark treatment. (...) “Ruth’s character has been the most difficult role for me,” she exclaims. “Apart from Ruth being Caucasian, we have nothing in common. Ruth is very dark.” TGIYB is her career’s first solo film. She considers herself lucky to have got this film. She also expresses her interest in doing a biopic someday. “You get to play a real person, dig deep into the character’s persona and do in-depth research,” she explains her excitement about doing a biopic. 

With TGIYB she also makes a debut of sorts as a film writer. “Anurag first asked me to play the main lead and I readily agreed. A few months later, he asked me to write the film and I refused,” she laughs. Having written for theatre in the past, she knows that film writing is a different ballgame. “But Anurag wanted to narrate the story through a woman’s perspective. So after a lot of prodding, I did give it a shot.” 

She’s extremely ‘lazy’ when it comes to writing. She goes into full-throttle melodrama, points towards the ceiling and jokes, “I need some kind of inspiration to fall on me.” She adds cheekily, “Even Anurag is damn lazy. He occasionally needs a hard kick on the butt.” Kalki says that a deadline is her worst nightmare. She doesn’t believe in locking herself in a room and writing. “Even in school if we had to submit an essay, I’d be staying up all night and submitting it at the very last moment.” Her ideal place to write is Ooty. “My mom stays there. There is no cell network and it’s extremely peaceful.” (...)

Kalki has portrayed characters that belong to a foreign origin. This surely has limited her avenues as an actor. She agrees her appearance is a ‘realistic drawback’. “I look like a foreigner. (...) As an actor, I want to push my boundaries. But I can’t change the way I look.” Considering that she looks like a foreigner, a lot of people have advised Kalki to work in Hollywood. “I’d love to do French cinema. They have amazing filmmakers there. But I always want to be here, even if I get work abroad,” she states empathically. She believes Indian cinema is growing by leaps and bounds. “There is a distinct change. There are mainstream films being made for the masses but there are new filmmakers who are making a difference.” She adds she’d never be able to sign an out-and-out brainless, commercial caper. “I’d love to do a film like Band Baaja Baaraat. That was a commercial film too but it wasn’t nonsensical. I’d never do a brainless film even if it’s opposite Aamir Khan.” 

But being a Rajinikanth fan, Kalki confesses she’d blindly sign a film opposite him. “I’ve grown up watching his films and even if you know it’s wrong in every way, you still like it. I’d do pretty much anything with Rajinikanth, except a porn film,” she laughs. Jokes apart, Kalki states that the reason why masala films don’t come her way is because she isn’t a commercially saleable actor. “Today, either it’s a new face or a face that is saleable at the box office. Acting isn’t the priority,” she points out. 

Among her contemporaries she thinks Priyanka Chopra has really evolved. “She may not have stood out in the beginning but Priyanka pushed the boundaries with Kaminey and 7 Khoon Maaf. People may not like her movies but her performances have been brilliant,” she says. “And now she’s coming out with a music album. That’s awesome.”

Theatre has always been Kalki’s first love. “It makes you shed all your inhibitions. Also, there’s a live audience, you can’t lie to them, they’re right there,” she explains. Kalki recalls her school days where she was always part of the drama team. Later, in college, she studied theatre and completely submitted herself to the art form. Terming the process as ‘humbling’ she says, “I’ve seen people do other work to afford doing theatre because they don’t make enough money just acting in plays. They rehearse three months prior to the show. This kind of discipline I don’t see in people working in films.” Having said that she’s high on filmmaking. “I’m discovering more and more about filmmaking. It’s a lot subtler. In the end you don’t need to have the histrionics like plays do,” says she.

Talk about Anurag and Kalki becomes a different person altogether. She can’t stop blushing and seems more excited than ever. The couple recently got married with just close family and friends attending. Kalki didn’t want the marriage to turn into a social event. “Everyone had an awesome time at the wedding. There was absolutely no pressure. I was having breakfast with my pajamas on and then I changed into a saree and got married,” she laughs. She claims marriage hasn’t changed anything. “I've lived long enough with him to know his terrible habits. I haven’t found anything new to crib about,” she jokes.

But there are a few things about Anurag which bother Kalki. One of them being Anurag not taking out time for his daughter. “I told him that she would grow up in no time and show you the finger when she becomes a teenager,” she states. Kalki adds that Anurag isolated himself at a point when he was going through a traumatic phase fighting the norms of the industry. “I told him to take a step back, show what he’s got by shutting up and doing his work,” says she. Anurag seems to have followed his wife’s advise and he clearly is in a much happier space.

“I took him windsurfing and it was hilarious. He was in the water more than he was on the board,” she laughs. “We also go for treks to different places. He has been opening up. There has been a positive change in him. And it’s not forced.” She recalls Anurag’s sister warning her about how difficult it was to live with the man. “She told me, ‘He’s an impossible person to be with’,” she laughs. She admits that Anurag is a difficult person but adds, “If I had to take him seriously, I’d go nuts. But I wouldn’t claim that I have changed him. I just give him a nice slap occasionally,” she jokes. “He was always a positive person. But everyone saw the other side. So he conveniently played on that,” she reasons. “I think he just woke up to the reality that, ‘Oh yeah I was a normal person and I used to have fun.’”

The 10-year age gap between them doesn’t seem to bother Kalki. She thinks it works in favour of their relationship. “He’s lived more than I have and he’s gone through so much that he appreciates what he has with me,” she says. “I’ve been with many boyfriends who’ve been half-hearted. He’s wholehearted. That’s what I love about him”.'

Le prime dell'8 giugno 2012: Shanghai

Shanghai si preannuncia uno dei film più interessanti del 2012. Diretto dal talentuoso Dibakar Banerjee, è un thriller a sfondo politico, adattamento cinematografico di Z, romanzo del 1966 dello scrittore greco Vassilis Vassilikos. Dibakar ha lavorato per un anno e mezzo al progetto. I produttori hanno incontrato Vassilikos, il quale si è mostrato molto sorpreso ma soddisfatto della sceneggiatura. Il cast è di quelli da perderci il sonno. Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechlin, Emraan Hashmi e la superstar bengali Prosenjit Chatterjee, insieme sul grande schermo, costituiscono una golosità per veri appassionati di cinema indiano. Vishal-Shekhar firmano l'intrigante colonna sonora, che include anche un'item song, Imported Kamariya, visualizzata dalla modella britannica Scarlett Mellish Wilson. Il brano Bharat Mata Ki Jai vanta un testo redatto dallo stesso Banerjee, e in India ha suscitato un vespaio. Vi segnalo inoltre Khudaaya, Duaa, e Morcha. Trailer.

Aggiornamenti dell'8 giugno 2012:

- recensione di Raja Sen, Rediff, ****: 'At first glance, the irony is staggering. A country pretending to be another, brighter country, being shown up by a film that itself borrows form and content from another country. Yet so strident is Dibakar Banerjee's voice as a filmmaker that even this adaptation (...) is turned into a strikingly relevant story of our times and our crimes. (...) Banerjee's genius has always been most visible in his meticulous detailing, and this latest film is expectedly crammed with beautiful nuance. (...) The little touches are smashing, fleshing out most of the characters and making them into more than words and actors. Yet what words, what actors. Emraan Hashmi (...) delivers a knockout punch as he masters a complicated role. From his infuriatingly goofy laugh to poor attempts at making conversation, Hashmi proves himself the best of a very fine ensemble. (...) It's one of the best performances from one of our leading men in quite some time. (...) Bravo. (...) Banerjee must be lauded for not dumbing things down and creating a mature, serious film that engages, thrills and amuses. (...) Shanghai is all Dibakar, who we must lift on our shoulders with grateful pride. And we must exult in the fact that this D is never silent'.

- recensione di Mayank Shekhar: 'A picture that strikingly captures the chaos and curfews of middle India, (...) exposing the rule of the mob where democracy is merely centred on state-craft and elections, as against statesmanship or equality. (...) The first Indian mainstream film (...) to dig into the protocols and plotting that greases the wheels of Indian civil services. (...) We complain about the system quite often. Well, this is the system. Civil servants over time become minor mimics of the looting political masters they salute to. (...) A gritty drama, just as amusing as it is disturbing. Between artistry and analysis, Dibakar Bannerjee, without doubt the most exciting filmmaker around, chooses to entertain first. (...) Still, in its breathless pace, the narrative either skims over or completely overlooks several nuances and facets of Indian democracy that would play key roles in a high-profile case such as this. (...) Banerjee smartly finds in the book the compelling central conflict of rising India: displacement of poor locals versus development for richer millions; people’s empowerment versus nation’s economic growth. Neither side can be ignored. India, at present, houses the world’s largest number of people displaced for development projects. Not all of this movement could’ve been fair. (...) This is that important, universal story of modern India, interestingly told, enticingly captured. It must be watched, and relished, for sure'.

Aggiornamento del 12 giugno 2012 - Meet the spanking new Emraan Hashmi!, Shelly Walia, Rediff:

'"The film gives you a goodbye gift. One gets engaged and entertained while watching it, but in retrospect, you realise you are carrying with you a meaning, a message, a reality," says Banerjee. (...) "Abhay's role as a typical Tamilian bureaucrat did not come easy. The character is the voice of the establishment and has power, but is conservative. His character has shades of grey, which keep the audience guessing. To get the accent right, he had to undergo a month-long language workshop where he learnt to speak English and Hindi with a Tamil twang," says Banerjee. Deol also trained himself with the IAS [Indian Administrative Service] machinery to get the body language and the stern expression correct. "He plays a character much older than his real self. He needed to walk with a slight stoop, as someone who has led a sedentary life of working on the laptop for long hours," Banerjee adds.

For Hashmi's character, Banerjee needed an actor with whom the audience would connect. "Jogi is a street-smart cameraperson and part-time porn filmmaker. We researched quite a bit on porn filmmaking. The character had to appear dirty and sleazy, so we made him gain 10 kg. He had to have a paunch, blackened teeth and a darker complexion. He also took dancing lessons. Everything about him is in stark contrast to his earlier image," Banerjee says. (...)

Like Banerjee, Hashmi too steps into unexplored territory with Shanghai. A step away from the Mahesh Bhatt camp (most of his successful films have so far been with Bhatt) and in the midst of an offbeat cast, the actor outshines everybody else. But experts don't think this will do much to change his "lover boy" image. Hashmi today is the example of a successful actor with several box office hits, but one who has not been offered any brands to endorse. Brand strategy specialist Harish Bijoor says, "The movie will not help Hashmi in an image makeover, despite this being an out-of-the-box role for him. Brand advertisements are all related to happy stars." (...) John Abraham's happy-go-lucky image works well for him in the advertising space, though he is not as successful at the box office, Bijoor says. Brand expert Gullu Sen says that the Indian consumer is still very conservative. "It took Salman Khan years to rebuild his image. For Hashmi this must be a beginning, but there is a long way to go before he starts endorsing brands".'

Aggiornamento del 16 luglio 2012: ieri Shanghai è stato proiettato a Baghdad, alla presenza di Safia Taleb Ali al-Suhail, membro del parlamento iracheno, e del politico indiano Suresh Reddy. L'evento è stato organizzato a ridosso  della zona internazionale della città. La corrente elettrica è mancata un paio di volte, ma pare che il pubblico presente in sala - soldati compresi - abbia comunque apprezzato la pellicola. Shanghai è il primo film indiano proiettato in Iraq negli ultimi vent'anni.

Vedi anche:

- Abhay Deol e Emraan Hashmi nel nuovo film di Dibakar Banerjee: Shanghai

- Dibakar Banerjee: Emraan Hashmi wanted to look ugly

- Kalki Koechlin: Kissing on screen is not a big deal

- Emraan Hashmi: Never thought I would end up where I am today, 17 giugno 2012

- Dibakar Banerjee: I am anti-dumb, 23 giugno 2012

- The Dibakarian way of life, 18 aprile 2022

Kalki Koechlin: Kissing on screen is not a big deal

Prosenjit Chatterjee e Kalki Koechlin in Shanghai

Vi segnalo l'intervista concessa da Kalki Koechlin a Sonil Dedhia, pubblicata oggi da Rediff. Kissing on screen is not a big deal: 

'[In Shanghai] You play an Indian girl of mixed parentage who looks like a foreigner. Did your personal experience of growing up in Ooty help you?

Yes. I can definitely relate to my character Shalini's anger in the film. She is a small town girl and the people in the town see her as an outsider just because she looks like a foreigner. Even though she belongs to that town, people don't take her seriously and men try to lech at her. Looking back at my growing up days I can relate to all these things. (...)

Would you say it was an emotionally draining role?

Yes, it is one of the toughest roles that I have played so far. I was rewuired to cry and scream my head off. There are many moments in the film that are really intense. There is a scene in the film where I have to beat someone and it was really tough for me to do. We finished the film in a month. We shot in small towns in Latur and Baramati where there was no proper food or electricity. He [Dibakar Banerjee] almost made me cry during the shoot but I must say that the hard work has paid off.

You are working with Prosenjit [Chatterjee] and Emraan Hashmi for the first time. How was the experience?

I didn't know how big a star Prosenjit was before I worked with him in this film. He made us feel really comfortable. He would hang out with us and we ate together. He was very down to earth. On the other hand, I had an image in my mind about Emraan Hashmi that was very filmy and romantic. He got into his character right on the first day of the workshop. He totally surprised me. He has a great sense of humour.

The kissing scene between you and Prosenjit has been in the news...

Indian cinema is still at an adolescent stage when it comes to kissing or intimate scenes. The ban on kissing scenes in films was lifted in 1980 so it's about time that we get used to it. I don't think it is a big deal, nor do I think about it much. I really don't see it as controversial. The media creates the controversy. I think using the kissing scene in the promotions of the film was inevitable. If we don't use it to promote the film someone else will pick it up.  

There is a very funny incident which took place during the filming of the scene.

Yes, it was a very funny but an intense situation when we were shooting for the scene. Dibakar had given us standing instructions not to stop kissing till he says 'cut'. We started filming the scene and after a while we realised that Dibakar was oblivious to the fact that he had to say 'cut', and instead got busy shooting some other scene! I got very angry with him at that time (Smiles)'.