A day before the Seventh International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDSFFK) began, Bina Paul Venugopal, the face of the international film festivals of Kerala, is busy, as usual in her office. In the midst of taking calls and looking into last-minute arrangements for the festival, Bina pauses for some time to talk about her 12-year-stint as artistic director and deputy director of the Kerala Chalachitra Academy. Under Bina’s able leadership, the festival became democraticised and accessible and democratised, with the participation of people from all walks of life. It lost its inclusive image, with students, homemakers and professionals rubbing shoulders with cineastes, critics and filmmakers.
Despite her sterling work and commitment, it is a mystery why successive governments were keen on keeping her as deputy director and not giving her the top posts in the Academy. However, Bina refuses to discuss such issues and is looking ahead to her next assignment as Principal of the L.V. Prasad Film Academy that is coming up in the city. Excerpts from a conversation with the cineaste and curator:
What is the significance of a festival like the IDSFFK?
All over the world documentaries are gaining importance on account of the issues they cover. In India too, there are many filmmakers making short films and documentaries of different kinds, films that go beyond the obvious. All kinds of people are making films – on mobiles, videos, rudimentary cameras, on campuses and offices. But in India, where is the context for them to showcase their work? We provide them that platform to watch other films, interact with filmmakers and so on.
Are documentaries fiction or all about reality?
At present, the line between documentary and fiction is very thin. For instance, on one hand, we are showing a film Gare du Nord . It is a railway station in Paris and we see this group of people meeting and their lives then on. This also raises questions of immigration, the journeys of life and so on. Is it fiction or non-fiction? All this is creating a debate. Invisible Wars , on the other hand, is about gender discrimination in the U.S. Army.
You can never get to watch such a diverse range of films from all over the world on issues that are making headlines. Then there are issues that are often hidden from the mainstream, issues that we ought to be aware about. For instance, there is Saba Dewan’s film on the tawaif tradition.
There seems to be many women who are making short films?
If you look at the number of women who are making documentaries and short films, you can see that it is significantly more than the number of women making feature films. Documentary filmmaking does not involve the manpower and budgets required by feature films these days. So many women have found in it an ideal medium to explore the subaltern, alternative subjects and marginalised issues. Many women filmmakers feel at home in this medium.
Filmmakers like national-award winning director K.R. Manoj began by making documentaries…
Actually there is Manoj, Vipin Vijay and many others too. But we have not done enough. Shiny Benjamin is doing good work as a documentary filmmaker. I feel one should also have mentoring workshops for aspiring filmmakers to groom them and show them different perspectives of filmmakers.
You have also groomed a number of young filmmakers who are now coming into their own…
Yes, both men and women. I am glad I was able to do that.
Looking back and forward, as you move on, what are your thoughts?
It has been a great journey. As a passionate lover of cinema, I have been able to travel, watch films, interact with great filmmakers. But it is time to move on.
There is some confusion as to whether the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) should be a people’s festival or restricted to filmmakers and cineastes. In my mind, there is no confusion. Since, government money is involved, it should be a people’s festival and I am glad that the IFFK attracts a very diverse crowd. For instance, there is a nurse from the Sri Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences who takes leave for a week to see movies.
Editing, what I was trained for in the Film and Television Institute of India, has always been of fascination for me. I will accept more assignments now. The last film I edited was my husband, Venu’s film Munnariyippu .
I am a hands-on person and I guess the IFFK did bear my stamp of working. There is a sense of satisfaction as I move on to take new challenges.
