Movies

Grahanam film has won Indira Gandhi National Award for best first film. On this eve, the unit of Grahanam arranged a screening of this film at Prasad labs followed by a press meet. Here are the excerpts of the press meet -

Taking Telugu cinema into International arena - Mohana Krishna
I am a fan of Chalam and I want to take the Telugu cinema onto national and international arena. The credit for this award which was selected on the basis of best debutant director goes to the entire team of cast and crewmembers. I would like to thank Tanikella Bharani who has taken great interest in the film and given tremendous support.

Gross injustice to Grahanam at National Awards - Tanikella Bharani
In an emotional speech Tanikella Bharani said, "It had been my dream to act in an art film for the past 21 years. I am feeling really glad to be the part of Grahanam team. There is a general notion that only Bengali and Malayali filmmakers are capable of making award winning art films. Mohana Krishna proved them all by making Grahanam film in Telugu. Chalam ruled the literary world of Andhra Pradesh for a decade around 50 years back. But none of our Telugu filmmakers came forward to adapt any of his stories to make films."

"In an interview given to Eenadu newspaper, Vanisri (a jury member of National Awards Committee) gave a bold statement that the entire process of awards is a farce. She also said that Grahanam were to win best regional Telugu film, Best director and best cinematographer award along with Indira Gandhi Award for the first film. But due to politics and insistence of certain jury members with vested interest, we lost those truly deserving awards to other films."

"The producers came forward to make this film not for money, but for satisfaction of making a good film. No distributor was interested to watch this film. The plight of art film producers are in bad shape now. One filmmaker ended his life through suicide for not being able to finish his documentary on Gurajada Appa Rao due to immense pressure from financiers. Luckily for Grahanam, the AP Stage Government has given subsidy. Since it also won National awards, the decks are clear now for public release of this film. Grahanam was in docks for over a year due to lack of buyers."

Actor Surya said that he is proud to be associated with National award winning films like Show and Grahanam. Actress Jayalalitha said that this is the only film that has given her immense job satisfaction in her entire career. Actor Sivannarayana said that he came from theater background and it was very difficult to adapt the stories of Chalam for plays. He commended the ability of Mohana Krishna in adapting Doshagunam story to Grahanam film without losing essence.

Producers said that Grahanam was selected for film festivals like Seattle First Independent South Asian Film Festival 2004 and Mumbai Asian Film Festival 2004. The government has given tax holiday to Grahanam film. This film would be released very soon in AP.
Film has not reached target audience, feels director Mohan Krishna
It is based on Chalam's short story Doshagunam
The story explores complexities in man-woman relationship
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Very few serious-natured literary works in Telugu have been made into films after Kanyasulkam, and Mohan Krishna Indraganti always wanted to adapt Chalam's works into screen.

So, he picked Chalam's short story, Doshagunam and the result is Grahanam.

"I have read most of his short stories. He is one of the few writers whose works can be adapted into filmsThere are many writers whose works are good but can't be made into movies. I don't think they need not be adopted at all," the young director, who recently bagged the Nandi for Grahanam.

Mohan Krishna wanted to show how Chalam, rather brutally, analysed the man-woman relationship. This relationship could not be easily categorised into one between a husband and a wife, a father and a daughter or a sister and a brother. It was inexplicable.

Grahanam is about the complex way in which the female sexuality is controlled in a patriarchal society. A superstition that a teenager will suffer due to "Doshagunam" when he has physical relationship with a woman older to him, pushes the life of a rich man's wife into tragic circumstances.

Mr. Mohan Krishna said the name of the short story, Doshagunam, was changed into Grahanam to symbolically explain how lives of two persons get eclipsed.

The film has a Visakhapatnam link too. Chalam's daughter Sourees lives in Bheemunipatnam and the director came to her in 2003 to seek her approval to make the short story into a film.

Many laurels, but...


But despite winning the National award for debut director's film in 2005, followed by the State Government's Nandi award, laurels at the international film festivals at Kolkota and in Kerala, Grahanam is still facing distribution problems.

The film is not released commercially in the port city. It was released in Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Kakinada, Rajahmundry, etc., but ran for a week. Those who watched the film liked it but it had a short run.

``I don't think it reached the target audience. A good cinema theatre to screen the film is almost impossible to get. People coming to see this movie want a comfortable theatre," he explained. Lack of experience on the part of producers was also one reason. There was no publicity for the film. Instead of simultaneous release, the film should have been screened at one place at a time, he felt.

Please for theatres


In this connection, Mohan Krishna supported the actor-director R. Narayana Rao's plea to the Government to have a theatre of its own in some cities and towns in the State to exhibit Nandi and other award-winning films at a subsidised rate.

The Vizag Film Society arranged a screening of Grahanam here on Saturday. The society was arranging screening of films which did not have the commercial advantage of commercial screening, its secretary, Narava Prakasa Rao, said.


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