Bhar Dupari, the National Award winning Marathi Short Film directed by Swapnil Vasant Kapure and Happy Birthday directed by Medhpranav Babasaheb Powar screened at Indian Panorama section in IFFI Goa 2018

Swapnil Vasant Kapure, Director of the Marathi short-film, Bhar Dupari, the National Award Film, while attending the International Film Festival of India Goa 2018, said that with the selection of the movie in the Indian Panorama, after winning the National Award had increased the responsibilities further.

While addressing the joint media conference, along with Medhpranav Babasaheb Powar, Director of the Marathi short-film, “Happy Birthday“, Kapure said, “Let me share my belief is that the content is the core element of a film, while every medium has it own way of presenting content. While television is a close-up medium and cinema, a wide-shot medium, nevertheless, content is same for both the mediums. What is more, when you learn about he content, you learn about the aesthetics of the medium. Normally, television content tries to cater to the tastes and demands of viewers; however it is sometimes imposed on viewers as well. Even then, at the end of the day, it is popular support that determines television content.”

While sharing his experience on the making of the film, Happy Birthday, Powar said, “Happy Birthday is a story of a child and his father. As children, we are unaware of the sacrifices our parents make, though we harbour certain expectations from them. The movie is an attempt to explore the idea of this dynamics in the relationship between a father and child. For me, cinema is about telling stories and portraying them effectively. If you have a good story, it can be easily presented in any medium. Being a diploma film, we shot it within the range of 50 kilometres from FTII campus, as per rules of the course. Finding a child actor for the role was a big ask. A lot of improvisation was done during the shooting. I would love to work on content which is both entertaining, at the same time contemporary.”

The PIB statement said that both the directors believed that despite it being difficult for short films to get screened in theatres, nevertheless, they have a future in India as short films are getting popular in smaller cities as well. However, short films are yet to find a way to earn a respectable profit, the OTT platforms can be of help here.

Bhar Dupari is Swapnil Vasant Kapure’s FTII diploma film; it won special mention award in non-feature film section at 65th National Film Awards. It also received accolades at film festivals across the country, including at Mumbai International Film Festival. The film is “an insightful portrayal of a woman finding courage to fight her demons”.

Synopsis of Bhar Dupari:

Suhas and Sneha are expecting their first child after a five-year wait. Sneha is seven months pregnant. One pleasant Sunday, when they are about to leave shop for the upcoming baby shower, an unexpected incident changes their lives drastically. They not only lose their unborn child, but also get trapped in a sequence of uncontrollable events. They decide to spend some time in their village, but their problems get escalated when they meet another mother who also lost her son.

Happy Birthday, a FTII TV course final fiction film directed by Medhpranav Powar has also won the award for the best film on family values at 65th National Film Awards. The film is “a meaningful exploration of a small boy’s changing attitude towards his father’s sacrifice and love.”

Synopsis of Happy Birthday:

Sharad, a machine operator at a workshop, works part-time as a mascot entertainer at birthday parties. One day, he gets a gig at a birthday party of his son Aakash’s friend. He manages to hide himself from Aakash, who enjoyed his act, but is noticed by a child. Next day at school, Aakash is teased for his father’s party mascot act. Aakash is shocked and feels insulted, but he eventually understands why his father does that and accepts the reality wholeheartedly.