'Dollu' to compete in IFFI's 'Debut Competition' Section

Kannada movie 'Dollu', which sensitively portrays the story of vanishing folk dance 'Dollu Kunitha', is among nine feature films that will compete for honours in the 'Debut Competition' section in the India International Film Festival (IFFI).

Directed by Sagar Puranik, the film has newcomers Karthik and Nidhi Hegde in lead roles while director Pavan Wadeyar is the producer of the movie.

The 106-minute debut film of Puranik talks about how rapid urbanisation and exodus of villagers to cities like Bengaluru and Mumbai are leading to the extinction of folk arts and village culture. It was shot in locations across Shivamogga and Chitradurga.

The 'Debut Competition' section, which is aimed at bringing the best first-time filmmakers of the year, also has another Indian movie — Vivek Rajendra Dubey-directed Marathi movie Funeral.

Both films are also selected in the Indian Panorama section.

Ruben Sainz-directed Magodo, shot in Spanish and Brazilian-Portuguese, Iranian film Maman (directed by Arash Aneessee) and Greek film Pack of Sheep (Dimitris Kanellopoulos) are among other films by debutant directors.

Rain, a film in Estonian and Russian directed by Janno Jurgens, German film Sweet Disaster (Laura Lehmus) and Spanish film The Wealth of the World (Simon Farriol) and Zahori, a film by Mari Alessandrini in Spanish, Italian, English, Mapudungun also find space in this section.

Besides this, Marathi films 'Godavari' and 'Me Vasantrao' and Dimasa movie 'Semkhor' are among 15 films chosen for the international competition section at the IFFI starting in Goa on November 20.

This year besides Dollu, three other Kannada films -- Talendanda, Act 1978 and Neeli Hakki -- were among the 25 movies selected in the Indian Panorama section this year.

Hungarian filmmaker Istevan Szabo and American director Martin Scorsese will be honoured with Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award at the festival, which will also have retrospectives of master directors Bela Tarr and Andrei Konchalovsky and actor Rajanikanth.

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