Indian films 'Shivamma', 'The Winter Within' bag major awards at Busan Film Festival

Kannada movie Shivamma and actor-director Aamir Bashir's The Winter Within have won trophies at the 2022 Busan International Film Festival.

Shivamma, directed by first-time filmmaker Jaishankar Aryar, won the New Currents Award along with the Korean title A Wild Roomer.

Bashir's The Winter Within was adjudged the winner of KB New Currents Audience Award during the festival's closing ceremony on Friday.

Shivamma chronicles the story of a poor, middle-aged woman sales representative for an energy drink company, features Sharanamma Chetti and Chennamma Abbegere, and is produced by Kantara star-filmmaker Rishab Shetty.

According to festival organisers, the New Currents Award is given to the two best feature films selected from the first or second feature of new Asian directors introduced in the New Currents section of the festival. It carries a grand prize of $30,000 for each film.

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"We appreciated the originality and intensity with which the director was able to tell this very contemporary story. Here documentary and fiction meet in an organic and spirited way of making cinema.

"The generosity of the actors and the scenes create a closeness with this universal story that takes place in an Indian village," the jury, which included world-renowned film experts, said in a note shared on the festival website.

Aryar, who hails from Bengaluru, celebrated his debut film's win in a post on Instagram.

"Delighted to share the wonderful news that the new currents award of 27th Busan film festival goes to Shivamma. The first Kannada film to win this honour," the filmmaker said.

Bashir's The Winter Within is his second directorial effort after he made his debut with 2010's National Award-winning Urdu movie Harud.

It took home the KB New Currents Audience Award, which is given to the title that is most highly rated by festival audiences from the New Currents section.

The award carries a prize of $18,000 for the director.

The Winter Within is set in Bashir's native Kashmir, where small and big skirmishes and terrorist activities occur frequently due to the long conflict between India and Pakistan, as well as the border dispute with China, as per the official description on the website.

The story follows a domestic helper, named Nargis, who looks everywhere to find out whether her husband Manzoor, who was arrested after joining the armed rebellion, is dead or alive.

"She is fired when her employer learns that Manzoor is a militant. She returns to her hometown, and Yaseen, who has feelings for her, offers help. Then one day, Manzoor comes home, and the three of them experience subtle emotional changes," the official synopsis read.

Bashir, known for appearing in films and shows such as A Wednesday, Haider and Sacred Games, penned the movie's screenplay with filmmaker Shanker Raman. The two had earlier collaborated on Raman's 2017 acclaimed directorial Gurgaon.

Earlier, filmmaker Vinay Shukla’s documentary While We Watched, featuring news anchor Ravish Kumar, won the Cinephile Award at the film gala. The honour is given to the best Korean and Asian documentary film presented in the Wide Angle documentary showcase section.

While We Watched, which had its Asia premiere at Busan, is described as a turbulent newsroom drama that intimately chronicles the working days of broadcast journalist Kumar as he navigates a spiralling world of truth and disinformation.

The 27th edition of the Busan International Film Festival was held from October 5 to 14.