Mangaluru: The 65th National Film Awards, announced on Friday saw the regional cinema giving the Hindi cinema a run for its money.
Announcing the list of winners that encompassed cinematic gems from the length and breadth of India, Shekar Kapur said, “The standard of performances in some of the regional films is completely stunning. Hindi films cannot compete with them, not in the state they are… And I know why… Our Hindi films try too hard to become everything. These are rooted and that’s why they are able to make it.”
Has anyone heard of Tulu?” Kapur added as he stressed that the awards was a perfect example of national integration in our country.
Tulu… you’ve heard it right. For one of the movies that made it to the award winning list was Coastalwood’s movie titled Paddayi’. Directed by award-winning director Abhaya Simha, Paddayi bagged the Best Tulu Film in 2017 category.
Based on the fishing community, the film is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ and has for the very time in the history of Coastalwood made use of the sync-sound technology. The film has been shot in 21 days between August and October last in Mangaluru region.
The film’s story revolves around a newly married and ambitious couple Madhava and Sugandhi who set out to avenge the betrayal of promises of a better life made by fleet owner Dinesha. The story soon turns into a tale of murder and regrets.
Mangaluru’s Abhaya Simha is a Film and Television Institute graduate. His first film Gubbachigalu won the National Award for the Best Children’s film and was screened in several National and International Film Festivals. He has also directed Shikari, a Kannada-Malayalam bi-lingual film and another Kannada film Sakkare.
