15th edition of BIFFes concludes, Kannada film industry stalwart M S Sathyu gets lifetime award

Bengaluru: The 15th edition of the Bangalore Film Festival (BIFFes) concluded on March 7. This year, the lifetime achievement award was presented to Kannada film industry stalwart Mysore Srinivas Sathyu for his outstanding contribution to cinema.

Sathyu, who is best known for his 1973 film ‘Garm Hava’ also made a mark as a stage designer and art director and was awarded the Padma Shri in 1975.

Under the Indian cinema competition, Marathi film ‘Shyamchi Aai’, a film by Sujay Dahake on the Indian Independence movement in the 1930s, won the first place. The film, a black and white masterpiece adapted from the autobiographical novel of social worker and freedom fighter Sane Guruji, also won the FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics) award.

The second spot went to Tamil film ‘Ayothi’, a film by R Manthira Moorthy, which explores patriarchy. Third place was clinched by Malayalam film ‘Chaver’ by Tinu Pappachan. The film is a stylish postmodern noir thriller.

Under the Asian Cinema competition, the first place went to a Jordanian film directed by Amjad Al Rasheed. ‘Inshaallah A Boy’ is about the struggle of a woman to live in dignity. The second place went to ‘Sthal’, a Marathi film by Digambar Somalkar. The third place went to ‘Sunday’, an Uzbekistan film highlighting the struggle of an elderly couple as they come to terms with an ever-changing world.

Kannada film ‘Mithya’, from the stables of Paramvah Studios and directed by Sumant Bhat, which competed under the Asian Cinema category, received a special jury mention. The film is about an 11-year-old boy coming to terms with the tragic loss of his parents.

Under the Kannada film section, ‘Nirvana’ by Amar L, which focuses on the pains of pregnancy, won first place. ‘Kandeelu’ by Yashoda Prakash, which explores life in rural Karnataka, told through the viewpoint of a poor farmer, bagged second place, while third place was won by ‘All India Radio’ by Rangaswamy S, a film about the existential crisis of a folk singer whose life is upended by the onslaught of radio.

While ‘Kshetrapathi’, a film on the plight of farmers, by Shrikant Katagi received a special jury mention, Raj B Shetty’s sensitive handling of the theme of palliative care in ‘Swathi Mutthina Male Haniye’ won the NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema) Jury Award.