Mamata Shankar was bestowed with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Indo-Bangla Movie Festival

Dilip Guha, New Delhi: The fifth edition of the Indo-Bangla Movie Festival concluded on February 18, 2024, at Siri Fort Auditorium II in New Delhi. The event was successfully organized by Purple Touch Creatives in association with Probhas Kalyani Priti Trust to celebrate the vibrant and diverse film cultures of India and Bangladesh. The festival presented a selection of nine films that captivated audiences.

The festival opened with Kaushik Ganguly’s Ardhangini, a touching story about love, loss, and relationships. National award-winning actress and dancer Mamata Shankar was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the festival.

Asish Ranjan Das, the festival director, and founder of Purple Touch Creatives, handed over the award to her at a special function arranged during closing day. She was felicitated with a Dokhra art, the famous Paper Flower of Bankura, a shawl Bongojo and a citation. The eminent personalities who were present on the occasion were Roopa Ganguly, Shiboprosad Mukherjee, Zinia Sen, Abhijit Sreedas, Sujit Raha, Subhen Das, Siddhartha Bhaduri, Nabanita, Chatterjee, Dr Mousumi Dasgupta, Ila Maa, Amatava Mukherjee, Ushni Dasgupta, Subranshu Chakraborty, Prabal Basu, Ayushi, Subrata Das, Shantonil, Dr Supriyo Shikari Dasgupta, Sujata Mukherjee, Trina Bhattacharya.

She was overwhelmed after receiving the lifetime achievement and praise of the Indo-Bangla Movie Festival wonderfully organised by Purple Touch Creatives and Prabhas Kalyani Priti Trust. Her film Bijoyar Pore was screened, which delves into family ties against the backdrop of Durga Puja. She made her acting debut in 1976 in Mrinal Sen’s Mrigayaa, has appeared in over 40 films.

The festival also featured a tribute to the legendary filmmaker Mrinal Sen on his birth centenary with the screening of the movie “Palan”, directed by Kaushik Ganguly.

On the occasion, Asish Ranjan Das emphasizes that the festival aims to bring together cinephiles, filmmakers, artists, writers, and journalists to foster camaraderie through films and conversations. The festival meticulously curates films to ensure that they align with its objective of promoting the rich and diverse cultural heritage of the participating nations.

Das asserts that the event is not merely about watching good movies but also about providing a platform for the filmmakers of the screened movies to discuss their ideas, the obstacles faced during the journey of making these films, and the message they want to convey to society.

Two films from Bangladesh were screened at the festival, including the supernatural thriller Debi, directed by Anam Biswas, based on a novel by Humayun Ahmed. Another film, Padma Nadir Majhi, a joint production of India and Bangladesh, directed by the world-renowned director Gautam Ghose.

Two Assamese films were included in the festival, namely Tora’s Husband, a 2022 Assamese language film that has been written, shot, edited, produced, and directed by Rima Das. On the other hand, Guwahati Diaries, by Prasant Saikia, is a series of vignettes that focus on Guwahati locals seeking love and happiness.

The festival also screened two other films, Raktabeej, an action thriller co-written and directed by Nandita Roy and Shiboprosad Mukherjee, and Akorik, a family drama film directed by Tathagata Bhattacharjee.