25th Madurai Film Festival - YMCA Hall

25th Madurai Film Festival 2023
Screening Schedule 

6-10 December
 YMCA Hall



 6 December; 5.30 pm 


Insides and Outsides

Dir: Arbab Ahmad; 53 min; Documentary; India



Insides and Outsides starts its journey from the end of 2019, when the government approved discriminatory citizenship laws and a Nazi Germany-esque registry, the combination of which threatened violent disenfranchisement of India's Muslim community. In response to brutal state crackdown against Muslim students protesting the laws, massive gatherings led by Muslim women, sat vigil at neighbourhood-run, self-sustaining 24-hour sit-ins. Arbab's sense of identity as a Muslim and his responsibility towards the community were jolted awake. 


The Sea & Seven Villages 

Dir : Himansu S Khatua; 56.46 min; Documentary; India 


Sea level rise along the Bay of Bengal, coastal erosion, frequent cyclones and mismanagement of coastal land have resulted in destruction of homes, agricultural lands and the entire settlement of Seven Villages of Kendrapara district of Odisha, India. People of these villages migrated from their birth place and became refugees in their own state.


A Hero of Our Time

Dir : Svetla Tsotsorkova, Svetoslav Ovcharov; 58 min; Documentary; Bulgaria


Georgi is a village builder contractor. He's honest and direct. His values and moral system often clash with contemporary society's. Seen as crazy by some, he is a source of endless aphorisms to others. To live your life with dignity and without compromise in our time is heroic. 



7 Dec; 5.30 pm 


The Club 

Dir : Nalini Elvino de Sousa; 54.34 min; Documentary; India / Tanzania 




A documentary that portrays the life of Goans in Tanzania and the club that united them.


P for Pyaaz (Onion), P for Paisa (Money), P for Paani (Water)

Dir: Laxminarayan Devda; 56:14; India; Documentary


In the fragile hydrogeological region of Narmada valley, a sizable number of affluent farmers descend from the rich Malwa plateau to take land on lease from marginal farmers at an attractive price. They grow onion, a highly lucrative commercial crop, a trend that is soon followed by the local farmers as well. But Onion is a water-intensive crop - while the cash income is the target, what is the impact of the new practice on the depleting groundwater table? The filmmaker follows one season of farming and the market vulnerability of the perishable cash crop of onion against the fragile landscape.


INDOCAM

Dir : Alexander Hahn; 78 min; Documentary; United States


«INDOCAM» is an experimental travelog documenting my trip from New York to India, covertly filmed with a concealed wristwatch camera. By avoiding the intrusive presence of a traditional cinematic apparatus, I was able to engage in genuine interactions and unscripted dialogues with individuals from various domains, including private, cultural, political, and public figures in both the United States and India.


8 Dec; 5.30 pm 


Other Kohinoors, the Rocks of Hyderabad 

Dir : Uma Magal; 48.49 min; Documentary; India 




A documentary love letter to the rocks of Hyderabad, celebrating their infusion in the areas cultural imagination, calling to retain the rocks that remain. The hope is growing with the outreach happening with this film, that showcasing the respect and affection with which the culture treats the environment & landscape will reignite that connection to the landscape today.


Interaction with Uma Magal, filmmaker


My Radio My Life

Dir : Bidit Roy, Makarand Waikar; 68 min; Documentary; India 


Set in the 21st century, the film revisits the golden era of radio in India, when it was the dominant, popular, and only source of entertainment, news, and knowledge.


Parallels

Dir : Benoit; 65 min; Documentary; France


A wandering documentary. Images, lives and words in voiceover. Artists, workers, political prisoners, migrants, farmers, women and men wonder what they are doing with their lives. Ask, contemplate. Facing the animal world, the power of nature. Dream. Seek balance.



9 Dec; 5.30 pm 



Blue ID

Dir: Burcu Melekoglu, Vuslat Karan; 84 min; Documentary; Turkey



Rüzgar Erkoçlar, a former famous actor, struggles with self-realization and acceptance in the traditional society of Turkey under the media spotlight as a trans man.


Congo Calling

Dir : Stephan Hilpert; 90 min; Documentary; Germany


In crisis-ridden eastern Congo, three European development aid workers are forced to question what it means to help. Deeply personal insights into coexistence and cooperation between Europe and Africa – and the question: how helpful is the help of the West?


10 Dec


Award ceremony and screenings

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