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MUMBAI: 4th June, 2013: YouTube and the Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India today released five short films produced by renowned film director and script writer Anurag Kashyap and his directors for a short film contest titled "India Is...a visual Journey". The five films were commissioned by YouTube under a joint initiative with MEA to showcase and celebrate India and her diversity on a global platform. Viewers all over the world will be able to enjoy the short films on YouTube on www.youtube.com/realindiais.
The five films produced by AKFPL in association with Viacom 18 motion pictures, focus on depicting India at a global stage highlighting the various virtues, culture, aspirations and dreams of Young India. The five films titled ?Hidden Cricket? by Shlok Sharma, ?Geek Out? by Vasan Bala, ?Moi Murjani? by Anubhati Kashyap, ?Epiphany? by Neeraj, ?Chai? by Geetanjali Rao will be promoted on YouTube as part of the ?India is? initiative by MEA.
Riva Ganguly Das, Joint Secretary and Head of Public Diplomacy Division of MEA, who was present at the launch, "?India Is? is the first web based campaign initiated by The Public Diplomacy Division of the MEA to connect and interact with people from all over the world and make them think about India. This was the second year of ?India Is? and we are delighted with the response, we have got from the initiative. With these five films we are confident that we will be able to inspire more Indians to come forward and participate in this initiative and help us to build the India brand further globally."
Commenting at the launch of the five films, Rajan Anandan, VP & Managing Director, Google India, said, "YouTube has great growth momentum in India and is at the heart of action in Asia. With over 1 billion users globally, YouTube is the pulse of what the world is watching on the web. Partnering with ?India is? is our endeavor to demonstrate YouTube?s commitment to India and its culture. Five films put together by Anurag Kashyap?s team, built around the theme of India on YouTube is a great example of how the video platform can be used to engage with users worldwide and build the India Brand further on a global stage. We hope that this initiative will further inspire Indians to come forward and share their stories on the world biggest platform for videos."
Speaking about his team and the films, Anurag Kashyap, said "When I was approached by Google to make short films for India Is, I brought together my team of very talented young professionals who have worked with me on several films like Dev D, Shor and Gangs of Wasseypur. I told them let?s put together films that really showcase the essence of India, spirit of India, the aspirations of Young India and the challenges of modern day life in India. We have tried our best to move away from the all touristy kind of films on India and focus on the real India."
He added, "I am very excited with the opportunity that is available to the young talented filmmakers in the country with platforms like YouTube. The new young India is empowered today because of the availability of platforms like YouTube. I hope these films will inspire more Indians to come forward to express themselves, make their presence felt and not be taken for granted."
Synopsis of the films:
Hidden Cricket by Shlok Sharma:
The movie depicts how cricket is part of every Indian?s life. A nation that loves cricket, lives cricket, beyond conventions and beyond rules. From breaking boundaries to breathtaking highs, a million cheers and a zillion sighs, such is the madness, such is the passion. To play it anywhere, any day, all the time, all the way.
Chai by Geetanjali Rao
The film is a sequence of montages that shows four different people making tea in a tea shop. A ten year old boy selling tea in Bombay at the Gateway Of India, An 18 year old girl with her tea shop in a mid level town, A 19 year old Kashmiri lad in a Barrista and An 80 year old man?s tea shop in a busy Kerala bus stand.
Through a series of sensuous shots that celebrate the process of making tea and everything that goes into it, and a series of painted graphics that recreate their thoughts, we get four different points of view of life. That of an innocent 10 year old who has escaped a violent life in his village, a spirited girl who has shunned child marriage, a slightly bitter yet adventurous Kashmiri boy who has escaped a false charge of stone pelting and an old wise though cynical Malayali who is skeptical of rapid change. The very same change, that the three youngsters pursue. And all this, over a cup of tea.While the youngest boasts that the British too came to India over a cup of tea, the oldest believes that tomorrow anyway starts like yesterday and the day before- over a cup of tea.
The film is a view of rapid change that India is going through and what it means to those people whose faces we never notice as we go along sipping our cup of tea everyday. Tea like the people of India changes with every language, culture, climate yet serves the same purpose everywhere always. A constant in a flux.
Geek Out by Vasan Bala:
The movie depicts the life of Geek - who is now empowered with Internet.
The dual lives we lead, that virtual alter ego we all have nurtured and empowered, The Indian "Geek" today is no longer that lad who sat in a corner. He could be that carefully framed picture on Instagram to that deadly opinionated Twitter handle or maybe that pop philosophy spitting Facebook page or that revolutionary blog that was created to change the world or just plain drowned into the Audio-Visual black hole "You-Tube". Day dreaming now has a new address, the world wide web. Dream on ! May the force be with the Geek!
Moi Murjani by Anubhati Kashyap:
The film is about, a spirited independent single mother struggles to provide a comfortable life for her son and herself. She runs a small Internet cafe in Patiala, Punjab for a living. The film highlights a phase in her life when love comes knocking on her door. If only its timing was right!
Epiphany by Neeraj:
After their college reunion in Pune, a divorced couple is forced to take a ride together to Mumbai. As they meet an old woman on the highway in desperate need of help, their disparate sense of morality, culture and class creates friction, scraping the wounds of past that they thought was long gone. Some journeys may not take you anywhere, but you do move on.
