Nostalgia will be the abiding flavour at the 10th edition of the Pune International Film Festival Tributes and retrospectives are de rigueur at film festivals. But the 10th edition of the Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) comes after a year of many high profile people from the industry passing away. No wonder then,that the tribute section this year has been just as carefully picked and scheduled as the movies in the competition section. The week-long film festival that begins from January 12 will showcase 13 tribute films. With so many big personalities connected to the film industry passing away,and we being so close to Mumbai,the heart of the industry,Pune cant afford not to have a tribute section, says Prashant Pathare,director of National Film Archives of India (NFAI). A unique feature of the tribute screenings will be inclusion of artistes who were not directly connected to the industry,but have influenced the process of film-making in a big way. So sharing space in the same list as producer-director Nasir Hussains tribute to late director-writer Sachin Bhowmick,is James Beveridges homage to late Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. Its great that the contribution of artists like art director Samir Chanda (by director Vishal Bhardwaj),even though it was technical,is being recognised. It is important that people understand that film-making is a team process,its not just the producer,director and the actors who make a film, says Pathare. Film tributes to theatre doyen Satyadev Dubey,actor Dharam Dev Pishorimal Anand,Bengali actor Gita Dey,English conductor and music composer,John Barry,actor Shammi Kapoor,singer Bhupen Hazarika,director Mani Kaul,American actor Anne Francis,artist MF Husain,and actor Elizabeth Taylor are in order this year. Besides the films,a poster exhibition of the luminaries will open at the NFAI. The archive has pulled out 90 old film posters from its extensive repertoire of 40,000 in order to add to the nostalgia. Tributes have been a regular feature of PIFF over the years. We believe in honouring an artist through his lifetime,as well as remember his contribution when he is gone. The NFAI exhibition this year has extended this trend, says director Jabbar Patel.
