The ship sets sail

By engaging with the audience personally,Anand Gandhi is able to take Ship of Theseus beyond the cities it released in

It opened in 21 screens across five cities — Mumbai,Delhi-NCR,Kolkata,Pune and Bangalore — on July 19. But Ship of Theseus is set to outdo itself as the films shows are mostly house full and screens have almost been doubled in the second week to 40. Also,director Anand Gandhis feature film debut is now reaching out to the audience in cities other than the ones where it earlier released as Kochi,Chennai,Ahmedabad and Baroda join the list. We opened also at Hyderabad last week after an audience poll showed that the city has an audience for the film. The films performance has been consistently improving, says the director.

A chiefly English language film,Ship of Theseus heavily draws from its titular paradox as it attempts to start a dialogue with the audience. Viewed as heavy on philosophy,the film industry was skeptical about the viewer reaction. However,Gandhi admits he was confident even when he set out to make the film as it was meant to perform the original function of cinema as a medium: to engage as well as entertain.

This engagement with viewers is also what Gandhi has used to draw the audience to the theatres and keep them hooked after the films release. As opposed to the usual film marketing strategies,the 32-year-old chose to create awareness and dialogue on the subjects that have helped him explore the Theseus paradox. For instance,holding panel discussions in colleges alongside medical professors to discuss organ donation. He also used social networking media to reach out to the youth.

But the most gratifying have been the talks that have followed my movie screenings, admits Gandhi,who has been constantly taking part in discussions with his audience. The filmmaker was part of a similar session on Wednesday at a Bandra eatery,hosted by a magazine,where the conversation extended beyond the films storyline to address the many triggers present in the film. The audience spoke about our existence as human beings as comprising of a colony of other micro-organisms and what freewill in such cases implies, he recounts. On Wednesday,Gandhi was also part of two impromptu question-and-answer sessions with his audience after the films screenings at a multiplex in Nariman Point.

While each of these sessions has been fulfilling,Gandhi admits he hasnt faced any real criticism. Talking about the claims made by a few detractors that Ship of Theseus is rather shallow,the director says the film does leave the audience with ample to mull over and it is up to an individual to explore the ideas. I dont wish to spoon feed them. Groups have come up on Facebook,where strangers are meeting to discuss the film after having watched it. That is the power of cinema and it is what I wished to explore through Ship of Theseus.

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