‘Young people do not take serious cinema lightly’

The enthusiasm among students at the idea of a film club at the campus level shows that our young people do not take serious cinema lightly,said filmmaker Shyam Benegal. He was in the city for the inauguration of the Pune University Campus Film Society,the 25th campus film society in Maharashtra.

Talking about lack of a platform for discussion on cinema,Benegal said,“While the DVD revolution has indeed made films more accessible,it has also proved to be a double-edged sword. Though we now have access to films from practically any corner of the world,it has also contributed to cinema not being a social viewing experience any more. People now prefer watching films at home now. This in turn has led to a lack of discussion on cinema and lack of an environment that harnesses critical appreciation of films. The in-depth understanding of a film reaches another level at discussion on films,rather than deciding whether they like or dislike a film. So the revival of film society movement is to play a vital role in this process.”

He further added that the film society movement that was started by legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray in 1949 brought in the culture of studying the language of cinema like one studies art or literature.

“I’d hate to ‘leave my brains behind’ when I go to watch a movie. While many such movies go on to become huge blockbluster successes,I don’t know if they have anything creative in them,” he said.

The Pune University Campus Film Society will be open for membership for students and staff of UoP with an annual membership of Rs 50. Today Benegal’s film Samar was screened and soon more experts are expected to come when two screenings a month will be held.

Marathi department head Vidya Tilak said,”Though there were informal clubs in the universityt at various departmental levels,this is the first inter-departmental club started by the Marathi department. The vice-chancellor or the acting vice-chancellor will preside over the club.