IFFI 2023: A trip to Film Bazaar, which has something to offer everyone

For people like that young woman, whose name I will not reveal because of her struggle with a patriarchal family set-up to be here, this could be the place her dream of becoming a filmmaker could turn into reality. For businessman-turned-ardent cinephile-cum-producer Sanjay Gulati, the Bazaar is the place which gave him a crucial leg-up into the world of movies. The unassuming P S Vinothraj, whose brilliant debut feature Pebbles (2021) has made him a director to look out for, is busy collecting accolades.

‘Family Men’ Raj and DK, who have had successful previous bazaars, show up as special guests for the closing ceremony. For all these people — aspirants, established filmmakers, sales agents, programmers — as well as those of us whose business it is to track exciting new voices in the Indian and South Asian filmmaking sphere, it has been the go-to section of IFFI since it started, in 2007.

I remember fetching up, completely out of curiosity, that first year when it had all the signs of a scrappy start-up — functioning out of four makeshift tents on the lawns at the Marriott Hotel, located down the road from Panjim’s Inox Complex which hosts the IFFI screenings — and discovering a small, dedicated team powered with the gung-ho spirit of creating something fresh. For too long, the NFDC, which had been at the vanguard of India’s sparkling parallel cinema movement in the 80s and early 90s (Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Mirch Masala, Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro) and a host of other memorable films, had been in a state of terminal decline, and I was hard put, as were other IFFI veterans, to understand how it would be pulled out of the doldrums.

But what I saw in that inaugural edition with its handful of participants convinced me that this was a ‘vertical’ which would grow if it got that initial push. All the biggest, worth-your-while film festivals, especially Cannes which was the role model for IFFI when it made a permanent stopover in Goa after being a travelling-around-India event, get their heft from a market where the business of buying and selling happens in real earnest.

That year was a tipping point. In its new avatar, NFDC got the boost it required, and is now the umbrella organisation under which the festival is organised. Over the years I have seen it expand from that tiny beginning to a four-day event bustling with energy, the expansive lobby of the Marriott ,with the panoramic view of the glittering ocean, turning into a spot to meet-and-greet our favourite Bazaar regulars, all rushing about dividing their time between discussion panels and meetings, and yes, the evening networking dos where everyone gets a chance to unwind after a hectic day.

I’ve made it a point to never miss the Bazaar, a vital platform that gives me a first look at ideas which may or may not bloom, projects in their nascent or almost-complete stages in search of like-minded co-producers, a viewing room which offers a taste of the works-in-progress: it’s where I saw the impressive early cuts of The Lunchbox, Ship Of Theseus, Tumbbad, and so many other wonderful films that came out of the Bazaar in a polished, finished version. This is where you get a glimpse of the on-going independent filmmaking talent in the country, something of real value to all of us hoping to spot the next big thing.

The only trouble with the busy schedule at the bazaar is not being able to see the films creating major buzz. Among others, I have my eye on Gandhi Talks, a ‘silent’ film by Kishore Pandurang Belekar, starring Vijay Sethupathi, Arvind Swamy and Aditi Rao Hydari, with music by A R Rahman. The premiere was house-full; here’s hoping it comes to the theatres soon.