Paltadacho Munis | |
---|---|
Directed by | Laxmikant Shetgaonkar |
Written by | Mahabaleshwar Sail |
Produced by | NFDC |
Starring |
Chittaranjan Giri Vasant Josalkar Prashanti Talpankar Veena Jamkar |
Cinematography | Arup Mandal |
Edited by | Sankalp Meshram |
Music by | Ved Nair |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 96 minutes |
Country | India |
Language | Konkani |
Paltadacho Munis or The Man Beyond the Bridge is an Indian film in Konkani directed by Laxmikant Shetgaonkar. Set in Goa, the film is about a recently widowed forest ranger in a dwindling forest, who strikes up an unlikely relationship with a woman he finds lost and alone in the woods. The film tries to destigmatise mental illness, often equated with being possessed by the devil in rural India. [1]
The film was premiered at 2009 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI Prize) for Discovery. [2] It was chosen as opening film of the Indian Panorama section at the 40th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) 2009. [3] Thereafter it went to receive international critical acclaim, [4] including the narrative jury award at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles. [2] It was included in the world's best films of 2009 list. [5] According to a review, it strikes a perfect balance between the personal and the political. Laxmikant's cinema is rich in metaphors, remarkable in its restrain and exciting in its modern sensibility. [6] The film won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Konkani at the 57th National Film Awards. [7] [8] The film was also nominated for the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) award, Berlin. [9]
Shetgaonkar's next film was Baga Beach.
Vinayak (Chittranjan Giri) is a forest guard who lost his wife to a wild beast. He now lives all by alone in the forest. He then meets a mentally unstable woman (Veena Jamkar). Gradually, the two develop a unique bond. Meanwhile, the local priest and an aspiring politician connive to build a temple on forest land. [10]