GUWAHATI, Nov 11 � Films by critically acclaimed directors like Dr Bhabendra Nath Saikia, Jahnu Barua, Manju Borah, Gautam Bora and others will be screened at the �Focus: North East� section of the forthcoming 44th International Film Festival of India, Goa.
The Assamese feature film Agnisnaan that earned rave critical reviews and directed by Dr Bhabendra Nath Saikia, Baibhav � A Scam in Verse directed by Manju Borah and Wosobipo directed by Gautam Bora and which is in the Karbi language are among the selected films from the North East.
Papori directed by Jahnu Barua and Hagramayo Jinahari directed by Jwngdao Bodosa (Bodo language) will also be shown at the section.
This section will be inaugurated on November 22 with a special opening ceremony and will end on November 27 with a special closing ceremony. Arup Manna directed Assamese film Aideu a biopic on Joymoti�s heroine Aideu Handique will be screened in the closing ceremony that will also have a performance of Manipuri martial arts Thang Ta.
In total 18 films from the North East will be screened in the section. On the other hand, one more film from the region in the section on musical films, plus one feature and three documentaries in Indian Panorama section will make the North East presence more vivid. In musical section on Indian cinema Chameli Memsab for which Bhupen Hazarika had won the National Award for Best Music in 1975 will be shown.
Ek Pal as homage to late Hemendra Prasad Barooah, who was its producer will be shown.
Khawnlung Run directed by Mapuia Chawngthu will be the opening film of NE section. Seema Biswas and Adil Hussain will grace the opening ceremony that will also have a special performance by the Naga folk fusion band purple fusion from Dimapur, Nagaland.
Rupkonwar Jyotiprasad Aru Joymoti directed by Dr Bhupen Hazarika, a documentary on the making of Joymoti, the first film in the North East made in 1935 by Jyotiprasad Agarwalla will be shown in the section. The documentary contains the only surviving portions of Joymoti. The other films in the section include Matamgi Manipur directed by Deb Kumar Bose, the first film in the Manipuri language made in 1972 and Haobam Paban Kumar�s documentary The First Leap, on how Matamgi Manipur was made, on the memory of actors of the Matamgi Manipur as they watch the film after 30 years of its making.
Sonam directed by Ahsan Majid in Monpa language from Arunachal Pradesh, Ishanou directed by Aribam Syam Sharma from Manipur, Kathaa directed by Prashant Rasailly from Sikkim, Ka Lad directed by Dondor Lyngdoh and Gautam Syiem from �Meghalaya, Songs of Mashangva directed by Oinam Doren from Manipur, Going the Distance directed by Tianla Jamir from Nagaland, Panoi Jongki directed by Dilip Doley and Narayan Seal in Mising language from Assam, Yarwng directed by Joseph Pulinthanath in Kokborok langauge and from Tripura are also to be screened.
�It needs to be mentioned here that the Northeast section has been designed by National Award-winning film critic Utpal Borpujari, who will also moderate a panel discussion on the region�s cinema. Among the participants in the discussion will be Sahitya Akademi Award winning author Yeshe Dorjee Thongchi from Arunachal Pradesh, Aribam Syam Sharma, Patricia Mukhim, actress Meena Debbarma from Tripura, Manju Borah from Assam, Mapuia Chawngthu from Mizoram, Prashant Rasailly from Sikkim and Tianla Jamir from Nagaland.
�The festival�s overall art director is veteran Assamese film director and painter Pulak Gogoi.
There will be cultural performances of Northeastern folk dances every evening during Nov 22-27 apart from handicraft exhibitions and Northeastern food stall.
�Manju Borah�s Mising language feature film Ko:Yad and documentaries Manipuri Pony by Aribam Syam Sharma, Resonance of Mother�s Melody by Dip Bhuyan and By Lane No. 2 by Utpal Datta, are part of the Indian Panorama section.