Vanaja - 9647

Product Description Set in rural South India, a place where social barriers are built stronger than fort walls, Vanaja explores the chasm that divides classes as a young girl struggles to come of age. Vanaja (Mamatha Bhukya) is the 14 year-old daughter of a poor, low caste fisherman, struggling with dwindling catches and mounting debt. When a sooth-sayer predicts that she will be a great dancer one day, she goes to work in the house of the local landlady, Rama Devi (Urmila Dammannagari), in hopes of learning Kuchipudi dance while earning a keep. Sexual chemistry is ignited between her and the landlady's son, but the situation suddenly turns ugly when Vanaja s superior intellect pits her against him in a public incident which ultimately humiliates him in front of his mother. Matters escalate, spiraling downwards and she is pitched into a tale of class, family and animus from which there is only one escape. Review Top 5 Foreign Films of 2007 "Beatuful and heart-touching film from India, represents a miracle of casting... Domalpalli tells his story with tender precision, and never an awkward moment" --Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times, 20th Dec 2007. "Absolutely Timeless" - New York Times "Auspicous Debut.. makes you eager for Domalpalli's next work" - Newsweek "A film that touches the heartstrings" - Variety "This is a movie exotic in look but recognizable in truth, the venture of a novice filmmaker very much ready for prime time" - LA Times "If Domalpalli keeps this up, he might become something new for movies - a discreet combination of Satyajit Ray and Douglas Sirk" - Boston Globe "Meet bright-eyed Vanaja.. possessed of a spirit as large and a smile as wide as the Indian Ocean" - --Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer "Sublime Direction... Wonder Filled Film" --San Francisco Chronicle, 5th October, 2007 About the Actor Mamatha Bhukya, who plays Vanaja, was born on the 14th of July 1991 in a village called Garjanapalli in Andhra to Vijaya and Bhukya Loomna Naik. She is the youngest of 6 girls in a family where her father works as a forest officer and her mother is a housewife. She was studying in the eighth grade of a Telugu medium government school when she was selected and cast in the film. Never having learned dance or acting before was as intimidating as it was challenging, since she had to learn both within a year. Although her initial ambition was to be a doctor, given the time spent in training for the film, and the enormous amount she feels she has learned, she is now determined to make her mark as an actress and a Kuchipudi dancer. Her favorite scene in the film is the one where Vanaja returns with her father to the landlady s house begging to be taken back. Although only 15, she feels that she internalized the character of a mother so deeply that she couldn t stop crying even well after the scene was over. It was also one of the happiest moments for her to see tears in the eyes of the watching crew. They were so moved that they couldn t help but burst into heartfelt applause as she was led out. About the Director Rajnesh Domalpalli comes from Hyderabad, in South India. He was born in Chennai, but spent his childhood in small rural towns associated with dam construction projects where his father worked as a civil engineer for the Andhra government. After completing his B. Tech in EE from the IIT Mumbai in 1984 and an MS from SUNY, SB in 1986 he worked as a Computer Engineer in California s Silicon Valley before deciding to take up Film at Columbia University in New York and graduating with an MFA in 2006. Vanaja is not only his first Feature but also his Thesis at Columbia. The film won 32 International Awards, including the Best First Feature at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival. Rajnesh loves writing, and feels that it is the greatest challenge in making a good film. While at the IIT, he had dabbled in penning short stories during his spare time, and one of these, The Dowry was eventually picked up and broadcast b
ASIN: B0013K8LC0
VSKU: 4EKGRJ009INS_ns
Condition: Good
Binding: DVD