Kolkata :
A moving tale of an autistic child has earned independent filmmaker Amrita Dasgupta the `Best Director’ award at the first International Film Festival for Persons with Disabilities, organized by the Union government. She received the trophy from I&B minister of state Rajyavardhan Rathore in Delhi a couple of days ago.
The film, `The New Girl in Class’, was produced by Public Service Broadcasting Trust and Doordarshan. “They take proposals for films every year, and I had sent mine. I made the film after it was selected,” said the Delhi-based Amtrita, who graduated from Calcutta University . “The screening was with special educators and children with disabilities. Every child could relate to it, which I didn’t expect. I never thought of children as the target audience; it is primarily meant for parents and teachers,” Dasgupta said.
The filmmaker credits her stay at her ancestral home on Hindustan Road for helping her develop a passion for art and culture, which later became a profession.
“I’m trying to bring the film to Kolkata. I’m arriving on December 19 and I’ll try to screen it,” she told TOI.
City musician Mainak `Bumpy’ Nag Chowdhury has composed the soundtrack for the film. The film explores the possibility of education for children with autism in regular schools.
It traces a mother’s perseverance over the years to improve her daughter’s condition with autism -her behaviour, communication and learning ability. Her struggle does not end with her daughter’s admission to a regular school, but continues every day with a greater zeal to ensure her learning as she shadows her to school and other remedial classes.
While announcing the dates for the film festival last week, Lov Verma, the secretary at department of empowerment of persons with disabilities, ministry of social justice and empowerment, had said it was organized to recognise the spirit of persons with disabilities.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Kolkata / by Shounak Ghosal, TNN / December 07th, 2015