Martin Scorsese to rescue Indian classics

Decades of tropical heat and humidity severely damaged the only known copy of Kalpana, and the film was close to being lost for ever. It has found an unlikely saviour - Martin Scorsese, reports Guardian.

Decades of tropical heat and humidity severely damaged the only known copy of Kalpana, and the film was close to being lost for ever. It has found an unlikely saviour - Martin Scorsese, reports Guardian.

The American director's World Cinema Foundation, set up to preserve classics of film history around the globe, plans to start restoring the neglected classic within months.

News that the director of Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver and Goodfellas has thrown his weight behind the project provoked delight among south Asian film buffs.

Guardian quotes Satish Kaushik as saying: "I was really thrilled when Martin Scorsese told me he was interested in all these old Indian dance classics. It's really good news. It's a great opportunity for a new audience in India and elsewhere to see these wonderful works."

Another Indian director, Deepa Mehta, who sits on the board of the WCF, confirmed Scorsese's personal interest and said it was important that such films were not lost. "We have become so overcome by Bollywood that Indian classic films get left by the wayside," Guardian quotes Mehta.