Indian works leave their mark at Toronto International Film Festival

Debut projects of three Indian directors were screened at the 10-day Toronto International Film Festival which concludes today. Most of the Indian film fraternity stayed away from the festival because of ban on direct flights to Canada due to Covid-19.

While Indian films made their presence felt at the 2021 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), there was a marked absence of talent from the country as a result of ban on direct flights from India to Canada that kept most filmmakers away.

A still from Ritwik Pareek-directed Dug Dug which has been screened at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Most of the Indian film fraternity stayed away from the festival because of ban on direct flights to Canada due to Covid-19. (TIFF)

Of the three directors who had their debut projects premiere at Toronto International Film Festival , only Mumbai-based Ritwik Pareek, director of the fiction feature Dug Dug was able to make it to Toronto. Even in his case, the hassles associated with getting a RT-PCR test in a third country before connecting to a flight to Toronto meant he missed the in-person world premiere of his own film.

Payal Kapadia, director of the documentary A Night of Knowing Nothing, also skipped the Toronto International Film Festival . And for Nithin Lukose, director of Paka, it wasn’t even possible to attend the festival as he has received the anti-Covid jab Covaxin, which is not recognised by Health Canada. That film was represented at the festival by Dallas-based producer Raj Rachakonda, while the other producer, Anurag Kashyap, a TIFF regular, couldn’t make it either.

Those were not the only lack of Indian presence. The large press contingent from India was missing and an industry event India@75, promoting the country as a film destination, was cancelled without explanation.

However, for Ritwik Pareek, the trouble he went through to attend TIFF in person was “totally worth it”. He described having his debut project Dug Dug, a satire on commercialisation of religion in India, showcased at TIFF as a “very big opportunity” and its selection in the official slate was “more than I could have asked for”.

In fact, its world premiere was at an IMAX theatre and came right after TIFF’s most high-profile presentation of the year, the science fiction epic Dune.

Nithin Lukose, meanwhile, participated in a virtual Q&A session after Paka’s premiere, and was excited at the opportunity, as he said, “It’s a matter of pride that a regional film like ours is getting a platform through a globally renowned festival like TIFF.”

A statement from the filmmakers said he and Anurag Kashyap couldn’t make it due to “travel restrictions changing by the moment and vaccine mandates not yet streamlined internationally.”

The 10-day Toronto International Film Festival concludes today.