The evening clearly belonged to Venkatarama Pandit Krishnamurthy, also known as V K Murthy. Guru Dutt’s favourite cinematographer, Murthy has a long list of firsts – so much so, it wasn’t enough that every guest of the Bengaluru International Film Festival (BIFFes) 2023 inaugural event on March 23, including Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, spoke in length about his achievements. Even during the cultural programmes, the background screen kept playing montages of his work in loop – and at one point, festival director Ashok Cashyap, popped up on screen to explain the significance of what the audience was watching. For the crowd though, it was ‘Kantara’ that mattered the most. Every time the film was mentioned, it elicited a bigger round of applause. And, to their credit, the creative team of the BIFFes had gauged the pulse of the audience right —the 14th edition of the BIFFes started with the screening of ‘Kantara.’ For Cashyap and artistic director H N Narahari Rao without help from the Karnataka government, it would have been impossible to bring out this edition, much less the ”bigger and better” version of it. For CM Bommai, Bengaluru is the natural choice of venue for an international festival. ”The city is truly international. Truly cosmopolitan. If not here, where else can an international festival happen,” he said. Noting that cinema is a reflection of life and feelings, he said only when the fictional world of the silver screen reflects the reality of the real world can people identify with it. ”Today’s cinema portrays fiction that is close to reality,” he added. He congratulated the creative team for curating a wide range of films from across the world that reflect the reality of life. He also promised to open small theatres in tier 2 and 3 cities to promote good cinema and a film city so grand that even Hollywood would line up to shoot there. For director and cinematographer Govind Nihalani, alumnus of V K Murthy at the Sri Jayachamarajendra Polytechnic (SJP), Bengaluru, and his colleague, it was a very special event. He said Murthy had been a great inspiration for the industry and it was a proud moment for all those who worked with him. He also expressed hope that SJP will produce more such stalwarts. The evening ended on a colourful note as the team from Attakalari Dance Company entertained the audience. And yes, in case you are wondering, some of the dancers were spotted in Yakshagana costumes, made uber-famous by ‘Kantara.’
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