First Algerian film fest in Delhi, September 18th-22nd

[Al-khiyal]

New Delhi - The first-ever Algerian film festival is being held in the Indian capital, starting Sep 18.

The festival, organised by the Directorate of Film Festivals and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, will be held at the Siri Fort auditorium.

Nine Algerian films, including Lion d’or winner ‘The Battle of Algiers’, will be screened in the festival that ends Sep 22. Most of the films were made long ago and reflect the social and political unrest in the country.

Director Yamina Bachir Chouikh’s ‘Rachida’, which portrays one of the most critical periods of the country when the Algerian society sank in violence, will kick start the four-day festival.

Rabah Laradji’s comedy, titled ‘A Roof, A Family’, will be shown. It highlights the humorous side of a family looking for food and shelter. The film was very successful in Algeria.

‘Refusal’, made in 1982 by director Mohammed Bouamari, is another interesting film that talks about the social and political changes in Algeria. During that period Algerian women were given more liberty - like right to education and work.

Another interesting film is ‘The Battle of Algiers’, co-produced by Yacef Saadi, a former leader of FLN (Algerian Resistance Movement) and Italian filmmaker Gillo Pontecorvo. Made in 1965, the film is about the struggle of Algerians for independence from the French colonial rule. It won the Lion d’or in Venice in 1966.

In ‘Ali in the country of Mirages’ director Ahmed Rachedi shows the mental trauma of an Algerian immigrant in France. ‘The Adventures of a Hero’, ‘The Man Who Watched the Windows’ and ‘The Mill of Mister Fabre’ will also be shown.

First Algerian film fest in Delhi

[Mnarvi-DZ]

‘Refusal’, made in 1982 by director Mohammed Bouamari, is another interesting film that talks about the social and political changes in Algeria. During that period Algerian women were given more liberty - like right to education and work.

Algerian women have never seen their rights to work and education limited BY LAW so this statement is untrue.

[Al-khiyal]

I wonder if the mistake comes from the article writer's own misunderstanding or from the director's publicity material. Presumably the showing of Douar N’sa earlier this year has generated interest in New Delhi about Algerian film - understanding Algerian history will perhaps take a little longer.

[Mnarvi-DZ]

understanding Algerian history will perhaps take a little longer.

1 festival is obviously not enough, may be 2?
I am used to in purpose misunderstandings where I am so I tend to "accuse" the article's writer, but it is possible that the director said that in his ad... Anyway, this has no basis in reality...

[Al-khiyal]

New Delhi, Tuesday September 19th - The first ever festival of films from Algeria, showcasing some of the country’s best movies, opened in the capital Monday.

Algerian Ambassador to India Noureddine Bardad inaugurated the five-day festival, being held at the Siri Fort Auditorium.

‘The film festival will go a long way in improving the ties between two different countries and its different cultures,’ Bardad said.

‘I think people are sensitive to happenings anywhere in the world. Geographically we might be two different nations but we face similar kind of problems. We wanted to show this to the world through these films being screened as a part of the festival.’

Bardad was also happy with the response as film buffs turned up in large numbers at the auditorium.

Director Yamina Bachir Chouikh’s ‘Rachida’, portraying one of the most critical periods of the country’s history, was the inaugural film.

Other films to be screened in the festival are ‘A Roof, a Family’, ‘The Adventures of Hero’, ‘The Refusal’, ‘Ali in the Country of Mirages’, ‘The Wind of the South’, ‘The Man Who Watched the Windows’, ‘The Battle of Algiers’ and the ‘The Mill of Mister Fabre’.

The Algerian embassy, the Directorate of Film Festivals, and the information and broadcasting ministry have jointly organised the festival.

Algerian film fest opens in capital

[Al-khiyal]

New Delhi: Dr Noureddine Bardad-Daidj, ambassador of Algeria, held a meeting at his residence in Vasant Kunj on Friday evening, to discuss the Algerian film festival, that would be held from September 18 to 22 in the capital. After the 1980’s, this will be the second time that films from Algeria would be shown in India.

The festival will showcase a total of nine movies, that depict the history, society and culture of Algeria. Along with movies like Rachida, The Refusal and The Mill of Mister Fabre, the festival is also presenting The Battle of Algiers, which is regarded as a classic and one of the finest films to come out of the country. Talking about the background of Algerian films, the ambassador said, "In each country, films have their own history. In Algeria, movies started with the seven-year long Algerian war of independence, that was against the French colonial rule. During that time, people took up cameras to capture what was going on in the country. That’s how the whole concept of filmmaking began."

He further added, "When the liberation war was over and Algeria became independent, people started making films on many relevant social issues like housing, illiteracy, poverty, unemployment and the plight of women. In fact, Algerian films gradually became a mirror of society and had a huge impact on changing the mindset of people."

The ambassador is quite excited about the festival in India. "Through this event, we are trying to generate an interest in Indians about Algeria, its history, society and way of life. We are also trying to offer a different genre of filmmaking to directors here," he said. According to him, this festival can go a long way in developing relations between the two countries.

Seeing the trend of Bollywood searching for new locations to shoot movies, would Algeria also like to invite Indian directors? "We would love to have Indian filmmakers shoot their films in our country. Algeria has a variety of landscapes, with almost 1,000 kilometres of beaches, the Mediterranean sea, and Sahara desert. I am sure these would prove to be exciting new locations for Bollywood," said the ambassador.

Film fest to depict Algeria’s struggle