Matrubhoomi bags critics award

<div class="section1"><div align="left" style="position:relative; left: -2"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" align="left" border="1" width="77.5%"> <colgroup> <col width="100.0%" /> </colgroup> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal"><script language="javascript" src="Config?Configid=43376741"></script><br /><a href="javascript:popUp(&quot1;photopop?msid=174002&type=0&quot1;)"> <img border="0" align="left" src="/cms.dll/thumb?height=128&width=128&photoID=174002" hspace="12"" /></a></div> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal"><span style="" font-size:="">Click to enlarge picture</span></div> </td> </tr> </table></div> <div class="Normal">MUMBAI: Manish Jha''s debut feature <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Matrubhoomi: A Nation Without Women</span> has bagged the International Federation of Film Critics prize at the Venice film festival.<br /><br />One of the most significant, hard-hitting films to come out of India in some years, it explores an India of the future when, thanks to female infanticide and dowry deaths, the resulting famine of women precipitates the debasement of men themselves.<br /><br />"After the Venice screening, the audience gave us a 10-minute standing ovation. One woman was so overwhelmed, she wept bitterly after the film," said Manish Jha, who is currently showing his film at the Toronto film festival in Canada.<br /><br />He had earlier won the Jury Prize at Cannes for his short film <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">A Very Very Silent Film.</span> Adds Tulip Joshi, who plays the female lead in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Matrubhoomi</span>, "The film is so hard-hitting, I was expecting them to throw jootas. But when I saw grown men and women cry at the screening, I found myself crying too -- it was one of the most moving moments of my life."<br /><br />The film is an Indo-French co-production between Punkej Kharabanda of SMG Pictures and Patrick Sobelman of Ex-Nihilo. According to Kharabanda, the film, which will travel to the Morocco, Pusan, London and Thessaloniki festivals, has already sold theatrical rights in France, Italy and Scandinavian nations.<br /><br />Goutam Ghose''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Abar Aranyer</span> (In the Forest..Again), which revisits Satyajit Ray''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Aranyer Din Ratri</span> (Days and Nights in the Forest) was also screened at the Venice festival. It casts mostly the same characters as the Ray film, as well as Tabu, and its exploration of what distinguishes ''civilised people'' from tribals includes the fall-out of September 11.<br /><br />The Venice film festival''s Golden Lion for best film went to the Russian entry <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">The Return</span> by Andrey Zvyagintsev on an oppressive father-son relationship. The Silver Lion went to Lebanese-born Randa Chahal Sabbag''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">The Kite</span> set in the Middle East conflict. <br /><br />Japanese director Takeshi Kitano won best director for <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Zatoichi</span>, on a blind swordsman of 19th century Japan. Tsai Ming-Liang''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Goodbye Dragon</span> took the FIPRESCI prize in the competition section.<br /><br />Sean Penn won best actor for Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu''s ''<span style="" font-style:="" italic="">21 Grams,</span> while best actress went to Katja Riemann for Margarethe von Trotta''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Rosenstrasse</span>. Marco Bellocchio won Outstanding Individual Contribution for the script of <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Good Morning, Night</span>, on the murder of leftist politician Aldo Moro. <br /><br />The Toronto festival''s entries include -- apart from <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Matrubhoomi </span>-- Deepa Mehta''s Republic of Love, Rituparno Ghosh''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Chokher Bali</span>, Vishal Bharadwaj''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Maqbool,</span> Vikram Jayanti''s documentary <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Game Over: Kasparov And The Machine</span> and Pimmi Pande''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Destiny''s Children</span>.<br /></div> </div>