Priyadarshan's 'Kanjeevaram' for Toronto fest

An off-beat Tamil film titled "Kanjeevaram", made by Priyadarshan, has been selected for screening at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival.

The movie, featuring Prakash Raj and Sriya Reddy in the lead roles, will be screened in the special presentation session at the festival on Sept. 12.

The film is slated for official release in October this year.

Written and directed by Priyadarshan with M.G. Sreekumar composing the music, the film makes a critical study of an ideology _ to be specific Communism. Set in the backdrop of Kanjeevaram's handloom silk industry from the 1920s to 1948, it is the story of a non-political weaver who leans towards Communism and soon becomes a revolutionary leader and an advocate of the ideology, only to find himself caught between personal needs and his pursuit of social equality. The underlying theme of the movie is that such movements around the world fail because people who preach an ideology often fail to practise it.

"Weavers of Kanjeevaram often spend a lifetime trying to be able to afford the very silk they weave. That is the irony I have tried to capture in this film. A lot of research has gone into the film even before I actually started the project," says Priyadarshan.

Over 12 years ago he heard his father discuss the plight of weavers in Kanjeevaram with writer Keshav Dev and ever since he wanted to make a film on this subject. His dream was released only last year. He shot the film in 30 days. "For the first time I have made a realistic film _ a film I made for me… straight from the heart."

Since it is a "slow film", he does not think all sections of the people would want to watch it. So, he is planning to release it with only 10 to 12 prints.

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Kanchivaram