THURSDAY evening last week was the occasion of the last screening of the two-week long second Asian Film Festival. A large crowd gathered to watch the award winning Indian film “Taare Zameen Par” (Stars on Land) that highlighted the important message that children are our future and we should take care of them. The screening was followed by a cultural show with folk dances from Kashmir, Gujrat and Tamil Nadu states by students of the Indian International School. Before the 160-minute film officially began, the Indian Consul General Sayeed Ahmed Baba welcomed the guests and remarked that the film has a simple but very strong message, particularly for teachers and parents. “This is a movie from Bollywood which is directed and produced by the famous actor Aamir Khan. It is a very moving and touching film which has universal appeal and it is both educational and informative,” he said, before encouraging the audience to enjoy themselves. The film's protagonist, Ishaan Awasthi (Darsheel Safary), is an eight year old boy who lives in a world of his own that nobody seems to appreciate. He is fascinated by colors , animals and simple things like kites, all of which have no relevance in the world of adults he lives in, as they are more interested in him doing homework, keeping himself neat and achieving high marks in the classroom. He loves to draw and paint and act like the “bindaas” (carefree) boy he really is, but cannot seem to get anything right in class, fails every test he sits for and gets into far more trouble than his parents can handle. Nandkishore Awasthi, Ishaan's father, becomes furious when Ishaan's teachers from school complain, and thinks that only boarding school can discipline Ishaan. His mother Maya, is very understanding and upset that Ishaan has to go, but also supports the idea. Yohaan, Ishaan's Dada (elder brother) is a very good student and sportsman - everything Ishaan is not - but cares for Ishaan and loves him unconditionally. However, nobody can understand what the problem with Ishaan is. Things are no different at Ishaan's new school, and Ishaan has to contend with the added trauma of being separated from his family. One day a new art teacher called Ram Shankar Nikumbh - played by the versatile and brilliant Aamir Khan of “Lagaan” fame - bursts onto the scene, and manages to bring joy and optimism to his students. Nikumbh doesn't scold Ishaan like the other teachers and shares Ishaan's passion for art and painting. He breaks all the rules of ‘how things are done' by asking the students to think, dream and imagine, and they all respond with enthusiasm, except for Ishaan. Nikumbh soon realizes that Ishaan is very unhappy, and he sets out to discover why. As a victim of Dyslexia himself, he soon realizes that Ishaan is also dyslexic, and with time, patience and care, he ultimately helps Ishaan find himself. The film was released in 2007 both in India and worldwide and has already won many awards, as well as being India's entry to this year's Oscar's where it didn't - unfortunately - receive a nomination. “It was a wonderful film to remember the second Asian film festival by as it was one of the best films (to be shown). Though all the other films were good, the Indonesian film and this film indicated the importance of education and gave the message that children have a right to getting education. It also gave a positive ending and solution to encourage the happy future. Children are our future, whether they are Indian or the children of any other country,” remarked the Japanese Consul General and coordinator of the festival Toshimitsu Ishigure. “We have to think singularly about children as all children are not the same and we should treat them differently. It was a film that teachers and parents should watch,” he said, adding “It is a solidarity of the Asian Consul General's Club that every time we try to do something different, it always brings out positive results because of the cooperation of everyone.” The Swiss Consul General Adriene Evequoz, particularly enjoyed the film. “The film removes obstacles (some children face) and gives hope to parents and teachers on how to help, discuss and take care of (special needs) children,” he said, adding “it's a film about school and is for teachers as well, and how to use teaching techniques to help children. It could therefore, be done in any other country as well, and was a very nice film for concluding a very good festival.” The Indian Consul General congratulated and thanked the Japanese and Indonesian Consuls General for staging the wonderful event that this year's Asian Film Festival turned out to be. “We had the opportunity to watch the films from other countries, which gave us a chance to know about their traditions and culture, methods of acting, film making, and direction,” he told Saudi Gazette. The aim of the festival was to cultivate interest in and understanding of the traditions and culture of participating countries, and it seemed to succeed overwhelmingly in that department. “The cultural show presented by the Indian school children was very nice, and we got to know about their tradition and culture,” remarked Mamdouh Salem the executive director and producer of Rowad Media for Media Production & Distribution. “We are certainly proud to be part of this film festival and able to show the best of Saudi films. I would like to showcase our traditions with the presentation of Saudi films in the same way in the upcoming film festival,” he added, referring to the festival celebrating Saudi cinema that is lined up for the summer. The 2nd Asian film festival ended with a vote of thanks from Japanese Consul General Toshimitsu Ishigure to all the participants in the festival and particularly the Indonesian Consul General for hosting the event at his premises.
