Documentary film on Gorkhaland - From the top

9:48 PM

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Video

This is one of many documented short films on the Gorkhaland movement.

This film is about the demand for the formation of a separate state called Gorkhaland, which will not be a part of West Bengal. The documentary tries to understand the reason behind this demand, and the public opinion regarding this movement.

Watch Documentary film on Gorkhaland - From the top

Documentary - From the top

This film is about the demand for the formation of a separate state called Gorkhaland, which will not be a part of West Bengal. The documentary tries to understand the reason behind this demand, and t...

Documentary film on Gorkhaland - From the top

Source: Pocket Films - Short Films Channel

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Binod Pradhan an Indian Gorkha Bollywood cinematographer put on Dhaka topi on IIFA

9:34 AM

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photos

Binod Pradhan an Indian Gorkha Bollywood cinematographer from Kalimpong who have worked on award winning movies like Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, 1942 A Love Story, Devdas, Rang De Basanti, Mission Kashmir, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S At his recent award at the India International Film Festival held in Florida (IIFA ), he was wearing the symbol of Gorkha identity, our pride and honour - Dhaka topi, while picking up his 2nd IIFA Best Cinematographer award for the movie Bhaag Milkha Bhaag

Binod Pradhan put on Dhaka topi, while picking up his
2nd IIFA Best Cinematographer award for the movie Bhaag Milkha Bhaag

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‘Punarjanma’ a film by budding filmmakers from Darjeeling hills

8:04 AM

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movie

A team of budding filmmakers from Darjeeling have debuted with a youthful love story titled ‘Punarjanma’ or ‘reincarnation’ recounted in the backdrop of the Himalayas.

Veteran filmmaker Pratap Subba with the ‘Punarjanma’ crew

The project, one of the team members joked, “has been in the making since some time as one of the main and senior characters used to be a hero”. Shooting is slated to commence from the first week of July. The feature film is being produced under the Red Panda Movies banner and is directed by debutant Adithya Rayaa.

Hinting at the storyline, Rayaa said, “I know people will want to link ‘Punarjanma’ with rebirth and revenge. But the film is an entertaining love story with no twist and turns. I basically wanted to capture on celluloid the present-day youths of the hills and the things they run after including love.”

The mahurat shot was taken this morning at Mahakal Mandir near Chowrastha where the cast and crew also offered prayers along with veteran filmmaker Pratap Subba.

“We had the mahurat at the temple premises. It was great to have ‘Subba sir’ clap the first shot as he has been our inspiration,” said Rayaa, who has worked in three of Subba’s films – ‘Timro Hamro Jindagani’, ‘Mero Uthne Palo’ and ‘Yaad Timro Aayo’ - as chief assistant.

The production house that comprises members engaged in the fields of music, drama and theatre admitted it would not be a cakewalk completing the movie even as it declined to divulge about the film’s budget given the paucity of sponsors and producers.

“We have pooled in money from various quarters to take forward the shooting. It is difficult to make a film without a producer and sponsors, but we were eager to make a beginning under any circumstance. As for the budget of the film… let’s not get into that at the moment,” said Rayaa.

He added, “But we will definitely pay the actors. Our main worry is transportation and outdoor filming expenses as we will be shooting in various locales of the hills.”

Fortunately, the team has its own filming equipment and the artistes and technicians are all locals, which will help in cutting down major expenses.

“For example, we do not have to hire cameras and lights as they can be expensive. Our technicians and crew members are co-partners as well,” said the debutant director.

Darjeeling boy Kapish Sharma, the film’s hero, is at present struggling in Mumbai to make it big. Meanwhile, Divya Chhetri, the heroine, is an award winner. She has won the best actress award in the Ladakh International Film Festival 2013 for her role in ‘Oasis’. The film’s cinematographer Binay Shanker has also won the best cinematographer award in the North Bengal Film Festival 2008.

‘Punarjanma’, conceptualised and written by Rayaa, who will also score its music, is expected to hit the floors this Diwali. The production house has also roped in Lhamu Sherpa, the director of Triveni Sangitalya, as the film’s choreographer. Sherpa’s institute tutored Anushka Chhetri, the runner-up in the Dance in Dance reality dancing show.

Source: EOI

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Ganesh Thapa an Indian Gorkha is a Kannada Superstar

1:42 PM

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nepali

The Kannada Superstar Ganesh is an Indian Gorkha, making waves across the state with his films . Ganesh, however, is hesitant to recognize his roots, preferring to say that he is from Adakamaranahalli, a village on the city’s outskirts. “I have already clarified that I am not a Nepali. I am an Indian,” he says. The family also has a Darjeeling connection, but he does not want to talk about it.

Ganesh Thapa an Indian Gorkha is a Kannada Superstar 

Ganesh grew up in Karnataka and is fluent in Kannada. He got his first break as an anchor of an interactive TV show,” an industry insider said. “There is no stopping this romantic hero now.” With his chocolate-hero looks, Ganesh is set to climb higher on the popularity charts with his third film being released this week. Gurkhas can serve in the Indian Army and are free to enter India without a passport and work without visas or permits. For several decades, Gorkhas have been working as watchmen in Bangalore while their children attend government schools. 


Actor Ganesh 

Born July 2, 1977
Bangalore, Karnataka, India 

Other name(s) Role Gold Star Ganesh
Comedy Time Ganesh 

Occupation - Actor, Producer 

Years active - 2001 – present 

Spouse(s) Shilpa (2008 - present) 

Early Life and Education

He was born in Adakamaranahalli near Nelamangala town in Karnataka, India. His father's name is Kishan, and mother, Sulochana, and grandmother Sithamma. He is the first son in his family, the younger brothers being Mahesh and Umesh. He currently resides in Banashankari, Bengaluru. He excelled in education and earned a diploma in Electronics in Nelamangala. Ganesh's family hails from Nepal, though Ganesh has resided in Karnataka for a long Time

Marriage 

Media initially reported that the actor was getting married on the 18th of February 2008. But the actor got married in a hurry on the 11th of February to his girlfriend of two years, Shilpa Barkur

Television Career
Guttu was Ganesh's first on-camera project (see Films section below). Though it was made as a telefilm in Karnataka, it ran into difficulties getting a timeslot to air, and the frustrated producers played it as a feature in festivals and select theaters in the USA, incurring heavy losses. Ganesh played the hero, Deepak, a hapless software systems analyst, who gets caught up in the ambitious adventure of an NRI girl (played by Chaya Singh) who visits India to try and re-trace her family tree. His flair for comedy and knack for timing showed through in this first role, which caused the director (Priyabharati) to promote him heavily to directors of many TV series. In his early days, Ganesh bagged a few TV roles by referencing his collaboration with an NRI director.  He acted in several TV serials, including Yadva Tadva, Vataara (directed by Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar) and Pa Pa Pandu (directed by Sihi Kahi Chandru).

As a TV artist he popularised the television program Comedy Time. The program was telecasted on Udaya TV from Monday-Friday at 5PM-5.30PM in the beginning and later at 5.30PM-6PM. The program concept was unique: viewers would write a letter to the anchor describing their family and mentioning their telephone number. Then the anchor would call their number, disguising himself as someone else and fool them. After reading each letter a comedy scene from a chosen Kannada film was telecasted in the interim. His unique style of greeting the viewers at the start and end of the program was popular, especially with children.  Following the success of this TV show, fans started to call him "Comedy Time" Ganesh.

Films

 His first film was Guttu, a telefilm directed by India's youngest female film director, Priyabharati Joshi, an NRI who came to India with the intention of entering the Indian film industry. Priyabharati offered Ganesh Guttu just as he was about to graduate from Adarsh Film Institute, against the advice of industry insiders who criticized her choice of a newcomer with unconventional looks and no industry ties. Guttu was Ganesh's first time facing the camera, before moving on to his TV career and later, feature films.Ganesh's first feature wide-release film, Chellata, was a moderate success and ran up to 125 days in some theatres. Chitra Rekha, who had already acted in quite a few films, acted opposite Ganesh in this film.

Then came the 2006 film Mungaru Male, which was a roaring success. The film was directed by Yograj Bhat. Yograj had narrated the script to Puneeth Rajkumar, who rejected it. Ganesh had been involved in the script development process and was curious to act in the movie. He got director Bhat to meet his acquaintance E Krishnappa. Since Krishnappa knew Ganesh (both hailed from Adakamaranahalli, Nelamangala), he agreed to finance the film. Since Yograj Bhat couldn't get dates from any Kannada actress, he signed a relatively unknown actress, Pooja Gandhi. The film's lyrics were penned by Jayant Kaikini and music was composed by part-time music director Mano Murthy. Jayant Kaikini, son of renowned writer late Gourish Kaikini, was a well-known columnist and writer. The film was mainly shot during the rainy season in places like Madikeri, Sakaleshpura, Jog Falls and Gadag.

Mungaru Male opened to a good response among audiences and went on a record-breaking spree. The film garnered Rs. 75 crores (US $16 million) at the box office. It released with 150 prints all over Karnataka, and was the only film that ran to packed houses on weekdays in PVR Multiplex for 400 days. The remake rights of the movie were acquired by Suryaprakash Rao of SP Entertainers India Private Limited for Rs. 1.5 crores for Tamil and Telugu combined. The film received lukewarm to average reviews. Rediff.com awarded a three-star rating and praised its cinematography, technical values and acting, but opined that the story was flawed. Nowrunning.com felt that the film lacked a credible story line and gave too much importance to music and song picturisation. Kannada portal Thatskannada.com praised the film for its content, narration and usage of rain as a metaphor for love. His third film as hero, Hudugaata, was released on 8 June 2007. His subsequent films have included Cheluvina Chithara (2007), Gaalipata (2008), Krishna (2008), Aramane (2008), Bombaat (2008), Sangama (2008), Circus (2009), Ullasa Utsaha, and MaLeyali Jotheyali (2009).

Awards
Best Actor, 56th Filmfare Awards: Gaalipata 
Best Actor, 57th South Filmfare Awards: Maleyali Jotheyali 
Most Popular Actor, 2008 Ujala Suvarna Film Awards


 IN  LEADING  ROLE 

Year Film Music Director Co-star
2006 Chellata Gurukiran M. D. Shidhar Rekha,
2006 Mungaru Male Mano Murthy Yograj Bhat Pooja Gandhi
2007 Cheluvina Chittara Mano Murthy S. Narayan Amoolya
2007 Hudugaata Jassie Gift Sanjay K Rekha
2007 Krishna Harikrishna M.D. Sridhar Pooja Gandhi
2008 Aramane Gurukiran Nagashekhar Roma
2008 Bombaat Mano Murthy D. Rajendra Babu Ramya
2008 Gaalipata V. Harikrishna Yograj Bhat Daisy Bopanna,
2008 Sangama Devi Sri Prasad Ravi Verma Vedhika
2009 Circus Emil Dayal Padmanabhan Archana Gupta
2009 Ullasa Utsaha G. V. Prakash Kumar Devaraja Palan Yami Gautam
2010 Eno Onthara V Harikrishna Mussanje Mahesh Priyamani
2010 Maleyali Jotheyali V. Harikrishna Preetham Gubbi Anjana Sukhani
2011 Maduve Mane Manikant Kadri Sunil Kumar Singh Shradha Arya
2011 Cool...Sakkath Hot Maga V. Harikrishna Ganesh Sana Khan
2011 Shyloo Bhama S. Narayanan Bhama,Rangayana Raghu
2012 Munjane S. Narayan S. Narayan Manjari Phadnis
2012 Romeo Arjun Janya PC Shekhar Bhavana, Avinash
2012 Mr. 420 V. Harikrishna Pradeep Raj Pranitha, Rangayana Raghu
2013 Auto Raja Arjun Janya Uday Prakash Bhama, Deepika Kamaiah
2013 Sakkare V. Harikrishna Abhaya Simha Deepa Sannidhi ,Ananth Nag
2013 Shravani Subramanya - Manju Swaraj Amoolya

Source: theveergorkha

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Nepali short film Ek Dhakar Jiwan bags international Best Short Film Peace Award

9:58 AM

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Video

A short Nepali film “Ek Dhakar Jiwan / The Beaten Path” produced and directed by a Kurseong lad, Phurba Tshering Lama has won the Best Short Film Peace Award in the just concluded Gothenburg Independent Film Festival in Sweden.

Phurba Tshering Lama, Producer and Director of
 'Ek Dhakar Jiwan' from Kurseong.

Lama informed a total of 65 films from 30 different countries were screened in the inaugural or the first Gothenburg Independent Film Festival from May 22 to 25, in Sweden. "There were three films from India. The films from India were Vivek Budakoti’s 'Pied Piper', Utpal Borpujari’s 'Songs of the Blue Hills' and 'Ek Dhakar Jiwan / The Beaten Path'. These films were selected and nominated for the film festival on different categories," he added.

Lama also informed that his 27 minute Nepali-language film is based on a short story ‘Manchhey Manchheyko Busty Bhitra’ written by Gupta Pradhan, a renowned Nepali littérateur from Ghoom/Darjeeling. The story revolves around Balvir, a porter, who lives and coexists in the grand mosaic of nature like any other entity. However, his human spirit yearns to understand life especially from a sense of disorientation and confusion as a result of the material world.

It was learnt that Phurba Tshering Lama’s short film “Ek Dhakar Jiwan” has also been selected for screening at the upcoming SIGNS Film Festival to be held in Kochi from May 28 - June 1.

Notably, after completing his graduation from NP College, Darjeeling, Lama completed the course of direction in the Films & Television Institute of India, (FTII), Pune in 2010 and for the past few years he has been involved in different films on different aspects in Mumbai and in Nepal. His 27 minute short film was shot in Sikkim last year and after mixing and editing in Mumbai the film was completed in the month of February 2014. Lama is also targeting to participate in more film festival.

Lama has credited his success to his father Jay Prakash Lama and mother Prabha Lama.

Source: EOI

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