The Idea of India

Description

Oddball Films presents The Idea of India, a program of films exploring the many facets of Indian culture from science to spirituality, from art to anthropology, from ritual to religion and more. The program focuses on the fascinating, all-encompassing and yet contradictory concepts of Indian culture and its people. Films feature a diverse selection of films examining various aspects of Indian life from the 1930s to the present day featuring rare home movies, seldom screened ethnographic films, made-in-India docs, award-winning portraits of Indian culture and footage of present day religious rituals. World renowned cultural scholar, and Bay Area resident Huston Smith examines India’s extraordinary leap of consciousness that birthed the concept, “You are God.” in India and the Infinite (1979), exploring both the paradoxes and extremes, the sensuality and asceticism in India, Juggernaut: A Film of India (1969) reveals a nuclear India through the eyes of her people as they watch the journey of a convoy carrying a calandria, the 70-ton heart of a nuclear reactor to Rajasthan, follows mega Bollywood star Vinod Khanna as he introduces American audiences to cinema, Indian-style, The Dam at Nagarjunasagar (1972) is an eye-popping profile of the 30,000 people who constructed the world’s largest masonry dam in Andhra Pradesh, Drums of Manipur (1952) is a rare look at the music and cultural festivals of tribal Manipur, located in the mountainous regions of Assam, The March of Time: India’s New People (1952), a revealing portrait in contrasts of contemporary Indian society 5 years after independence, Kathakali: Dances of India (1948) is a precious film showcasing the temple dances of Southern India. The program also includes rare Kodachrome home movies of the holy city of Varanasi and legendary filmmaker S.N.S. Shastry’s I Am Twenty (1967), a verite look at over a dozen Indians and their thoughts after 20 years as a nation. Also: Clips from Heritage of India (1930s) featuring the Jantar Mantar Astronomical Observatory built in the 17th Century, the touristy curio Mystic India (1942) and South Indian temple festival footage shot live in Kerala in 2011.

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http://oddballfilms.blogspot.com

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415.558.8117 (Box Office)

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