Rishab Shetty bags Special Jury Award for Kantara At IFFI

Critically acclaimed Indian Filmmaker Rishabh Shetty has bagged The Special Jury Award for Kantara.

The Jury’s citation for the Indian Director notes, ”For the director’s ability to put across a very important story. The film, though rooted in its own culture of the forest demons, reaches out to audiences regardless of culture and social status.” Shetty's film explores the ideological conflict between humans and nature in a fictional village, delivering a poignant message amidst a clash of traditions and modernity.

Rishab Shetty is an actor and filmmaker in the Kannada film industry. Known for his critically acclaimed blockbuster, ‘Kantara’, he is recipient of several accolades, including the Best Children's Film at the 66th National Film Awards for ‘Sarkari Hi. Pra. Shaale, Kasaragodu, Koduge: Ramanna Rai’ his directorial debut and the entertainer ‘Kirik Party’.

Set in the fictional village of Dakshina Kannada, the film explores the ideological conflict between humans and nature. The co-existence of a tribe living with the forest will be hampered by a forest officer who feels certain practices and rituals followed by the tribe pose a threat to Mother Nature. He questions the existence of their demigod which swirls a battle of ego along with traditions and culture associated with the land. Shiva the protagonist is a top racer at the Kambala Festival and poses a serious threat to the forest department as he continues hunting, illegal cutting and selling of precious forest trees. The forest department grills Shiva and his mates for vandalising the forest. The tribe believes that the forest was donated to them by a king aforetime. Will Shiva be able to reinstate peace and harmony in the village perceiving his existence forms the crux of the film.

The jury for this year comprised of veterans in the cinema industry such as Indian filmmaker Shekhar Kapoor, the Chairperson of the Jury, Spanish Cinematographer Jose Luis Alcaine, French film producers Jerome Paillard and Catherine Dussart and Australian film producer Helen Leake.