The Berlin Film Festival drew to a close on Saturday with some good news for India. Two Indian films at the world renowned festival bagged awards - Amit Masurkar’s Newton and Amar Kaushik’s Aaba.
While Rajkummar Rao-starrer Newton brought home the CICAE Art Cinema Award in the Forum section of the fest, Aaba won the Special Prize of Generation KPlus International Jury for Best Short Film. The special prize for Aaba reportedly includes cash award of € 2,500 by the Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk (The Children’s Charity of Germany).
Speaking from Berlin to The Quint after his big win, Aaba’s director Amar Kaushik said, “Getting selected for Berlinale was an absolute honour for me and winning an award is just magical. I can’t thank my team enough, special gratitude for the people of Arunachal Pradesh for their contribution.”
“I feel very proud and am elated that our film has won at such a prestigious festival, it was a script that moved me and I decided to produce it along with my friend Mitul Dikshit, congratulations to each and every team member who made this film happen,” added filmmaker Raj Kumar Gupta who produced the short.
Produced by Manish Mundra, Newton is a black comedy in which Rajkummar plays a clerk on election duty in a conflict-ridden Chhattisgarh, trying his best to conduct free and fair voting.
Rapchik Films’ Aaba is a touching tale about the bond between a grandfather and granddaughter set in the picturesque Arunachal Pradesh.
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