Shilpa Jamkhandikar 

It’s a city of contradictions, and one that inspires many a film-maker. Organisers of the 10th MAMI (The Mumbai Academy of the Moving Image) International Film Festival (to be held in March in Mumbai) are hoping that the city will inspire young film-makers to display their talent in a short-film competition announced by them.

“Since this is the 10th anniversary of MAMI, we are hoping that there will be more participation by the younger generation. In this competition, any aspiring film-maker can submit a five-minute short film on Mumbai,” said director and member of the board Shyam Benegal at a press meet to announce the same.

Actor and board member Jaya Bachchan, whose brainwave it was to hold the competition, said she hoped more and more young people took to film-making as part of this initiative.

“The film could be made in any format, whether it is on your mobile, on a video camera, or a handycam. It could be a documentary or a feature film. As long as it captures an aspect of Mumbai, we are happy. The films will also be judged on the basis of their budget, because you don’t need a lot of money to express something beautiful,” she explained.

Jaya has also sponsored the total prize money of 1,50,000 lakhs for the competition. The winning films will be screened at the MAMI festival in March this year.

With interesting names inclduing Govind Nihalani, Shyam Benegal and Jaya Bachchan part of this initiative, there is more than one reason for aspiring film-makers to dust off their lenses and capture aamchi Mumbai!