We feel creations are on the new milestones when it comes to winning awards.
Director Parag Biswas and Dipika Biswas had recently interacted with Stay Featured Team
Golu – a seven-year-old girl is upset. She had demanded an internet connection for her computer as her birthday gift from her father. But father gifted her a book instead.
She doesn't like reading books and she angrily hands over a note to her dad telling her that she did not like his gift at all and goes to sleep angrily.
This is how the 6.27-minute-long English short film from West Bengal, “The Return Gift,” which has bagged a total of fifty awards at top international film festivals across the world, begins and it ends in a most unexpected twist that stuns all.
The film which revolves around the unique theme of the need and value of book-reading among the young generations has won both critical and popular acclaim.
The film has won best film, best jury, best director, best screenplay, best social message, best editor, best story, best cinematography, best viewers’ choice, best popular choice and best child actress awards. It has bagged these accolades at international festivals in London, Berlin, Karachi, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Cochin, Travancore, Aurangabad, Patna and Kolkata. The film, which was telecast on the top satellite TV channel Dhoom Music in October last year, is believed to be the only short movie from north-eastern India to have ever won so many awards at international film festivals.
The Return Gift, which is based on the usefulness of book- reading even in this world of the internet, has been made by We Feel Creations - the short and documentary film-making wing of the We Feel Social Welfare Society, which is a registered social welfare society.
The society, which had been started in September 2009, has since then produced many social welfare short films, documentaries and music movies under the banner of We Feel Creations generate awareness among the masses on several glaring contemporary issues as part of its social welfare activities.
The Return Gift, which was done with the main objective of creating awareness among the masses about the need to read books, is based on a story by Parag Biswas and his better half, Dipika Biswas, has been directed by the renowned filmmaking duo, who have also done its screenplay.
The noted cinematographer Manob Ghosh of Kolkata is the cameraman of the film, while Subrata Paul of Siliguri, Sourav Saha of Kolkata and Enos Lama of Gangtok have together done its editing. Hrishita Pradhan, Susmita Pradhan, Saikat Majila and Arna Das have played the main roles in the film.
Parag and Dipika said that winning awards was nothing new for them but winning worldwide recognition for The Return Gift meant a lot as the theme of the film was very close to their hearts and the post-production of the film was done in extremely adverse circumstances during the first lockdown April-May last year.“We do a lot of welfare activities throughout the year. We also make films on various social issues and our films have won many awards in the past as well. Our next film, “Sabak,” made on the need to have a healthy employee-employer relation, has already won the best film award at Kolkata, two best director awards at Barcelona and Kolkata, the best film nomination and the best editor nomination in Murshidabad and official selections at festivals in London, New York and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh. Our first-of-its-kind music movie on Covid – Sagar Chala Chhobi – which was released on the Bengali New Year on April 15 this year, has also earned rave reviews and won an official selection at London.
However, the awards and recognitions that we have won for The Return Gift have a special significance for us and our entire team. The film was shot in January 2020 and the moment the covid scare hit India, the future of the film became uncertain. But thanks to the resilience, fortitude and determination of our team, we were able to edit it and release it on June 25, 2020, following all standard operating procedures for covid. The events connected to its post-production, release and success will always remain in our hearts as the most memorable incident in our lives and the life of We Feel,” they said.
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