Director Shyam Benegal has named his three favourite films.
The director clarified that while these films may be very high in quality, their subject and intent were quite good.
The director recently sat down for a chat with YouTuber Samdish Bhatia and discussed his favourite films.
When Samdish asked him, “What would you say are your top three Indian films?”, the director responded by saying, “‘Aurat’, I think, was one of them. Not necessarily the quality of the films. But the subject matter. Because, you know, they were highly melodramatic and overdone films. But there was a film called ‘Roti’. That was another one.”
He further mentioned, “‘Sant Tukaram’. Marvellous! Vishnupanth Paganesh, the chap who played Sant Tukaram. His Bhavgitra were excellent. You should render them beautifully.”
Shyam Benegal is often regarded as the pioneer of parallel cinema. He is widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers post-1970s.
He has received several accolades, including 18 National Film Awards, and a Nandi Award.
In 2005, he was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest award in the field of cinema. In 1976, he was honoured by the Indian government with the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian honour of the country, and in 1991, he was awarded Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian honour for his contributions in the field of arts.
He received independent financing for ‘Ankur’ in 1973. It was a realistic drama of economic and sexual exploitation in his home state, Telangana.
The film introduced actors Shabana Azmi and Anant Nag, and the director won the 1975 National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film. Shabana won the National Film Award for Best Actress.
