Gitanjali Rao’s animation feature is in the competition selection at International Film Festival & Awards Macao held from December 5 – 10. This month, it will screen at Spain’s Gijon International Film Festival (Nov 15 – 23), and at Hawai’i International Film Festival (Nov 6 – 24) as part of its Spotlight on India section, alongside Suman Ghosh’s ‘Aadhaar’ and Vikas Khanna’s ‘The Last Color’.
‘Bombay Rose’ illustrates the story of a flower-seller torn between safeguarding her family and falling in love. Set on the streets of Mumbai, it is a filmic paean that chronicles the lives of people who migrate from small towns, seeking minimal life in the maximum city. This is Rao’s debut feature film, which had its world premiere as the opening film of the 2019 Venice International Critics' Week at the Venice Film Festival. ‘Bombay Rose’ then had its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Last month, the film won two awards on its home ground at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, as well as the prestigious Silver Hugo in the New Directors Competition at the Chicago International Film Festival, and this month, closed India’s Dharamshala International Film Festival.
Read Uma da Cunha’s exclusive interview with the director at the Toronto International Film Festival