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Assamese film 'The Barren Bride' (Rukuni Koina) heads for Moscow International Film Festival 2020

Uma da Cunha

01-October-2020

Main Competition Section

THE BARREN BRIDE
(Rukuni Koina)

Director: Jadab Mahanta 
India, 2020, 73 minutes, Assamese, World Premiere

In rural Assam, India, a girl’s onset of menstruation is celebrated publicly through elaborate rituals symbolising her readiness for childbearing and marriage. But the young Gunati suffers from a disease that obstructs menstruation, placing her in a pitiable, degrading situation. She faces a dilemma, when, despite her condition, a young man proposes marriage.

 

*Press Screening: October 5, Monday, 9.00 am Moscow time

Press Conference on vMix Call

October 5, Monday, 6.45 pm, India time (Moscow: 4.15 pm)

with director Jadab Mahanta and co-producer Uma da Cunha

 

Screening Schedule in Moscow 

6 October, Tuesday, 16:15

Karo 11 Oktyabr, Hall 1

Buy tickets

 

7 October, Wednesday, 16:45

Tretyakov Gallery. Engineering Building Cinema Hall

Buy tickets

 

 

Pradipta Hazarika and Prodip Borah in ‘The Barren Bride’ (Rukuni Koina)

 

Producers   Prodip Borah,  Jadab Mahanta,  Apurba Jiban Borah

Co-producer   Uma da Cunha

Editors   Sibajit Sharma, Antony Joseph 

Script   Prodip Borah

Camera   Cryptic Pot

Music   Jadab Mahanta

Cast   Prodip Borah, Pradipta Hazarika,  Putul Sonowal, Momi Gogoi

Production   NC Productions

 

Director’s profile

Jadab Mahanta was born in 1990 in the state of Assam. In 2016 he took a Master’s Degree in Theatre Art/Drama from Dibrugarh University. As a student, he started writing lyrics, composed songs and also acted in stage plays. In 2016, he composed and directed the music album ‘Xunor Xuleng’. He started his career as the director and scriptwriter of the plays ‘Narakashur’ (2016), ‘The Kite’ (2017), ‘Makadunga’ (2018), among others. ‘The Barren Bride’ is his debut film.

 

Co-Producer’s profile

Uma da Cunha’s work in cinema spans festival programming/curating, writing on cinema, subtitling and casting. Her career started in 1974 with the Directorate of Film Festivals, Govt. of India. In 1978 she set out on her own, organizing film festivals and related events in India and abroad. She has worked with the Toronto and Busan Film Festival, and is the  Founding Advisor of respective Indian Film Festivals held in Los Angeles, London, Florence, The Hague, Montreal and Houston. As casting director, her credits cover films such as Deepa Mehta's ‘Water’, Mira Nair's ‘Kamasutra’, Jane Campion's ‘Holy Smoke’, Dev Benegal's ‘English August’, Ashutosh Gowariker's ‘Lagaan’ among others. She is the editor of the quarterly film journal, On Global Screens. She has served on many juries including the International Jury for Cannes Film Festival's Un Certain Regard in 2009.