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
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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.