The Bangladeshi short film ‘Shunyata’ won an award in the Best Emotional Content and Acting category at the recently held two-day Kolkata Hottomela Short Film Festival.
‘Shunyata’ is written by Asif Md Nazrul and directed by Hanif Palowan. The film casts Moin Ahmed, Viba, Apan, Prahar Sarkar, SK Chandan, Rahat, and A Haq in different roles. The film is produced by Angikar Multimedia.
The Kolkata Hottomela Short Film Festival showcased films by filmmakers from a total of 20 countries. The festival also featured music videos, feature films, documentaries, travel shows, and fiction films. Two films from Bangladesh were selected for the festival. Pathik Shahidul’s ‘Swarupkotha’ from Bangladesh, alongside ‘Shunyata,’ took part in this festival.
The crests and certificates were distributed among the participants at the end of the two-day event. Veteran actress Shrimati Romi Choudhury and film researcher Professor Sri Sumanto Bandyopadhyay handed over the awards to the winners and participants. This year’s festival was dedicated to pioneer master filmmaker Sri Bimal Roy.
Media activist, playwright, and producer Asif Md Nazrul said, “Out of sheer love, I made two full-length films on my own budget. The first one (Anushochona) was awarded at the same festival in 2020. The film’s length was 13 minutes. The second film ‘Shunyata’ is 6.30 minutes in length. The film is based on an emotional story, and all the actors are theatre artistes.”
“By winning an award at such an event, self-confidence and the interest of the participants increased. If I get time, I have a desire to make short films with such emotional content in the future,” he added.
Asif expressed his gratitude to the organisers of the Hottomela and every member of his theatre troupe Angikar Natyadal.