Northeast Desk, 22nd November: At the 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), the Indian Panorama Non-Feature Film section commenced with the screening of the Manipuri film ‘Andro Dreams,’ centered around an all-female football club in Manipur.
This 63-minute Avant-Gardist documentary, led by a female director, producer, and cast, portrays the inspiring narrative of the Andro village in Manipur.
Laibi Phanjoubam, a 60-year-old woman, manages the all-female football club, challenging entrenched patriarchy, economic hardships, and orthodoxy in her ancient village.
Meena Longjam, the director of ‘Andro Dreams,’ highlighted the remarkable journey of Laibi Phanjoubam, the fourth girl child in her family, who, despite being initially disregarded, became the first woman in her village to complete a matriculate degree and become a primary school teacher. Longjam emphasized that the film tells the story of unheard voices, representing people not often featured in mainstream media.
Discussing the documentary filmmaking genre, Longjam emphasized the need to build a long-term relationship with the subject, stating that documentary projects are not one-off endeavors.
The Indian Panorama section at IFFI began with the screening of the Malayalam film ‘Aattam’ in the Feature section and ‘Andro Dreams’ in the Non-feature section, offering a diverse cinematic experience for film enthusiasts. The festival, running from November 20 to 28, 2023, will showcase 25 feature films and 20 non-feature films this year.
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