SANDALWOOD (Kannada)

[kandahassan]

[kumar]

First, it will shock you; then, you will start wondering how this might have been executed, and finally, towards the end of the film, you will realize you have been savoring every moment of this unconventional film, without you even noticing it. Welcome to thithi, a landmark cinema in Indian film history.


When one talks about great films, one tries to dissect elements of that film to see what sets that apart. In thithi, you will find no separate elements you can point at. It’s an experience to be savored in its entirety, it’s just poetry in motion and it’s beautiful.


Still, if you want to know why I am going gaga over this film and why I think this is just a brilliant piece of art, here are my reasons. First, debutant director Raam Reddy does what even an experienced director would be afraid of. He takes a bunch of non-actors, chooses a story which just isn’t a story at all, and then blends reality with fiction so masterfully that you wouldn’t know the difference; but most importantly, you wouldn’t care as you begin enjoying the film.


Casting non-actors for this film (well most of them, if not all) is just a part of the brilliance. Executing the idea is a whole different ballgame, and this is where Raam Reddy rocks. With due respect to all the professional actors, none of them would have ‘acted’ so naturally as these dudes! And like the actors who are so natural, even other departments such as direction and cinematography blend so effortlessly in the narrative that most of the time, you forget that you are actually watching a film. It feels so much like a real life incident.


As Ayn Rand said, you need great complexity of thought to achieve disarming simplicity as the final result. Raam Reddy and his team have just achieved that. Raam Reddy has turned conventional filmmaking on its head in his very first attempt and the results are bloody pleasing.


I have intentionally kept this review short. Because thithi is not a film to be talked about. You just need to watch it. So go watch it.

http://cinesinchana.blogspot.in/2016...liant.html?m=1

[kumar]

It is rather easy to see why Thithi has generated so much buzz and why Raam Reddy is a director to look out for. Before anything else, the film is foremost a stellar example of blending reality and fiction and blurring boundaries between the two. So much so that it becomes unimportant to discern which portion is real and which is imagined, for the filmmaker is a good storyteller and that’s all that matters. Moreover, he knows how to make the written word come alive on screen, kicking and reaching for the stars - all at the same time. And this is evidently not the work of Reddy alone but his entire cast and crew who show you what it means to buy into a vision, an idea and execute it together.
After journeying across the world, the film has finally managed to secure a theatrical release across the country. In the recent landscape of Kannada cinema especially, the film stands out rather obviously and one is curious to see how it will fare with both multiplex and non-multiplex audiences, even though the film has already been branded a multiplex film.
For those who haven’t watched the film already, here’s a quick gist (without too many spoilers): The death of Century Gowda (Singregowda), a patriarch, sends his family, particularly his grandson Thammappa (Thammegowda), into a tizzy. The family land is still in the dead man’s name and Gaddappa, Century Gowda’s son, could not care less about transferring ownership in his or his son’s name. But Thammappa cares, and what he does to try and secure the land forms the rest of the story.

Reddy and Ere Gowda, the co-writer of the screenplay, sketch a rich world in the form of Nodekoplu village, giving us earthy and compelling characters in the form of Thammappa (Thammegowda) and Gaddappa (Channegowda) particularly. Even Century Gowda (Singregowda), through his brief appearance in the first few frames of the film, manages to stay in our minds; not to forget his eerie but iconic presence in the rest of the film through his framed photograph.
The villagers of Nodekoplu carry the story on their shoulders and the entire action culminates in the eventual thithi or funeral of Century Gowda. It is baffling to call the cast non-actors or amateurs. Each one of them is an incredible performer in his or her right. The characters they portray are far from village stereotypes but are nuanced, grey portraits of humanity, as close to life as they can get.
You expect a film about a funeral to be sombre. But Reddy takes the theme of death, inheritance and family and throws it up in the air to make you see your world for what it is.
Part of the allure of the film is its intriguing use of sound. Snatches of recognizable music have been inserted in the most casual scenes - a contemporary Kannada film song as a ringtone or the interlude ofAap Jaisa Koi Nahin as the song that the bus conductor plays. In fact, we hear the film even before we see it in the first few seconds of the film when we hear Century Gowda’s audacious comments to passersby before we see him.
Thithi is an evergreen film (as morbid as that sounds) and is a film that will keep you hooked, entertained and will also touch your heart
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/...cle8566214.ece

[kumar]

[kumar]

[kumar]

thithi collections picking up everywhere...hope it gets more audience

[kumar]

Bollywood bigwigs who watched Thithi, at the MAMI Film Festival, can’t stop raving about it. Among them is Bollywood director Anurag Kashyap. In his latest tweet, he said “Every1in Bengaluru, Mysore & other parts of Karnataka, One of the funniest films that I have seen in recent times, “THITHI” releases today.”
His next tweet: “THITHI is that one film that I have seen thrice and I can see it any number of times. Don’t miss this gem.”
City Express spoke to writer
Ere Gowda and director Raam Reddy. “We were overjoyed when we got a dinner invitation to Nita Ambani’s home in December, where filmmakers who participated at MAMI Film Festival met,” says Ere Gowda. They met AR Rahman, Anurag Kashyap, Resul Pookutty, Rana Daggubati and Adoor Gopalakrishnan, among others.
“They were happy that Thithi was the only Indian film to enter the international competition and win the grand jury award,” says Ere Gowda, adding, “Anurag’s tweet was a surprise. He particularly liked a scene where Gadappa narrates the story to the shepherd tribes.”
Director Raam Reddy liked watching the movie seated next to Adoor. “He kept chuckling softly through the film,” says Raam. The director had connected with Anurag at Locarno Film Festival where his Bombay Velvet was screened along with Thithi.
A special screening will be organised in Mumbai for some more celebrities. “Kiran Rao has requested for a special screening. Irrfan Khan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali too have shown interest,” says Raam, who plans to release Thithi in Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai soon

http://www.newindianexpress.com/ente...cle3422442.ece

[kumar]

Bollywood bigwigs who watched Thithi, at the MAMI Film Festival, can’t stop raving about it. Among them is Bollywood director Anurag Kashyap. In his latest tweet, he said “Every1in Bengaluru, Mysore & other parts of Karnataka, One of the funniest films that I have seen in recent times, “THITHI” releases today.”
His next tweet: “THITHI is that one film that I have seen thrice and I can see it any number of times. Don’t miss this gem.”
City Express spoke to writer
Ere Gowda and director Raam Reddy. “We were overjoyed when we got a dinner invitation to Nita Ambani’s home in December, where filmmakers who participated at MAMI Film Festival met,” says Ere Gowda. They met AR Rahman, Anurag Kashyap, Resul Pookutty, Rana Daggubati and Adoor Gopalakrishnan, among others.
“They were happy that Thithi was the only Indian film to enter the international competition and win the grand jury award,” says Ere Gowda, adding, “Anurag’s tweet was a surprise. He particularly liked a scene where Gadappa narrates the story to the shepherd tribes.”
Director Raam Reddy liked watching the movie seated next to Adoor. “He kept chuckling softly through the film,” says Raam. The director had connected with Anurag at Locarno Film Festival where his Bombay Velvet was screened along with Thithi.
A special screening will be organised in Mumbai for some more celebrities. “Kiran Rao has requested for a special screening. Irrfan Khan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali too have shown interest,” says Raam, who plans to release Thithi in Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai soon

http://www.newindianexpress.com/ente...cle3422442.ece

[kumar]

[kumar]