Bengaluru’s Suchitra Film Society celebrates 50 years, releases book by Aruna Rajé Patil

Suchitra Film Society (SFS) organised a Film Festival in collaboration with the Federation of Film Societies of India (FFSI) and Surana College. The festival was formally inaugurated on 15 October, by watering a potted plant by the Principal of Surana College, D.N.S. Kumar, and Principal of PU College, Chandrashekharappa, in the presence of the President and Secretary of SFS, Suresha B. and Deepa Ganesh.

College authorities were very happy that the event was organised there, and even expressed the desire to start a film club in the college. At the inauguration, the film screened was Madhyantara, which is in Kannada, and is directed by Dinesh Shenoy. As part of the festival, SFS also screened the best films of Asoka Handagama, paying tribute to the Srilankan director.

On the last day of the festival, 23 October, a book, titled Films Through Women’s Eyes, was launched by author, noted director, editor, film script writer and life-coach, Aruna Rajé Patil. Aruna also happens to be my Guru, having taught me film direction, and is the woman who made compelling films and TV series, like Firebrand (on Netflix), Tum – A Dangerous Obsession, Bhairavi, Shadi Ya... (TV series), Patit Pawan, Rihaee, Sitam (co-directed), Gehrayee (co-directed) and Shaque (co-directed).

Aruna Raje Patil is at the centre, N. Vidyashankar is on her left

The closing function was presided over by film critic N. Vidyashankar, and the guest of honour was Nanjunde Gowda, President Karnataka Film Directors’ Association. The book has been edited by very senior film-critic and journalist, Maithili Rao and Prof. N. Manu Charavarthy, well-known film critic and writer. It profiles as many as 17 women directors of India, who have a made a mark in the film industry, despite living in a male-dominated society.

In their latest newsletter, there is a message by the Society. It is reproduced below in its entirety.

“Warm greetings to the Suchitra fraternity. A week long film festival, with screenings of over 20 films marked the culmination of the golden jubilee celebrations of Suchitra Film Society. The festival, hosted at the Surana College Auditorium, was well by students, connoisseurs, and members, infusing the atmosphere with warmth and enthusiasm.

We are extremely happy that the inaugural film of the festival, Madhyantara, has been selected for the Indian Panorama 2022. There were many plans in the pipeline, but given the constraints within which we functioned over the last few years, the committee of the festival is happy that it could achieve at least part of its dream and is also grateful for the support extended by all its senior members.

This will the last newsletter of the current executive committee of Suchitra Film Society. We had hoped to amicably resolve all the differences and reinstate the trust and friendship on which the institution was founded. We also hoped to accord primacy to the spirit of constructive criticism and feedback, for, it is an organisation built and nurtured by people. We have tried our very best, but, sadly, the forces are not with us. May the future hold moments that see the institution as inviolable and may good ethics prevail at all times.

Secretary.

About Suchitra Film Society (from their website)

In August 1971, a group of young engineers, interested in cinema, got together to launch Suchitra Film Society. The 1970s in Karnataka saw a surge of critical and creative exploration of the arts, imagined and conceived in the Kannada language, with an explosion of new literature, new journalism, new theatre and new cinema.

Suchitra’s interest in cinema and its vital connection with the Bangalore renaissance led it to expand its engagement with the arts to theatre, music, movement arts, literature and languages.

Suchitra is all set to build on its reputation as an important centre of cinema appreciation, arts, media and culture and realise its full potential as a cine academy and cultural centre with an international school of moving image media, a professional theatre and a centre of interpretation of cinema, performing arts, language, literature and media.

Sometime in May 1970, a group of friends met in Chamarajpet, of the then Bangalore, to discuss starting social and cultural activities. One amongst them, H.N. Narahari Rao, suggested forming a drama troupe. But when there was a suggestion of starting a film society, it was immediately accepted by all. However, H.N. Narahari Rao had no idea about the objectives and activities of a film society. Together with others, they attended screenings of films organised by Mayura Film Society. The group met various other people who had gained experience in the society movement. At the end of all these efforts and labour, in June 1971 the first film society of South Bangalore was born. Various names like Chaya, Suchitra, Darshana, Vikas and Adarsh were considered for the new-born. Suchitra – which translates to “good cinema” won the most votes and was selected.

National College, Basavanagudi, was the venue of the formal inauguration of Suchitra in August 1971. The event was led by N. Lakshminarayana, a well-known film-maker and V.N. Subba Rao, of the Indian Express. A 16mm print of V. Shantaram’s Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani was screened at the conclusion.

Newspaper report-The Hindu-November 15, 2021

Members of the Suchitra Film Society held a silent protest against Suchitra Puravankara Film and Cultural Academy on Sunday for sidelining them and “effectively forcing their ouster”. The society has now decided to wage a legal fight against the academy to regain their rights in the trust, managing the land allotted to the society in 1979.

Veteran film-maker Girish Kasaravalli and journalist Vijayamma were among the protesters, even as the local police claimed they had not permitted the protest and tried to disperse them.

The society, started in 1971, is in its golden jubilee year. In 1979, when the State Government allotted the society a CA site, it created a trust — Suchitra Film Academy — to manage the land. Since then, the society and the trust were on the same page with the elected president of the society being a permanent member of the trust, a statement from the society recounted.

However, things started to change in 2015 when a corporate sponsor came forward to rebuild the auditorium. Starting with the name of the trust being changed, the trust deed was redone making several key changes, including removing the society’s president as a permanent member of the trust, essentially cutting off the relationship, B. Suresha, the incumbent president of the society, said.

Since then, the trust has served notices to the society demanding a “contribution” of ₹50,000 every month to run their office on the premises and has hiked the rent for the auditorium to ₹10,000. “The society has an annual income of less than ₹2 lakh and cannot bear these expenses. We are essentially being forced out,” said Mr. Suresha.

In the 2020 annual general body meeting of the society, a resolution was passed demanding restoration of the permanent membership of the society’s president and the Director of the Kannada and Culture Department in the trust. The society members, who held the silent protest on Sunday, said they were forced to protest as the trustees refused to hold talks with them, sending legal notices instead.

Raghavendra Rao Savanur, chairman of academy, said they would soon respond to the allegations made by the society members. “These are members who are not changing with the times and are insistent on continuing with old ways,” he said.