9th Riturangam International Film Festival 2026: A Celebration of Cinema

Report

Anuradha Halder

BAJMC Sem 3

9th Riturangam International Film Festival 2026 

The four-day 9th Riturangam International Film Festival 2026 was held from August 27- 30, 2026 at Barasat Vidyasagar Mancha Municipality Hall, Barasat organised by the Ritu Rangam Natyakendra. The festival commemorated the contribution of the erstwhile director, Rituparno Ghosh. It brought together filmmakers, artists, students, literature and cinema enthusiasts at one platform to celebrate cinema. More than 50 films from India and other countries such as Italy, France and the USA, across different languages and genres were showcased.

ASCOPE team covered the final-day, which began with a beautiful classical Kathak performance by a talented team. The graceful movements, expressions and rhythmic presentation created an engaging start to the day's programme. Following the performance, the National Film Competition began at 12 p.m. A number of films were screened as part of the competition, including Gajon, Hymns of Nature by Debanjana Manji, Eti Tomar, an Assamese film by Purbis Ahmad, and The Last Voyage, a Bengali short fiction film by Bhaswati Roy. The films presented different stories and perspectives, making the screening session an interesting experience for the audience.

ASCOPE Team, Atreyee, Anuradha and Rupa along with Prof. Sourav Kr. Basu with other dignitaries

At 3:30 p.m., a special screening of Annapurna Bhavan was held. The approximately 30-minute short fiction film was directed by Rahul Biswas, the founder of the Riturangam International Film Festival. The screening added a special dimension to the day's programme as the audience got the opportunity to watch a work by the person who had played a key role in bringing the festival together.

At 4 p.m., the programme continued with the unveiling of a special issue of Kajari magazine, followed by a panel discussion featuring distinguished personalities from the film industry. The panel included Smt. Sreelekha Mukherji, National Award-winning actress and Jury Chairperson; Smt. Sarmistha Maiti, two-time National Award-winning filmmaker; Sri Rajdeep Paul, two-time National Award-winning filmmaker and alumnus of the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute; Smt. Jayashree Bhattacharya, renowned filmmaker; Smt. Olivia Das, renowned sound designer; Sri Samrat Ray Chakraborty, award-winning independent filmmaker; and Partha Chakraborty, renowned film director.

Organiser Rahul Biswas of Ritu Rangam Natyakendra

The panel discussion focused particularly on short films and the art of storytelling. The speakers discussed the process of making short films, the importance of developing meaningful stories within a limited duration and the ways in which films can connect with and affect audiences. Their experiences and perspectives provided valuable insights into the creative and practical aspects of filmmaking. For students and aspiring filmmakers in the audience, the discussion offered an opportunity to understand cinema beyond simply watching a film on screen.

The next special screening took place at 4:30 p.m., when Kayantar was presented. The approximately 29-minute short fiction film was produced by Aurora Film Corporation and directed by Sarmistha Maiti and Rajdeep Paul. The screening further highlighted the festival's focus on short and independent films and provided the audience with another engaging cinematic experience.

At 5 p.m., the festival moved towards a master class and talk session, followed by the much-awaited award distribution ceremony. Several films received prizes and special recognition in different categories. Films such as The Last Voyage, Jhor, Ure Jabar Bayna, Neel Ghori and The Accused, among others, were recognised during the ceremony. The award distribution brought an atmosphere of excitement and appreciation as the festival acknowledged the creative efforts of filmmakers and artists.

The closing ceremony brought together the filmmakers, jury members, artists, participants and audience members who had been part of the festival, creating a warm and celebratory atmosphere at the venue. The interactions among the guests and the audience continued even after the formal proceedings, with conversations around films, performances and the festival itself.

9th Riturangam International Film Festival 2026 

With the final awards being presented and the last moments of the programme filled with applause and appreciation, the 9th Riturangam International Film Festival 2026 came to a close. The four-day celebration stood as a vibrant gathering of cinema and creativity, while keeping the spirit of Rituparno Ghosh at its heart. The final day ended on a memorable note, bringing our second day at the festival to a fitting close.

 

Freedom 2.0: ISKCON Newtown Calls Youth to Break Free from Anxiety and Addiction

Report

Rupa Sethia

BAJMC Sem 3

Pics by Rupa Sethia

ISKCON Newtown organised its Mega Youth Fest, Prerana: Freedom 2.0, at Nityanand Hall on August 8, 5 P.M onwards to bringing together young people for an evening centred on the theme of inner freedom. With the message of “Azadi from Anxiety, Addiction, Distraction and Purposelessness,” the event aimed to address some of the challenges faced by today’s youth and encourage them to lead more purposeful and meaningful lives. The programme featured an inspiring session by mentor, monk and speaker Chaitanya Charan Das, along with music and dinner prasadam, creating an atmosphere of reflection, inspiration and community. 

The central focus of the event was the session by Chaitanya Charan Das, who spoke about the importance of inner freedom and the challenges faced by young people in today’s digital age. He discussed how anxiety, addiction, constant distractions and a lack of purpose can gradually affect the way young people connect with themselves and others. He particularly highlighted the growing dependence on smartphones, where people spend hours scrolling through social media, online content and sales, often becoming disconnected from real-life experiences and spirituality. He pointed out that people can become so absorbed in their phone screens that they stop noticing what is happening around them, including in their locality, among neighbours and even within their own families. According to him, this growing detachment is one of the major concerns for today’s youth. He encouraged young people to look beyond their digital screens, become more conscious of their surroundings and build meaningful connections with others. He also emphasised that true freedom does not simply mean freedom from external restrictions, but freedom from the distractions and habits that control our minds. His message encouraged the youth to develop a more purposeful, aware and spiritually connected outlook towards life.

 

 

The programme created a lively and peaceful atmosphere for participants of all age groups. The audience appeared deeply immersed during the Krishna Kirtan, with children, adults and elderly people joining enthusiastically. A little girl singing the devotional chants with a cheerful smile was a particularly heartwarming moment. The Nityananda Hall had simple decorations, featuring pictures of Lord Krishna, Radha and other Vaishnav-related images. The organisers also conducted an online quiz based on spirituality, Ramayana and Mahabharata, which received enthusiastic participation. A short film on ISKCON Delhi followed, explaining its establishment and growth. The event concluded with an interactive session where participants shared their concerns with Chaitanya Charan Das and received responses, making the programme engaging and meaningful. 

Prerana: Freedom 2.0 was more than a spiritual gathering; it offered an insight into the concerns and lifestyle challenges faced by today’s generation. The combination of spirituality, music, quiz, informative content and direct audience interaction made the event engaging. The programme concluded with a strong message of inner freedom, awareness, meaningful connections and purposeful living, leaving a lasting impression on the participants.

Rupa Sethia during the programme

 

Dhoop Khidki Ki — A Window Through Which Women Perceive Their True Reflection

Theatre Review

Aishwarya Siingh

BAJMC Sem 3

Kartikey Tripathi, writer and director of the play

  

Glimpses from Dhoop Khidki Ki 

Some plays entertain, some provoke thought, and then there are those rare productions that quietly stay with you long after the curtain falls.

Dhoop Khidki Ki, written and directed by Kartikey Tripathi, is one such play. It does not rely on dramatic twists or loud confrontations. Instead, it finds extraordinary depth in the ordinary moments of everyday life—the kind we see daily but seldom question.

Set within the familiar walls of a middle-class household, the story follows Rachna, a homemaker who has spent twenty-nine years nurturing her family: her husband Ramesh, her son Aditya, and her daughter Neha. Alongside her is Pushpa, the family's domestic help, who silently endures domestic violence. Though separated by class, both women carry the same invisible burden: the expectation to keep giving, adjusting, and enduring while their own identities slowly fade.

The audience witnesses countless moments that feel painfully familiar: a son asking his mother not to speak too much in front of his friends because "she doesn't understand"; a husband casually assuming that meals, comfort, and care will always be provided, without ever acknowledging the person behind them. Remarks like "Ladki ho, kam bola karo" and "Yeh tumhara sasural hai, sunna seekho" are not presented as extraordinary acts of cruelty. They are shown exactly as they exist in countless households—ordinary, everyday phrases that quietly shape a woman's life.

The play reminds us that neglect is not always loud; sometimes, it is simply the absence of appreciation. Sometimes love exists, but gratitude quietly disappears.

Perhaps the most moving aspect of the production is that Ramesh and Aditya are not portrayed as villains. They are ordinary men. They love Rachna, but somewhere between routine, responsibility, and societal conditioning, they stop seeing her beyond the roles she performs. She becomes "Maa" and "Wife" before she remains "Rachna." That uncomfortable familiarity is what makes the play so painfully relatable. Emotional neglect, it suggests, is often born not from cruelty, but from habit.

The emotional heartbeat of the play lies in Rachna's diary, written when she was just twenty-one. Hidden between its fading pages are dreams that once felt limitless—traveling, writing books, and discovering a life beyond the four walls of her home. They are dreams she never consciously abandoned; they were simply postponed so many times that they quietly slipped away.

Watching her revisit those pages felt as though every woman in the auditorium paused for a moment and asked herself a deeply personal question:

"When was the last time I met myself?"

Somewhere between becoming an ideal daughter-in-law, a dependable wife, a nurturing mother, and the emotional anchor of an entire household, when did she last spend time with the young girl she once was? The girl who was ambitious, curious, hopeful, and full of dreams. The girl who believed the world was waiting for her.

At what point did that girl quietly disappear?

Perhaps the most heartbreaking truth the play uncovers is that many women do not lose themselves in a single defining moment. They disappear gradually—through postponed dreams, small compromises, and countless acts of love that leave little room for their own aspirations. After years of living for everyone else, they become almost afraid to look back. Afraid to meet the person they once were. Because what if reconnecting with that younger self makes it impossible to continue pretending she never existed? What if remembering those dreams hurts more than forgetting them ever did?

One of the play's most beautiful relationships is between Rachna and her childhood friend, Rashmi Srivastav. Unlike everyone else, Rashmi speaks to Rachna not as someone's wife or mother, but simply as Rachna. Their conversations gently remind her of the dreams she once cherished and the person she had quietly buried beneath years of responsibility. Rashmi never offers dramatic solutions; instead, she offers something far more meaningful—she listens. In many ways, she becomes the emotional anchor Rachna never realized she needed, encouraging her to look inward rather than continue living only for others.

Running alongside this narrative is Pushpa, whose heartbreaking line, "Main bhi toh kisi ki beti hoon," captures the pain of women whose dignity is stripped away behind closed doors. Through Pushpa, the play broadens its message beyond a single household, reminding the audience that while women's struggles may differ, the desire to be respected, heard, and valued is universal.

The performances embrace restraint with remarkable maturity. There are no exaggerated emotional outbursts or melodramatic confrontations; every pause, unfinished sentence, and fleeting glance carries meaning. The minimalist set design, subtle lighting, and understated background score allow the emotions to breathe naturally. The window—the khidki—emerges as one of the play's most powerful symbols, quietly representing hope, forgotten aspirations, and the promise that it is never too late to rediscover the person you used to be.

The diary eventually gives way to letters written to every member of the family. They are not letters of blame, but of love wrapped in honesty. Her message to Neha is particularly touching, urging her daughter never to let the world clip her wings the way life had clipped her own. To Aditya, she gently reminds him that success means little if it is not accompanied by empathy. Even her letter to Ramesh carries no bitterness; she was never asking for grand gestures—she simply wanted someone to notice that she, too, had dreams, fears, and moments of exhaustion.

Dhoop Khidki Ki succeeds because it does not offer easy answers or dramatic resolutions. Instead, it leaves behind questions that linger—questions about gratitude, identity, and the invisible emotional labor that quietly holds families together. By the time the house lights came up, the play had transformed from Rachna's story into something much larger: a reflection of countless women whose dreams were never abandoned, only postponed.

A particularly striking observation came from a senior audience member after the performance. He remarked that the play was not merely about women's struggles, but about their extraordinary courage. "Women were never weak," he said. "Perhaps it was men who were too afraid to recognize just how strong they have always been." It was a thought that lingered long after the evening had ended.

In the end, Dhoop Khidki Ki is not merely a play about sacrifice. It is a poignant reminder that before every woman became someone's wife, mother, or daughter-in-law, she was first an individual with dreams, ambitions, and a name of her own. And perhaps the greatest achievement of the production is that, for a brief evening, it gave many women in the audience the courage to look through that window once again—and remember the girl waiting on the other side.

 Inputs by Rupa Sethia, BAJMC Sem 3

Anirban Majumder Launches “Beyond the Numbers” at Oxford Bookstore, Kolkata

Book Launch Report

Rupa Sethia

BAJMC 2

Author Anirban Majumder and Sujata Sen, former director, British Council

The latest book by author Anirban Majumder, Beyond the Numbers, was launched on 18 July 2026 at Oxford Bookstore, Park Street, Kolkata. The event brought together readers, writers, students, and literature enthusiasts to celebrate the release. During the programme, the author shared the inspiration behind the book, discussed its key themes, and interacted with the audience, making the launch both informative and engaging.

Anirban Majumder is a business leader and author with around 22 years of experience in multinational companies. His expertise includes sales, business development, leadership, and negotiation. Throughout his career, he has emphasized building long-term relationships instead of focusing only on short-term results. Beyond the Numbers was written to guide aspiring entrepreneurs, start-up founders, and professionals facing business challenges. The book focuses on negotiation, sales, marketing, trust-building, and empathy. It explains how empathy can strengthen communication, improve customer relationships, and develop effective negotiation skills.

 

     Pic1: Author, Sen and Reshmi Chatterjee, curator                   Pic 2: Author and Rupa Sethia, ASCO Student

The chief guest of the event was Sujata Sen, CEO of Future Hope and former Director of the British Council, East India. The programme organised and curated by Reshmi Chatterjee, who welcomed the guests. Beginning at 6:00 p.m., the event featured the official unveiling of the book, followed by an interactive discussion between the chief guest and the author. Specially designed bookmarks based on the theme of Beyond the Numbers were distributed among the audience. During the discussion, Anirban Majumder spoke about the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and start-up founders. Drawing from his professional experience, he explained that many businesses struggle because entrepreneurs fail to communicate their ideas effectively or build trust with customers. He said the book was written to provide practical guidance for people starting a business or overcoming professional challenges.

The author further emphasized that there are no bad ideas; success depends on how an idea is presented. He explained that first-time entrepreneurs often become too enthusiastic while presenting their ideas, which may reduce customer interest. He encouraged entrepreneurs to stay calm, understand customers' needs, make thoughtful decisions, and build trust during negotiations. These concepts are explored in greater detail throughout the book.

The author conveyed that he wrote Beyond the Numbers to support people who feel confused or uncertain in their professional lives. Through practical examples and real-life experiences, the book aims to build confidence, improve communication, and help readers overcome workplace and business challenges. The discussion was followed by an interactive question-and-answer session, where audience members asked questions on entrepreneurship, business strategy, and negotiation. The author responded with practical insights from his own experience.

Students from various colleges and universities attended the event, including Amity University Kolkata, Techno India University, The Bhawanipur Education Society College, and George College of Management and Science, reflecting the growing interest of young learners in entrepreneurship and professional development. 

From Amity University Kolkata, three students attended the event: Rupa Sethia (B.A. Journalism and Mass Communication, 2025–2029), Ranjabati Basu (BBA, 2024–2028), and Sunetra Sahoo (BBA, 2024–2028).

The overall ambience of the event was pleasant and welcoming. Hosting the launch at Oxford Bookstore proved to be an excellent choice, as the venue offered a warm and aesthetic atmosphere. The decorations were simple yet elegant, and the bookstore's literary environment made the occasion memorable for readers and guests alike.

The event concluded with informal interactions among the attendees, followed by the organizers' closing remarks. The programme successfully highlighted the importance of entrepreneurship, effective communication, empathy, and trust-building in professional success. It also promoted reading culture while providing students, aspiring entrepreneurs, and professionals with valuable insights from the author's experiences, making the event educational and memorable.