A special premiere of the restored version of ‘Manthan’, the 1976 classic by Shyam Benegal, was held in Mumbai. The screening saw a packed house with several celebrities, attending the event. The event opened with a standing ovation for Benegal and the film's team.
Film’s director Shyam Benegal and veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah, who played a key role in the film attended the special premiere along with wife Ratna Pathak Shah. They also had an interaction session where the film’s team spoke about the making of the film.
Besides the team of ‘Manthan’, Bollywood celebrities including Jackie Shroff, Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal, Swara Bhaskar, Sidharth Roy Kapur, Rajit Kapur also graced the event.
The restored film hit the screens on Saturday across 51 cities and 101 theatres in India, including Mumbai, New Delhi, Anand, Rajkot, Chennai, Kochi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, and Chandigarh. Viewers can also watch the movie on Sunday.
Cannes 2024 was India’s most successful year at the film festival. India’s first crowd funded film ‘Manthan’, financed by 5 lakh farmers of Gujarat 48 years ago who donated Rs 2 each to fund the film, was showcased last month at the 77th Cannes Film Festival under its Classics segment. The film received a five-minute standing ovation after the screening. Naseeruddin Shah attended the prestigious film festival for the first time ever.
The classic film starred Smita Patil, Girish Karnad, Naseeruddin Shah, Amrish Puri, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, and Abha Dhulia in lead roles. Fronted by Patil, ‘Manthan’ is inspired by the groundbreaking milk cooperative movement by Dr Verghese Kurien that transformed India into one of the largest milk producers in the world and is credited for creating the billion-dollar brand Amul.
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