- Dweepa
-
Dweepa aka The Island 
Directed by Girish Kasaravalli Produced by Soundarya Written by Norbet D'Souza Starring Soundarya, Avinash, M.V.Vasudeva Rao,Harish Raju Music by Thomas Isaac Kottukapally Country India Language Kannada Dweepa (Kannada: ದ್ವೀಪ) is a 2002 film by Girish Kasaravalli.
Contents
Plot
Based on the novel with the same title by Norbert D'Souza, Dweepa deals with the raging issue of building dams and the displacement of natives. Located in the backwaters of a dam, Sita Parvata is an island slowly submerging due to the rains. The government succeeds in evacuating the inmates of the island by giving them compensation for the properties they own. The village temple priest Duggajja, his son Ganapa and his daughter in law Nagi find it impossible to leave their homeland and make a living with the meagre compensation given by the government. They have but a small hut, which earns them a compensation of
25,000. In Ganapa's own words, the compensation can give them food and shelter, but cannot compensate for the love and respect of their people. On the island, they are important people, but outside, they would be one among hundreds of families struggling to make a living. Centered around this complex theme, the film narrates the struggles of the family and how ultimately in the end they manage to continue life on the island.
Soundarya as NagiThe 'inner' theme
As in all of Girish Kasaravalli's films, Dweepa too deals with an 'inner' theme, that of human minds that isolate themselves due to former beliefs and convictions. Each character emerges as a representation of different viewpoints. The protagonist Nagi (Soundarya) has been portrayed as an optimistic character whose support is hope and only that. One can notice how the character finally emerges as a symbol of positive thinking and optimism. Ganapa (Avinash), on the contrary resigns to fate, and finally when they narrowly escape submersion, he fails to see that his wife had achieved the impossible. Duggajja (M.V.VasudevaRao) withdraws from the catastrophe rather than face it. He is devastated to see his convictions and beliefs crumble before his very eyes and in the end, he clings to his beliefs in desperation. Krishna (Harish Raju) portrays a typical dreamer, who can mesmerize these village folk with fairy tales about the world beyond the isolated island. In short he encapsulates the 'fantasy' world we all tend to dream about.
Awards and Screenings
National Film Awards, India, 2002
- National Film Award for Best Film
- National Film Award for Best Cinematography - H.M. Ramachandra Halkere
Karnataka State Film Awards, 2002
- Best Film.
- Best Direction for Girish Kasaravalli.
- Best Actress in a lead role for Soundarya.
- Best Cinematography for Mr.Ramachandra.
Filmfare Awards for Kannada
- Best Film.
- Best Direction.
- Best Actress in a lead role for Soundarya.
Screenings
- Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, New York
- International Film Festival Of India
- Fukuoka Film Festival, Japan
- Durban International Film Festival
- International Film Festival of Rotterdam.
- Cinema Vintage Programme, IsolaCinema, KinoOtok
Soundtrack
Unlike earlier Kasaravalli films, Dweepa had music by Thomas Isaac Kottukapally used throughout the film.
Trivia
- In the original novel by Norbert D'Souza, Ganapa too meets with an untimely end and Nagi is left alone on the island to fight for her survival. But in the film, Ganapa lives but renders no support to Nagi during the crisis.
- M.V.Vasudeva Rao who played the role of Duggajja did not live long enough to see the release of the movie.
- Rain played a critical role in the film. Girish Kasaravalli, when commenting about the film said that along with the four main characters, rain was the fifth character in the film.
External links
National Film Award for Best Feature Film 1954–1960 Shyamchi Aai (1954) · Mirza Ghalib (1955) · Pather Panchali (1956) · Kabuliwala (1957) · Do Aankhen Barah Haath (1958) · Sagar Sangamey (1959) · Apur Sansar (1960)
1961–1980 Anuradha (1961) · Bhagini Nivedita (1962) · Dada Thakur (1963) · Shehar Aur Sapna (1964) · Charulata (1965) · Chemmeen (1966) · Teesri Kasam (1967) · Hatey Bazarey (1968) · Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne (1969) · Bhuvan Shome (1970) · Samskara (1971) · Seemabaddha (1972) · Swayamvaram (1973) · Nirmalyam (1974) · Chorus (1975) · Chomana Dudi (1976) · Mrigayaa (1977) · Ghatashraddha (1978) · No Award (1979) · Shodh (1980)
1981–2000 Akaler Shandhaney (1981) · Dakhal (1982) · Chokh (1983) · Adi Shankaracharya (1984) · Damul (1985) · Chidambaram (1986) · Tabarana Kathe (1987) · Halodhia Choraye Baodhan Khai (1988) · Piravi (1989) · Bagh Bahadur (1990) · Marupakkam (1991) · Agantuk (1992) · Bhagwat Geeta (1993) · Charachar (1994) · Unishe April (1995) · Kathapurushan (1996) · Lal Darja (1997) · Thaayi Saheba (1998) · Samar (1999) · Vanaprastham (2000)
2001–present Shantham (2001) · Dweepa (2002) · Mondo Meyer Upakhyan (2003) · Shwaas (2004) · Page 3 (2005) · Kaalpurush – Memories in the Mist (2006) · Pulijanmam (2007) · Kanchivaram (2008) · Antaheen (2009) · Kutty Srank (2010) · Adaminte Makan Abu (2011)
Categories:- Indian films
- Kannada-language films
- 2002 films
- Indian art films
- Kannada-language film stubs
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
