Indian documentary film ‘Pirana’, directed by Nainisha Dedhia, has been announced as the ‘Best Short Film’ at the Vishwarang International Film Festival (VIFF) 2020, which was held recently as part of the week-long Tagore International Literature & Arts Festival ‘Vishwarang 2020’.

The winning short film was awarded the VIFF 2020 Platinum Prize Trophy, a cash prize of Rs 51,000 and a certificate at the closing ceremony of the Film Festival.

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‘Pirana’ was chosen from among six short films that were screened at the Film Festival under the ‘Competition’ category. Albanian short film ‘The White Sheets’ by Pandeli Ceco was awarded the VIFF 2020 Gold Prize Trophy and a cash prize of Rs 31,000 while Indian short film ‘Sondhayni’ by Seral Murmu was the winner of the VIFF 2020 Silver Prize Trophy and a cash prize of Rs 21,000.

A total of 600 entries were received under this category, from which the jury had selected six movies for screening. The other three movies that were screened under the ‘Competition’ category at the Film Festival included Portuguese documentary ‘The Celluloid Woman’, Indian documentary movie ‘Gond Art’ and Indian short film ‘Anti Hero’.

The winning documentary ‘Pirana’, on the largest dumping site of Ahmedabad, showcases the journey of waste, where it comes from to where it finally goes. The fact that the documentary is a silent portrayal of the journey makes it even more interesting.

In her acceptance speech, while receiving the award, Nainisha said, “The idea of the film came from the very fact that such a burning issue has taken a back seat and excessive consumption and convenience have taken precedence over all those things. So, the idea behind the film was to make something that does not romanticize the idea of waste or does not throw a lot of information at your face; it’s just one piece of information which we are all aware of. The motive behind the film was to leave a lingering afterthought as that is what brings about change and that I feel is one step in the correct direction.”

The Jury for the competition consisted of eminent arts & film personalities such as veteran Filmmaker and Cinematographer RajendraJangaly; Producer and Founder of Loudspeaker Media, Mauli Singh; Screenwriter Shreya Bhattacharya; Art Critic and Anchor Vinay Upadhyay; and VIFF 2020’s Director SudeepSohni, who is a playwright, poet, singer, columnist, writer, and director who juggles between theatre and cinema.