Restored Indian films shine at Venice, Toronto festivals

Dev Benegal’s English, August (1994) will play in the Venice Classics section at the Venice Film Festival in September, alongside works by Buñuel and Rossellini. Later that month, the Toronto International Film Festival will screen John Abraham’s Amma Ariyan (1986) in its Toronto Classics section. This year, restored Indian films have appeared at all four top international festivals, Cannes, Venice, Berlin and Toronto, a first for Indian cinema, the Economic Times reports.

The selection highlights both a milestone and the urgent need to preserve thousands of decaying prints. Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s Film Heritage Foundation restored both films. Earlier, Pradip Krishen’s In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones (1989) was shown at Berlinale Classics, and Amma Ariyan drew crowds at Cannes Classics in May. India’s National Film Heritage Mission has restored 2,200 films, including all works of Ritwik Ghatak. Restored Indian films have been featured in Cannes Classics for five straight years since 2022.