The train goes east in a stunning classic of the New Indian Cinema. Russian premiere as part of the retrospective programme of the Festival of Singular Films.
27 Down
- Date:
- 23 Sep 2024,
16:00–18:00
- Age restrictions
- 18+
1973, Awtar Krishna Kaul
India
118 minutes, Hindi with Russian subtitles
Starring: M.K. Raina, Raakhee, Rekha Sabnis, Om Shivpuri
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The 27th express train that crosses India travels from bustling Bombay to Varanasi with its otherworldly spirituality. Among the many pilgrims is Sanjay, a middle-aged man whose entire life seems to have been accompanied by the sound of train wheels, by turns strange, measured or interrupted. He was born in a train carriage. His father was an engineer and forced his son, who dreamed of a career as an artist, to get a job in the railways. While working as train conductor, Sanjay met his love, the voluptuous and independent Shalini, but his parents insisted that he marry someone else.
Shot from 27 Down, 1973
Without resorting to melodrama, in very few words and depicting action mostly through visual cues, the film achieves the rare quality of timelessness.
— O.P. Srivastava, The Daily Eye
Surprising even in the context of Indian parallel cinema, which flourished in the 1970s, 27 Down is shot as if it were a quasi-documentary epic like Gillo Pontecorvo’s The Battle of Algiers, with much of the action taking place in the narrow, cramped corridors of the cars. The restless handheld camera bursts into this mundane environment with such vigour that Sanjay’s existential drama feels almost like a psychological thriller.
This thriller turns out to be impressively multifaceted. Alienation in the big city—and the conflict between tradition and modernity. Toxic, traumatised masculinity— and the fate of women who aspire to independence. The relationship between fathers and children—and the shackles of class inequality. Awtar Krishna Kaul turns the train into a metaphor for life itself, which remains relevant today. The director himself never had the chance to follow up on his success: he died while trying to save a friend who was drowning, on the day when 27 Down was declared the best Indian film of the year.
The screening will begin with a brief speech by the curator in Russian. If you require interpretation into English, please request it at least three days in advance by emailing international@ges-2.org.
The film won the National Film Prize of India (1973) in the categories of Best Film and Best Cinematography, and also Ecumenical Jury prize at the Locarno Film Festival (1974).
