Lecture on Bengali Cinema in the Digital Era by Dr. Manas Ghosh

Bengali Cinema is one of the oldest regional cinemas in India. In the first three decades after independence, it contributed significantly both in the popular and the parallel cinematic parlance. Some noteworthy popular melodrama as well as auteur cinema came into being in these decades. As politics and governance changed in Bengal by the end of the 1970s the form and content of Bengali cinema took a major turn and a series of films were made to cater the rural audiences. The next major break came in to Bengali cinema in the late 1990s. The new Bengali cinema of today aspires to meet the taste of the newly emerged urban middle-class. The advent of digital devices in this current scenario introduces low budget filmmaking and small cinema. In the last few years some very important low budget digital films have been made which attempt to critically understand the legacy of Bengali cinema.

Introduction: Prof. Dr. Idesbald Goddeeris (KU Leuven)
Lecture: Dr. Manas Ghosh (Assistant Professor at the Department Film Studies, Jadavpur University, Kolkata)

When? Tuesday 14 April, 4:30-6pm
Where? College van Premonstreit, 03.43, Naamsestraat 61, Leuven, (entrance via Charles Deberiotstraat)

Registration: Participation is free, but prior registration is required at conference@ggs.kuleuven.be (before 13 April 2015)