Pune: Uday Shankar’s ‘Kalpana’ to be screened at film archive; more events in pipeline

Although a pioneering film in the way it features dance performances and helped take Indian classical dance to the world, 'Kalpana' saw very limited distribution in India. Shankar did not make another film after that.

“Kalpana”, starring Uday Shankar and his wife Amala, is about a young dancer’s dream of setting up a dance academy. (Express photo)

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The National Film Archive of India (NFAI) will screen the restored classic “Kalpana” (1948), directed by dancer Uday Shankar, at its Law College Road premises in Pune on Saturday. The screening, which will commence at 6.30 pm, is open to all on a first-come-first-served basis.

Since the Union Government’s decision to merge the film archive with the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) came into effect from January 2023, film screenings for the general public had almost come to a halt. The Pune International Film Festival (PIFF), for which NFAI has been a co-organiser since its inception, also did not screen any films at the film archive earlier this year in its 21st edition.

“Kalpana”, starring Uday Shankar and his wife Amala, is about a young dancer’s dream of setting up a dance academy. The film is inspired from Shankar’s own life and the academy he founded, named Almora. Although a pioneering film in the way it features dance performances and helped take Indian classical dance to the world, the film saw very limited distribution in India. Shankar did not make another film after that.

Jasbir Singh Baidwan, Manager, NFDC-NFAI, said the screening is part of the annual schedule of the archive’s film circle but the administration decided to open it for the public. “We have about a hundred members in our film circle. The screening was organised for them. But since we have a capacity to seat 330 viewers, we decided to open the screening for the public,” said Baidwan.