Xclusive : Kiran Rao’s directorial debut Dhobi Ghat selected for Toronto International Film Festival

A few days back, Cameron Bailey, the Co-director of Toronto International Film Festival was in Mumbai scouting for films. And we have been trying desperately to read between his tweets, for any possible hint about any Indian film which gets selected for the fest. And our eyes popped out when he tweeted….

Found a film in Bombay. If it hits you like it hit me, it will leave you drenched with emotions you can’t quite name.

Woohoo! Quite strong words to describe a film! Which film it could be ? We started the “Aao Guess Karein” game on twitter soon. Many of us thought it might be some Marathi film, because of the way the industry is currently producing some of the best films. And what can you expect from Bollylalalalnd of Jackasses! Seems like the hint was in his previous tweet….

Rains, cows, spit, donkeys, gold, silk, oil, mustaches and lunch with a supremely gracious superstar: Day 2 in Bombay.

Hmmm. Gracious superstar, who would be interested in Film Festival! It cant be any Jackass Superstar! We knew that Aamir and Kiran have been trying to push Dhobi Ghat into the fest circuit for quite sometime. They have been meeting all those who can lead to the right contacts at the right places. Even getting the Academy Award winning music director Gustavo Santaolalla on board to compose the music of the film was a move in perfectly right direction. Cameron’s third tweet made our life lil’ simpler. He tweeted…

Also met a talented new filmmaker you’ll be seeing at #TIFF10

We just had to join the dots. But before we could guess it, a friend (Aseem Chhabra) confirmed that its indeed Dhobi Ghat. And later on, we also confirmed it through our sources. So, big congrats to Kiran Rao! Making a mark with your debut feature is any filmmaker’s dream come true!

Though we dont have much clue about the film’s plot yet but it seems the film is set in Mumbai and revolves around the lives of four characters, whose paths criss-cross at Dhobi Ghat and Aamir plays a painter in the film. Prateik Babbar plays the other lead. Its shot in real locations, with Mohammed Ali Road, Marine Drive and Dhobi Ghat being its famous backdrops.

And this year clearly seems to belong to debutants. First Anusha Rizvi went to Sundance Festival with Peepli Live, then Vikramaditya Motwane’s Udaan got selected for Cannes Film Festival and now Kiran Rao. Welcome the new kids on the block. Cheers!

And the irony is veteran filmmaker Mani Ratnam  is also getting honoured at the Venice Film Festival this year, the year when he made the worst film of his career. Post-Raavan, the joke is “woh kaun sa muh lekar Venice jaayega ? Arre, dus saar hai na. He can pick any one”. Sad indeed, but so true!