PUNE: To mark the birth centenary celebrations of humorist and writer PL Deshpande (fondly called Pu La), National Film Archives of India (NFAI) has organised a special poster exhibition and film festival on its premises from November 18 to 20.
Renowned actor Ashok Saraf will be inaugurating the exhibition and film festival at NFAI on Sunday, November 18.
The exhibition will showcase 26 posters of noted Marathi and Hindi films on which Pu La worked, ranging from Kuber (1947), Vande Mataram (1948), Johar Maibaap (1950), Maisaheb (1953) to his last work Ek Hota Vidushak (1992). It will highlight aspects of his contribution in Marathi and Hindi cinema as a writer, actor, director and composer.
“This event is a beautiful tribute to the genius artist who ventured into almost every field of performing arts. We plan to take the exhibition to various corners of Maharashtra in the coming year. A special attraction of the exhibition will be the display of the original handwritten copy of the script of Pu La’s cult classic Gulacha Ganpati,” said Prakash Magdum, Director, NFAI.
The script was donated to NFAI by the family members of Rajguru, the producer of the film in 2015.
The three-day film festival (from November 18-20) will showcase 12 films of Deshpande, including films like ‘Gulacha Ganpati’ and ‘Pudhacha Paul’. The festival also features films ‘The Inspector General’ and ‘Three Penny Opera’ which were later adapted by Pu La for his work ‘Ammaldar’ and ‘Teen Paisacha Tamasha’ in Marathi.
“The centenary year is also a good opportunity to trace his lost films and other material. We appeal the general public to come forward and help the NFAI so that it can be preserved for future generations,“ Magdum added.
The event has been organised in collaboration with ‘Pu La Parivar’ and Aashay Film Club. The entry is free and open to all.
