28 Oct 2018  |   05:19am IST

Konkani film wins Best Regional Film at Karnataka State Film Awards

In what is a matter of great pride and can serve as a great inspiration to Konkani films, Janet Noronha Productions’ first Konkani film ‘Sophiya – a dream girl’ won Best Regional Film at the Karnataka State Film Awards 2017. Café has the details
Konkani film wins Best Regional Film at Karnataka State Film Awards

Karsten Miranda

The Karnataka State Film Awards for the

movies of 2017 were announced and Janet Noronha Productions’ first Konkani film, ‘Sophiya – a dream girl’, has won the award for Best Regional Film.

The Karnataka State Awards are organised solely by the Government of Karnataka and mainly for Kannada films, which are mainstream films, since Kannada is the state language. Next comes the regional films category wherein the sub languages of the state are considered like Tulu, Konkani, Beary, Kodava, etc, which are spoken by various other regions of Karnataka. 'Sophiya – a dream girl' falls under this category.

A panel led by Kannada film director and producer N S Shankar made the recommendations to Chief Minister of Karnataka H D Kumaraswamy on October 25, 2018. Adarsh Eshwarappa's ‘Shuddhi’ has won the award for Best Movie, while Puneeth Rajkumar's ‘Raajakumara’ has bagged the Best Entertainer of the Year.

Against that backdrop and the number of prestigious awards, it is indeed a matter of great honour for a Konkani film to hold its own against such competition in an industry that huge in Karnataka. While this is not the first Konkani film to win the award for Best Regional Film, it is to be noted that this is the first Konkani film by Janet Noronha Productions.

According to media reports in Karnataka, the film, Produced by Janet Noronha, had emerged as the biggest Konkani opener at the box office. The media reports further stated that the movie went on to collect a massive collection on its opening week to become the first ever Konkani film to do so.

Directed by ‘Noshibacho Khell’ fame Harry Fernandes, the film stars choreographer turned actor Elton Mascarenhas along with Ester Noronha.

Café speaks to Ester Noronha, daughter of Janet and popular singer and actress who enjoys a huge following in Goa as well, about this achievement:

 

Herald Café:

How does your family feel about this recognition?

Ester Noronha:

Our family is really surprised and happy to see my mother, Janet, our production banner Janet Noronha Productions and our very first venture ‘Sophiya – a dream girl’ being recognised and awarded Best Regional Film at the Karnataka State Awards 2017. It's very rare that it happens that someone gets such recognition at the first go itself. They are all proud.

HC:

This would be a massive boost for the Konkani language and films. Comment.

EN:

Yes it is! In Mangalore especially, Konkani films are experiencing a rebirth after a really long gap. This recognition is definitely positive and will encourage positive growth in the community. We are receiving appreciation from Konkani people across the globe, saying that they're proud of us and proud to say their language Konkani is making news. It brings people together, connects them in a special way and spreads positivity and a positive approach towards the language, our films, our local talents and people.

HC:

What is the film about? Can you share more details about the film?

EN: '

Sophiya – a dream girl' is the first full-fledged, big budget commercial family entertainer in Konkani with all the aspects that the genre should have. It has a strong storyline, songs of all categories like for children, love songs, comedy song etc, a comedy track and a message to take back home. The making or the commercial aspects of the film is no less than any other language film in any way. It has been produced on par with all other language industries.

HC:

When will the award ceremony be held?

EN:

We are currently in Dubai for work purposes and aren’t reachable on our regular numbers; we are only available on WhatsApp. Even the news of the announcement came as surprise to us as a cousin of mine saw it on a Kannada news channel and sent us the screen shots. So right now we don't know about the date, etc. Once we're back in India we'll get in touch with them.

 

 

What lies ahead for Janet Noronha Productions

Janet Noronha Productions is currently working on its second venture – ‘Kantaar’ – starring Jackie Shroff, Ester Noronha and Noel Sean in the lead roles. This is a complete Goan project in every way. The language used is Goan Konkani, it's completely shot in Goa and the supporting cast is also all Goan.

Goan Nightingale Lorna Cordeiro will be singing playback for the first time in her illustrious career for this film and will also feature in the song.

The film is a tribute to all the Konkani people of Goa who have supported Janet Noronha Productions and contributed in helping them in their endeavours.

The audio release of ‘Kantaar’ will be on November 11, 2018 at Taleigao amidst the 'Kor Kantaar' show. The film itself is slated for a January 2019 release


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