Cycling, around the world, is a huge revolution and India is slowly awakening to the mental and physical health benefits of cycling. Goa has a huge cycling community that is trying to push the boundaries in the state and India’s first-ever International Festival of Films on Cycling, titled, Reels on Wheels, is being organised by Ravindra Bhavan Margao in collaboration with Carmona-based Saxtti Films on April 7 and 8, 2018. Goa will also get to interact with America’s only Olympic Gold Medalist in Men’s Individual Road Race Cycling, Alexi Singh Grewal, and ride with him in a cycle rally. The festival will feature five award-winning films that have been selected from across the globe by the founders of Saxtti Films, Anoop Babani and Dr Savia Viegas. Besides a Cycle Bazaar, a Flea Market and cycle-related games, the above mentioned cycle rally will be organised by Xaxti Riders, Margao, which has over 150 cyclists.
“We have received a great response from
the audience and the cycling community so far. We have selected films that are
based on cycling events and themes such as the RAAM, Team Rwanda, the Tour de
France and films on cycling across Europe, Singapore and India. The entire
festival will feature five films,” says Dr Savia Viegas, Co-Founder and Curator
of Saxtti Films.
Anoop Babani adds, “We have both been
cyclists and we love films so this festival is combining our two interests.
Getting Alexi Singh Grewal on board is an interesting story. The cycling couple
from our village of Carmona, Dr Belinda Viegas-Mueller and Richard Mueller, did
the Tour of Nilgiri, where they met Alexi and kept in touch with him. Alexi
recently married botanist Manjit Grewal in Jabalpur. As he was in India and his
dates matched with our festival, we invited him to be a part of the event. It
is a huge honour to have an Olympic gold medalist visit India for the first
time.”
To pique the interest of the student community, Anoop and Savia
visited 22 schools and colleges in Goa. “We want the younger generation to get
inspired by cycling and we will be having nearly 25 students from Kare College
and 55 students from Carmel College for Women attending the festival. Nearly
200 cyclists have already registered for the cycle rally. We need more people
to get motivated,” says Anoop. Speaking about the selection of films, he says,
“For the last 40 years, I have been involved in film associations like the
Mumbai Press Club Society and I have many friends who are film makers here and
abroad. Through them, I got in touch with documentary film makers who loved our
idea and informed us about the selected films. Depending on the success of the
festival and our collaboration with Ravindra Bhavan, Margao, we plan on making
it an annual event.”
Reel on Wheels will be inaugurated on Saturday at 4pm at the
hands of Chief Guest, Vijay Sardesai, Minister for Town and Country Planning,
in the presence of Guest of Honour Alexi Singh Grewal, Olympic gold medal
winner. The Cycle Bazaar will be open from 11am onwards. ‘Rising from Ashes’
will be the opening film of the festival, which will be screened at 5pm. The
film directed by TC Johnstone is based on professional cyclist Jacques Boyer,
the first American to participate in Tour de France who moved to Rwanda to help
a group of committed cyclists to form their national cycling team, Team Rwanda.
The film is inspiring and relevant since Alexi Singh Grewal has announced plans
to set up a Cycle Academy to train Indian cyclists competitively.
On day-two, a 25-km Cycle Rally with Alexi will be held from 7am
to 8:30am followed by the screening of the film ‘Chasing Legends, directed by
Jason Berry at 10am. This film follows the cyclists participating in one of the
oldest and most sought after Cycle Race in the world, Tour de France. At 12pm,
‘Bicycle Dreams’ directed by Stephen Auerbach will be screened. The film is
about Race Across America (RAAM), the longest and most difficult bicycle race
in the world. India’s Lt Col Dr Srinivas Gokulnath, (finished at 7th place) and
Dr Amit Samarth (8th place) became the first Indians to finish RAAM in June
2017.
‘Bikes
Vs Cars’ directed by Fredrik Gertten advocates the use of cycles to reduce the
problems of traffic congestion and environmental pollution in the bigger cities
of the world; it will be screened at 3:15pm. The concluding film of the
festival will be ‘One Year on a Bike’ directed by Martijn Doolaard, to be
screened at 4:45pm. The film chronicles Dutch designer and photographer Martijn
Doolaard’s thrilling adventure from Amsterdam to Singapore. To conclude the
festival, an interactive session with Alexi will be held at the Black Box from
5:30pm with moderators Dr Belinda Viegas-Mueller and Richard Mueller.