Jaya Ahsan’s Iranian film debut makes waves at IFFI

Jaya Ahsan's first Iranian film "Fereshta" received major accolades from audiences following its screening at the 54th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa.

The Iran-Bangladesh joint production, "Fereshta", had been selected to compete in the 'Feature Films' category amongst other foreign films. Mumit Al-Rashid of Bangladesh wrote the film along with its Iranian director, Morteza Atashzamzam. The dialogues were translated into Persian and Bengali by Mumit Al-Rashid and Foisal Ifran.

"Fereshta" has also been selected as the opening film of the 22nd Dhaka International Film Festival 2024 in January. Maximum Enterprise Bangladesh is the co-producer of this Iran-Bangladesh joint production. 

The five-time National Award and three-time Filmfare Award-winning actress Jaya Ahsan is currently in Goa at the festival, triumphantly attending the screenings, with five of her films being showcased at the IFFI, marking a remarkable feat in her career. Regarding the movie, Jaya Ahsan told The Daily Star, "It is a film about humane values and emotions. I believe that the way the director portrays the Bangladeshi community, culture and politics will be surprising for the nation."

"It was a very challenging film for me to do. The entire crew primarily spoke in their language (Persian), but films do not have any specific language, which is why we ended up connecting profoundly throughout the process of filming. I played the role of a courageous and economically underprivileged woman," she added.

In addition to Jaya Ahsan, several other Bangladeshi artistes including Reekita Nondine Shimu, Shahiduzzaman Selim, Shahed Ali, Shaheen Mridha and child artiste Sathi acted in this film. The film is scheduled to be released in Bangladesh next Eid-ul-Fitr.

Jaya Ahsan's other films that are scheduled to be screened at IFFI are – "Ardhangini", directed by Kaushik Ganguly; "Putul Nacher Itikatha", directed by Sumon Mukhopadhyay, and "Jhara Palak" - based on the life of poet Jibanananda Das, directed by Sayantan Mukherjee.

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