Directed by #AnanthMahadevan is the 1st film ever to be made on Active Euthanasia, to release this winter. Based on the true incidents of the riddle of existentialism in the lives of elderly people who feel life should have a happy ending, ‘#AataVelZaali’, the soon to be released #MarathiFilm, raises several queries that vacillate in the mind of humanity these days. Written and directed by award winning Ananth Mahadevan, the film has a strong casting of legendary artists including Dilip Prabhavalkar, Rohini Hattangadi, Bharat Dabholkar among others Produced by Dinesh Bansal (Imagine Entertainment & Media Pvt Ltd)
The film based on true-life characters and their experience will be a gripping, funny yet emotionally inspiring adventure of two inhabitants who pose the most baffling question on existence yet. Their journey turns out to be an uplifting spiritual cinematic experience. Produced by Dinesh Bansal (Imagine Entertainment & Media Pvt Ltd), Ananth Mahadevan (Ananth Mahadevan Films), GK Aggarwal, the film also has Suresh Vishwakarma, Smita Tambe, Jaywant Wadkar, Abhinav Patekar as other artists in key roles.
“I always wanted to make cinema of substance, something that would be socially relevant and close to life. I found AATA VEL ZALI as an issue that could shake up every generation and make them rethink life and existence all over again. Besides, it is a subject that has never been debated before. All of which made it an ideal film to begin with” said Producer Dinesh Bansal.
“In a way it is the other side of Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Anand. Here the issue is of not laughing at death but smiling through the end of life. Active euthanasia was a subject that struck me during the pandemic when the world began to look at life and death differently. Even the youth began to have a more pragmatic view of life than a materialistic one. Preview/ festival audiences all over the world vindicated this when they were numbed into silence after the film and along with the tears of the elderly, the youth admitted that this was a viewpoint to be considered seriously,” said Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, who is in the triple role as writer, director and producer of the film.
‘Aata Vel Zaali’ has already been selected for many international festivals like Dallas International Film Festival, Pune International Film Festival (Best Actor), Rajasthan International Film Festival (Best Film and Best Director) and popular Jagran Film Festival.
Pradeep Khanvilkar is the cinematographer of the film, while Kush Tripathy, Ananth Narayan Mahadevan have edited it. Sync Sound & Sound Design is by Bhagat Singh Rathod, while Background Score is by Sanjoy Chowdhary. Aparna Shah has shouldered the responsibility of the Costumes while Marathi adaptation is by Mahendra PATIL.
Anant Mahadevan is an Indian national award-winning film director for Mee Sindhutai Sapkal (2010), and is known in the industry for his acclaimed films like Gour Hari Dastaan: The Freedom File, Rough Book, Doctor Rakhmabai. All these films are official selections at several international Film festivals. His Mai Ghat : Crime No 103/2005 (2020) has been the Indian Broadcasting Ministry’s selection from India for the Marche Du Film section of the Cannes Film Festival.
His film ‘Bittersweet’ was an Official Selection at the Busan International Film Festival in 2020 and was nominated for the prestigious Kim Jiseok award. His new film ‘The Storyteller’ is an adaptation of Satyajit Ray’s original Bengali story and is an Official Selection in Competition at the Busan International Film Festival and the IFFI[Goa] in 2022.
His first book Once Upon a Prime Time has got rave reviews and awards. It is about his 40 years in Indian television.
