Photo: indiatoday
Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, Jayant Digambar Somalkar’s first Marathi feature film, ‘Sthal’, examines the fraught dynamics of arranged marriages
None of the actors in Sthal has faced a camera before. They converse in Varhadi, a regional dialect of Marathi
ISSUE DATE: Sep 11, 2023 | UPDATED: Sep 1, 2023 18:39 IST
When Jayant Digambar Somalkar received a confirmation email from the Toronto International Film Festival, he thought it was a joke. “I could not believe it. I remember checking if it was fake. I was very happy,” he says. His Marathi feature Sthal (A Match) has been selected to premiere at the festival’s Discovery Programme, a section devoted to showcasing the work of emerging filmmakers from across the globe. That it is the only Indian film to make this cut elevates the prestige of the inclusion.