Cinema theatres has changed with time: Sharmila Tagore

The inaugural session of the '10th Dhaka International Conference on Women in Cinema' was held on the second day of the 22nd Dhaka International Film Festival on Sunday. Chairperson of the film festival Professor Kishwar Kamal chaired the programme at Dhaka Club's Samson Lounge. The President of Rainbow Film Society Ahmed Mujtaba Jamal moderated the Women in Cinema session.

The event was also attended by famous actress of subcontinent Sharmila Tagore, Vice Chancellor of Jagannath University Professor Sadeka Halim and the chairman of Film and Television Studies department at Jagannath University Professor Junaid Halim.

In the presence of mass media workers, women makers and producers, Professor Dr Sadeka Halim said, "Patriarchal system is still prevailing in various countries around us. Cinema is the medium that shows us the depth of patriarchy in any society.''

Sharmila Tagore said on the occasion, “Cinema Theater has changed with time. Now the OTT platform is widely expanding all over the world including India. I am a very optimistic woman. Women have moved on. Now in India female actresses are working with more skill like male actors. They are becoming popular like men.”

Professor Kishwar Kamal said, ''Cinema language is the same in the world. This medium creates relationships between people through this language. Today women's film participation is creating that more connection between us.''

Professor Junaed Halim spoke as co-host. He said, “The journey of this festival started in the nineties with short length films. And now there are international festivals with full length films. But at the forefront of this arrangement was personal initiative. There was no such government support.”

At the end of the discussion meeting, Sharmila Tagore and other guests inaugurated the programme by lighting the lamp. 

After that the article entitled 'Navigating Dual Identity: An Exploration of Intersectionality in Motherhood and Filmmaking' was presented by Dr Ipsita Barat, the Head of Mass Communication and Videography Department of 'St. Xavier's College in Calcutta', West Bengal, India. The program is chaired by Professor Dr Sadeka Halim. Professor Dr Shohini Ghosh from Jamila Millia Islamia of New Delhi participated in the discussion. Besides writer and critic Alam Khorshed and Associate Professor of film and Television at Jgannath University Fatima Amin were also there and they discussed on the motion. 

Under the chairmanship of Farah Kabir, Country Director of Action Aid Bangladesh, the article entitled 'Steering through the Clever Whispers of Modernity' was presented by Samarah Jannati Jamal, an undergraduate student of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh. Jagannath University undergraduate student Afifa Akhter, international award-winning documentary filmmaker Filipa Cardoso from Portugal and European independent journalist filmmaker Anja Strelek participated in this episode and the discussed.

Apart from this, American Los Angeles-based actress Katerina Khramova's article titled 'The Role of Contemporary Cinema in Empowering Young Girls: A Critical Analysis of Films That Inspire Confidence, Ambition and Resilience' was presented. In this part, Indian actress Swastika Mukherjee, IFIC Bank's current assistant vice president and researcher Naeema Chowdhury participated in the discussion.