Dissenting voices are being silenced in India at the moment, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on the occasion of the closing ceremony of the 24th International Film Festival of Kerala.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM :India will not kneel before anti-democratic forces, nor would its people remain silent, he said. The Chief Minister recalled that Argentinean filmmaker Fernando Solanas, present on the dias, had also faced assassination attempts for his resistance. Solanas’ presence is energising in the contemporary political atmosphere.
The Chief Minister said that the deaths of Gauri Lankesh, Narendra Dhabolkar and Kalburgi were sobering reminders of the threat to India’s sovereign and secular harmony. He recalled the words of actor Prakash Raj who said that Kerala is the only place in India where one can breathe freely.
The International Film Festival of Kerala has always stood with the oppressed and downtrodden. The Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Solanas this year is the emblem of the IFFK and all that it stands for. The International Film Festival Of Kerala is itself a form of cultural resistance in this scenario.
Following the speech, the Lifetime Achievement Award was handed over by the Chief Minister to filmmaker Fernando Solanas. Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan was the Chief Guest. Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala was the guest of honour, while the ceremony was presided over by Minister A K Balan. Mayor K Sreekumar, M Vijayakumar (KTDC Chairman), Kamal (Academy Chairman,) Beena Paul (Vice Chairperson), Mahesh Panchu (Secretary) and Rani George IAS were also in attendance.
