The Jio MAMI Mumbai film festival will from this year onwards also recognise quality Hindi writing on cinema.
The gala has announced that in the second year of the honour, the Book Award for Excellence in Writing on Cinema is being opened to Hindi writers as well, read a statement from the organisers.
The award covers works of fiction, graphic novel, creative non-fiction, reportage, analysis, written in English and Hindi. It seeks entries that showcase nuanced and imaginative film writing and publishing in South Asia.
Also, book-length works written by authors from the sub-continent and published by an Indian publishing house in print format between August 1, 2015 and August 1, 2016 are eligible for the award.
"The Book Award is becoming stronger in its second year and will now also recognise and celebrate excellence in writing on cinema in Hindi. The award remains steadfast in its intention to encourage a deeper engagement with our cinema via commentary, documentation and analysis," said leading publisher and editor Arpita Das, who has curated the award.
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Anupama Chopra, festival director, is thrilled with the development.
"We hope that this award will encourage more writers to look at cinema as a subject. I've written several books on film and I know the struggle it entails. We hope this award helps to alleviate some of it," she said.
Jio MAMI's Mumbai Film Festival will be held in Mumbai from October 20-27.
--IANS
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