Bulbul Can Sing

Bulbul Can Sing is a 2018 Indian Assamese language drama film directed by Rima Das.[1] It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival.[2] The film centres on three teenagers trying to come to terms with their sexual identities.[3] The film won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Assamese at India's 66th National Film Awards.

Bulbul Can Sing
Film poster
Directed byRima Das
Written byRima Das
Produced byFlying River Films
CinematographyRima Das
Edited byRima Das
Music byDotora
Kabindra Patowary
Release dates
  • 7 September 2018 (2018-09-07) (TIFF)
  • 20 September 2019 (2019-09-20) (India)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageAssamese

Plot

Bulbul is a young girl who lives in Kalardiya village near Chaygaon in India's Assam state. She has two best friends, Bonny and Sumu, and they are coming of age and finding their own identities but who they want to be and what their community expect them to be are two different things as they find themselves at odds with the social mores and moral codes of their village. Clashes emerge as Bulbul finds herself experiencing the first glimmers of attraction for a guy, Sumu is bullied for not acting like a traditional man and Bonny finds the pressures of the community become unbearable. As fear and doubt assail the three friends, Bulbul must find her own voice and sing.

Cast
  • Arnali Das as Bulbul
  • Banita Thakuriya as Bonnie
  • Manoranjan Das as Suman
  • Manabendra Das
  • Pakija Begam

Reception

Critical response

Bulbul Can Sing mostly received positive reviews from critics. Deborah Young of The Hollywood Reporter called the film "quietly insightful" which "has a pleasing simplicity and realism",[4] while Wendy Ide of Screen described it as "a heartfelt, acutely honest portrait of rural Indian adolescence."[5]

Among Indian critics, Anirudh Bhattacharyya of Outlook felt that with this film director Das had surpassed the expectations raised from her previous directorial Village Rockstars.[6] According to Sonal Pandya of Cinestaan, Das has matured as a filmmaker with this film and the film's beginning and end were bookended nicely.[7] Aswathy Gopalakrishnan also praised the film for its subtle take on feminism and patriarchy.[8]

Accolades
Festival or Award Category Recipient(s)/nominee(s) Result Ref(s)
66th National Film Awards Best Feature Film in Assamese Bulbul Can Sing Won [9]
Jio MAMI Film Festival 2018: Golden Gateway India Gold Bulbul Can Sing Won [10]
29th Singapore International Film Festival: Silver Screen Award Best Asian Feature Film Bulbul Can Sing Nominated [11]
Best Performance - Asian Feature Film Manoranjan Das Won
2019 Berlin International Film Festival Special Mention - Generation 14plus Bulbul Can Sing Won [12][13]
13th Asian Film Awards 2019 Best New Director Rima Das Nominated [14]
2019 Dublin International Film Festival Best Director Rima Das Won [15][16]
2019 Osaka Asian Film Festival Jury Special Mention Bulbul Can Sing Won [17]
2019 New York Indian Film Festival Best Director Rima Das Nominated [18][19]
Prag Cine Awards 2019 Best Film Bulbul Can Sing Won [20]
Best Actor (Female) Anjali Das Won
Best Actor (Male) Monoranjan Das Won
Best Cinematography Rima Das Won
Global Icon Award Rima Das Won
2019 Indian Film Festival of Melbourne Best Indie Film Bulbul Can Sing Won [21]
10th Jagran Film Festival Best Director Rima Das Won [22]

References
  1. "On a Song: Rima Das' next, Bulbul Can Sing to premiere at TIFF next month". The Indian Express. 21 August 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  2. "TIFF Adds More High-Profile Titles, Including Jonah Hill's 'Mid90s,' 'Boy Erased,' 'Hold the Dark,' and Many More". IndieWire. 14 August 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  3. Peter Knegt, "It's another queer year for TIFF — here are your 13 essential films". CBC Arts, 29 August 2018.
  4. Young, Deborah (11 September 2018). "'Bulbul Can Sing': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  5. Ide, Wendy. "'Bulbul Can Sing': Busan Review". Screen. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  6. Bhattacharyya, Anirudh. "Bulbul Can Sing Review: Rima Das Showcases Her Brilliance In Coming-Of-Age Drama". Outlook. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  7. Pandya, Sonal. "Bulbul Can Sing review: Beautifully told coming-of-age story from Assam". Cinestaan. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  8. Gopalakrishnan, Aswathy (31 October 2018). "Bulbul Can Sing Review: A Deeply Affecting Adolescent Drama By Rima Das". Silverscreen.in. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  9. "Here is the full list of awardees". The Hindu. 9 August 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  10. "Rima Das' Bulbul Can Sing wins top honour at 20th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival". 1 November 2018. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
  11. Ramachandran, Naman (8 December 2018). "SGIFF: Singapore's 'A Land Imagined' Wins Silver Screen Award". Retrieved 8 December 2018.
  12. Roxborough, Scott (15 February 2019). "Berlin: 'House of Hummingbird', 'Stupid Young Heart' Land Best Youth Film Honors". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
  13. "National Award Winner Rima Das' Assamese Film Heads to Berlin". News18. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  14. "Rima Das nominated at the 13th Asian Film Awards, 2019". GPlus. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  15. Murphy, Niall (4 March 2019). "2019 Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival award winners". Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  16. "Dublin award for Rima". Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  17. "The list of award winners｜OAFF2019". Osaka Asian Film Festival 2019 Official Site. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  18. "NYIFF 2019 Nominated Films". Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  19. "Jahnu Barua, Rima Das nominated for 'Best Director' award at New York Indian Film Festival". G Plus. 6 May 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  20. "'Bulbul Can Sing' director Rima Das is on a roll". The Times of India. 4 June 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  21. "Bulbul Can Sing from Assam wins best Indie film at Melbourne". The Newsmill. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  22. "Rima Das gets best director award for Bulbul Can Sing at Jagaran Film Fest". 1 October 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
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