Neeraj Ghaywan’s Masaan to have its India premiere at the 6th JFF on July 1st

After wowing both film aficionados and critics alike at the 68th Cannes International Film Festival, Neeraj Ghaywan’s award-winning debut feature, Masaan is now gearing up for its India premiere. The film starring powerhouse performers Richa Chadha and Sanjay Mishra and newcomers Vicky Kaushal and Shweta Tripathi will be the opening film at the 6th Jagran Film Festival to be held in New Delhi from 1st of July at Siri Fort Auditorium.

Masaan created history at Cannes recently by becoming the first Indian film to win two awards when it clinched the acclaimed FIPRESCI and the Promising Future awards in the Un Certain Regard Section. Masaan is a story of Four lives that intersect along the Ganges: a low caste boy in hopeless love, a daughter ridden with guilt of a sexual encounter ending in a tragedy, a hapless father with fading morality, and a spirited child yearning for a family, long to escape the moral constructs of a small-town.

Neeraj Ghaywan has been the erstwhile assistant of Anurag Kashyap, and has worked with him on Gangs of Wasseypur and Ugly. Sharing his joy ahead of the festival premiere, debutant director Neeraj Ghaywan, who helmed the project says, "Presenting MASAAN in my homeland is extremely special for me. It is a film deeply rooted in our heartlands, our small cities and small towns. At the Jagran Film Festival, I take immense pride in presenting a film which we all have made with utmost honesty and a lot of heart."

Brimming with happiness at his film being chosen to open the 6th Jagran Film Festival, producer Manish Mundra of Drishyam Films says, "It was an overwhelming moment for team Masaan when after 26 long years, an Indian film won two awards at Cannes Film Festival. We had great faith in the storyline of Masaan but truth be told, the reaction we received at Cannes including the 5-minute standing ovation after the screening left us speechless. If the film can connect with the foreign audience, I am confident that this heart-wrenching story will emotionally resonate in the minds of our Indian audience as well. I am grateful that through Jagran Film Festival, Masaan will finally open out to the Indian audience."

The movie which has been jointly produced by Manish Mundra (Drishyam Films), Vikas Bahl, Vikramaditya Motwane & Anurag Kashyap (Phantom Films), Melita Toscan du Plantier & Marie-Jeanne Pascal, (Macassar Productions) and Guneet Monga & Shaan Vyas (Sikhya Entertainment) will release in theaters across India on 24th July 2015.

The Phantom Films producer Vikramaditya Motwane says "It’s a proud moment for us to premiere Masaan in India immediately after Cannes. It's a film that has it's heart and soul firmly set in India and we cannot wait for the nation to see it."