Two times National Award winning actor, Manoj Bajpayee’s Hindi psychological drama, Gali Guleiyan (In the Shadows) continued its winning ways at the prestigious Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. The film won accolades in two out the four categories that it was nominated in (Best actor : Manoj Bajpayee, Best Director: Dipesh Jain, Best Supporting Actor: Ranvir Shorey, Best Indie Film).
Manoj Bajpayee won the Best Actor award for his heart wrenching portrayal of a man trapped within the walls and alleys of Old Delhi and his own mind, who attempts to break free to find a human connection. The nominees in this category included- Akshay Kumar (Padman), Ranbir Kapoor (Sanju), Ranveer Singh & Shahid Kapoor (Padmavat), Varun Dhawan (October), among others.
Gali Guleiyan also earned a Special Jury Mention in the Best Indie Film category.
A visibly happy Manoj said, “It is a fantastic feeling to win the award for the best actor at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. It is even more satisfying when you know that so many other films across genres and so many actors who have all done such a great job, were in competition. My character in Gali Guleiyan is a very complex one with many layers and the film itself is a difficult one to make. Hats off to our director Dipesh, who despite being a newcomer, came up with such a great idea, made this challenging film and has taken it to festivals across the world. The adulation that the film has received has been overwhelming and we are very excited to now take it to our audience as the film sets up for its release in theatres worldwide on 7th September.”
Adds debutant director, Dipesh Jain : “I can’t be more happy that we’ve won two awards tonight. Look at the fellow nominations – they are best of the best in the industry. I’m super proud of this achievement. This award that celebrates both mainstream and indie films, shows that our film has a broader appeal with both jury and the audience. That’s great as we head for a theatrical release of the film in a few weeks. I’ll encourage everyone to come watch our film in theatres on Sept 7th as it surely will give them an immersive psychological experience like never before. ”
Set to release in theatres worldwide on 7th September, Gali Guleiyan, is a Hindi psychological drama about a man trapped within the walls and alleys of Old Delhi and his own mind, who attempts to break free to find a human connection. The main protagonist is played by the extremely talented Manoj Bajpayee ably supported by an ensemble cast of actors par excellence – Ranvir Shorey, Neeraj Kabi and Shahana Goswami along with debutant child actor Om Singh. Shot entirely on locations, the film is directed by Los Angeles-based debutant filmmaker and winner of Director Guild of America Award, Dipesh Jain.
Not just the stellar cast, the film also boasts of some of the best technicians. Many Oscar, Emmy and Grammy winning/nominated artists have worked on the film that was completed at top Hollywood facilities like Fox studios, Light Iron and Skywalker Sound. The post-production took place in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco.
The film has had a fantastic Festival run. In fact, Gali Guleiyan has now travelled to more than 19 top International Film Festivals and won audience accolades and awards along the way. These include the prestigious Busan International Film Festival, MAMI, 42nd Cleveland International Film Festival, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angles, Atlanta Film Festival and the New York Indian Film Festival. Earlier in June’18, the film had travelled to three prestigious International Film Festivals – London Indian Film Festival (UK Premiere), where Manoj was also honored with an award, the Indian Film Festival of Stuttgart and the Munich International Film Festival (one of Europe’s biggest and most prestigious film festivals) where it had its European Premiere. In May’18, Manoj’s stellar performance had won him the Best Actor Award at the New York Indian Film Festival. Talking about last year (2017), it is not often that a film can boast of a simultaneous premiere at three prestigious International Film Festivals – Busan International Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival & Mumbai’s MAMI and, go on to win the Grand Jury award at the latter. Yet, Gali Guleiyan did just that in 2017!!
Earlier, talking about the film, Dipesh had said: “When Shuchi (my sister & producer) and I started this journey of making Gali Guleiyan, we felt that it was a bold and risky story especially for a debut film. But it’s a story very close to our heart and takes you into the depths of human mind and emotions. In many ways it is an ode to my growing up years in the alleys of Old Delhi- to my personal fears and a feeling of entrapment that I had experienced as a child. I have been extremely blessed to have an ensemble cast of brilliant actors each of whom has breathed life into the characters they play with such élan! To ensure the best look and feel for our audience, we have ensured that top of the line technicians worked on it.”
You can read a fabulous interview, from the London Indian Film Festival, with director Dipesh Jain as he gives an inside look into the creation of the film and working with Manoj here.
Directed by debutant Dipesh Jain, produced by Shuchi Jain of Exstant Motion Pictures, GALI GULEIYAN will release in India and Worldwide on 7th September, 2018.
