Thousands of films are made each year in India. Some we find at cineplexes, some on OTTs, and the others at film festivals. Over time we have learnt to intuitively describe the kind of films that we find at each of these spaces, and position our interests accordingly. Yet the growing number of festivals, OTTs and big-budget centric cineplexes leave out a large number of films. ICH, hence, began with a simple question: what happens to all the films that are not exhibited anywhere, or what happens to the few films that appear in the festivals?
The answer, as you can imagine, is not a pleasant one. Even though we can find a few on OTT platforms, most often than not a large number of films are kept aside in a hard-disk, occasionally finding a screen at a cafe or a community space, reaching only a small cluster of an audience who can truly appreciate the work. This is not only unfortunate for the films and filmmakers but also for those of us who are seeking to watch something new, something different, find like-minded people with whom we can converse about the film, find resources to understand and learn from the ever-dynamic process of filmmaking.
In this digital age that is as enabling as it is isolating, India Cinema House is, therefore, an attempt to make this search for honest, meaningful cinema, fellow makers and lovers of such cinema, a little bit less daunting. We have built a space so that all the scattered experiences of hosting, viewing, and engaging can be brought under one roof- where curators can curate, filmmakers can show their own films, and the audience can express what cinema truly means to them, and in the process, strengthen our own canon and tradition of cinema.
India Cinema House is an attempt to remember and remind that we are not alone, even in our love for cinema.
