Why festival deserves so much more (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Why festival deserves so much more

8:42am Wednesday 5th August 2009 in Columnists By Irfan Ajeeb

The irony of the downsizing of Bradford’s film festivals is that the move comes just as we are celebrating becoming UNESCO City of Film.

I had the pleasure of taking over the Bite The Mango festival in 1997. It was seen as a platform to encourage British film-makers from ethnic minorities to showcase their work. With help and guidance from Bill Lawrence, I became festival director.

It made sense to include an aspect of South Asian cinema as there was a substantial number of South Asians in the region. I was lucky enough to invite director Mahesh Bhatt to Bradford in 1998, and Bite The Mango’s association with Bollywood became official.

Over seven years, Bollywood A-listers headed for Bradford, including Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor, Om Puri Aamir Khan, Pooja Bhatt and Shatrughan Sinha. For any fan of Indian cinema, the ultimate visit was by veteran actor Dilip Kumar in 2004, when he was interviewed on stage by Mahesh Bhatt.

However, Bollywood was only an element of BTM. Other countries around the world were regularly focused upon, but there was increasing concern that it was known as a Bollywood festival.

To generate publicity, you need big names to carry the festival a long way. That’s exactly what happened. I wanted to bring communities together – especially Indian and Pakistani communities.

I was sceptical about the museum changing its name to the National Media Museum. I thought film would take a back seat, and my fears were realised.

I developed BTM from a small local event into a major festival, thanks to the backing of a dedicated team. I wanted it to be the Cannes of Bollywood. The festival’s move from being a six-day celebration of world cinema, to a weekend showpiece is very sad. It seems it’s become more like a token gesture.

Bite The Mango is bigger than this and deserves better. It has played a significant part in bringing communities together and educating people about different cultures, religions and beliefs through film.

I wanted to see it grow into something special. Clearly my vision was not shared.