Awaiting Ismail Merchant's 'Cotton Mary'
The February of year 2000 will witness India-born filmmaker Ismail Merchant premier his latest movie 'Cotton Mary' in India.
The film will be part of the Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF), featuring films made by Merchant and James Ivory, his partner in Merchant-Ivory productions. The film, which is due for release in Britain next month, was well received at this year's London Film Festival.
Ismail Merchant, who was on a short visit to Mumbai, has decided to donate the proceeds from the opening night toward the rehabilitation of cyclone victims in Orissa.
Set in Kerala in the 1950s, 'Cotton Mary' delves into the identity crisis among members of the regional Anglo-Indian community. It stars Madhur Jaffrey, Neena Gupta and Hollywood actress Greta Scacchi.
Merchant will also be releasing a book written by him titled 'Ismail Merchant's Paris: Filming and Feasting in France', to coincide with the film's premiere. He explained that the book is 'not a cookbook', though it's got his recipes. Basically, the book is a highly entertaining account of Merchant's visits to France over last 40 years.
Merchant teamed up with Ivory in 1961 to produce a string of successful films like "Heat and Dust," a film on the British Raj in India; "A Room With A View," based on the book by E.M. Forster; "In Custody," based on novelist Anita Desai's book by the same name; and the Oscar-winning "Howard's End," based on a Forster novel.
Besides producing and directing films, Merchant has been involved for the past five years in the restoration of films directed by filmmaker Satyajit Ray, under the aegis of the Calcutta-based Satyajit Ray Foundation.
"Ray's work," he said, "should be seen by everyone all over the world and we're really proud to have restored nine of his films."
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