72 -minute long ‘Loktak Lairembee’ awarded best film on 64th National film Awards

Our Correspondent
Imphal, April 7 (EMN): Manipur’s popular film maker and Director Haobam Paban Kumar’s 72 -minute long ‘Loktak Lairembee’ (Lady of the Lake) was awarded for Best Film on Environment Conservation/ Preservation when the 64th National Film Awards 2016 was announced on Friday.
The National Film Awards which carries one Citation, Rajat Kamal and Rupees 1, 50,000, would be presented by the President of India in New Delhi on May 3 next.
About the film, Paban Kumar stated, “Loktak Lake is a unique ecosystem where fishermen lived in huts built on floating biomasses. In 2011 the authorities, in the name of protecting serenity of the ecosystem, burnt down the huts leaving thousands of fishermen homeless. Tomba, one of the victims, lives with a harrowing nightmare of looming displacement since then. He is haunted by seamless fear of further intervention of authorities that would make him homeless forever. Confined in his makeshift hut, Tomba senses the spirit of evil around, while his wife Thambalsang works hard to make their living.”Loktak Lairembee‘s journey started with the world premiere at 21st Busan International Film Festival 2016. In the India Premiere at the 18th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2016, the film got the top prize- Golden Gateway award. Besides screened at 67th Berlin International Film Festival 2017, the film travelled around the globe and took part in many major international film festivals
Haobam Paban Kumar is one of the leading documentary filmmaker of the country. He has a 3 Year Post Graduate Diploma in Direction & Screenplay writing from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata. Haobam came to limelight with the film ‘AFSPA 1958’ winning the International Jury and FIPRESCI award at the 9th Mumbai International Film Festival 2006.