MUMBAI: Pune’s first rooftop open-air cinema and bar ‘Lost the Plot’ is currently holding its first edition of ‘The Pied Piper Festival’. The first-of-its-kind festival in the city is celebrating twenty days of music-themed films such as musicals, biopics, indie films and documentaries based on some of the most popular international musicians.
Speaking on the inspiration behind conducting a music themed festival, Lost the Plot’s Founder Nikita Naiknavare said, “I recently watched ‘Whiplash’ and that got my team and I really excited. If a music-themed film is really well made, then the audience witnesses a quirky, insightful and interesting take on music and the person behind it. We thought it would be interesting to have people come and watch this.” Naiknavare’s team had been talking about conducting a music-themed film festival since January. “We wanted to cover the big cultural music scene in Pune and by getting Puneris to watch and enjoy these films, we wanted to reflect the interest that was already shown for concerts and gigs,” she continued.
From 1 April to 19 April, Pune folks can watch documentaries like ‘Buena Vista Social Club’, ‘Marley’ and ‘Searching for Sugerman’; biopics like ‘Bird’ and ‘The Boat That Rocked’, and musicals such as ‘Singin’ in the Rain’, ‘Across the Universe’, ‘Mamma Mia!’ and ‘Begin Again’. These films will be shown across three different venues in the city – Lost by Plot at the Season Hotel Rooftop at Aundh, the Margharita Deck, above The Ship – Bar and Grill at Kalyani Nagar and at Twilight Talkies, at Pingale farms in Koregaon Park.
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On Wednesday, 15 April, Lost by Plot will showcase the Indian indie film- ‘Echoes’ which was released a few years ago. The film focuses on the ever changing music scene in Delhi. “A lot of independent artists are currently coming up in India, yet for some reason their acceptance is seen more in the capital. We have tried to cover the starting points of Delhi based artists, trying to show how difficult or easy it was for them to start off in India and where they have seen major changes within the scene,” is how the film was described by filmmaker Sathyarth Singh.
Naiknavare is also very excited about showcasing the film. “We, at Lost by Plot, are really excited about showcasing ‘Echoes’. So far, the response for our line-up has been really good. And we are really psyched about playing something different,” she said. The film features artists like Dualist Inquiry, SkaVengers, Teddy Boy Kill, Space and B.L.O.T.
Naiknavare started Lost by Plot last January to ‘popularise open air theatre’. “I wanted to encourage people to get out of the four walls of their homes and enjoy a cinematic experience outside,” she said about the concept-driven enterprise. “The experience of watching a film out in the open is very different, and I wanted to induce the nostalgia, romance and charm that come with watching a film out in the open,” added the City University of London alumnus.
The response to Lost the Plot’s film festival has been so interesting that, a while ago, young kids came up to her and told her that it was at Lost the Plot where they had first seen ‘The Godfather’. The open air theatre really kicked off with its Alfred Hitchcock Festival that it showcased some time ago.
Given that its audience is rather niche, Lost the Plot relies heavily on social media and word of mouth for its marketing. Also, since it is a seasonal enterprise, it will be shut during the monsoon. Naiknavare is optimistic about conducting another edition of The Pied Piper Festival. “We have only shown two films so far, but the response has been really good. Depending on how the rest of the festival fares, we are looking at bringing it back for a second run, but probably a little earlier in the year,” she opined.
At some venues, prior to the film screenings, there will be performances by Pune-based drum circle- Taal Inc. and French rock band- Alchimix.
