After Badhai Ho, NEENA GUPTA To Be Seen In Chef Vikas Khanna's Directorial Debut

Actor Neena Gupta, who has been known for her very sensitive portrayals over the years, is currently riding high on the success of sleeper hit Badhai Ho. The talented actor who is often seen in off-beat cinema will be next seen in celebrity chef Vikas Khanna's directorial debut, The Last Color.

The Last Color, which marks the directorial debut of celebrity chef Vikas Khanna will be shown at the 30th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival 2019. The festival will be held from 3rd to 14th January 2019. The Last Color is an adaption of Vikas Khanna's bestselling book of the same name and marks his screenwriting debut. Keeping up the trend of meaningful cinema, the movie depicts and questions the age-old and orthodox tradition of barring widows of Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh from playing the festival of Holi.

The Last Color is the story of Chhoti played by Aqsa Siddiqui - a nine-year-old flower seller and tightrope walker who befriends Noor (Neena Gupta), a 70-year-old widow living a life of complete abstinence. Chhoti promises to bring a ray of hope in the life of Noor. Besides Neena Gupta and Aqsa Siddiqui, the film also stars transgender activist Rudrani Chettri. Interestingly, some of the pivotal roles in the film have been played by first time actors based in Varanasi. Khanna spent many months researching and working with them to bring out the real essence of the character.

The Last Color is inspired by the real-life experiences observed by Chef Vikas Khanna while researching around food and culture for his books and TV shows. He was shooting for Holi, the Festival of Colors for his book Utsav (the world's largest compilation of festivals), in Vrindhavan when he witnessed a desolate sight - everyone was playing with colors during the festival except for the widows who were dressed in white and watching the celebrations from their balconies and terraces, having resigned themselves to fate. However, in the year 2013, the Supreme Court of India allowed the widows in Vrindhavan to get rehabilitated and live a life of dignity which included being able to participate in festivals such as Holi. This coupled with Khanna's experience of meeting a 9-year-old flower seller girl inspired him to tell this compelling story.

The teaser of the film of the film was unveiled at the Cannes Film Festival 2018 earlier this year and marked Khanna's fourth appearance at the festival.

You can enjoy the link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=P9VQsr6XQ50

To post a comment, you must register and login.