Kannadati Utsava

The theme of Kannadati Utsava 2018 was “I Have a Story/ Nannadondu Kathe”. With the belief that when women start telling their stories, they will become everyone’s stories which would be a very strong first step towards a world of equality, we called for submissions of short films from women of all ages.

More than 500 people, primarily women, joined the celebrations during November and December 2018 – held at five different locations in four cities of Karnataka. Celebrations at each location screened shortfilms made by women followed by panel discussions around Female Gaze.

Films that were screened as part of Kannadati Utsava 2018:

Daroji – written & directed by Sugandhi Gadadhar
Apraaptha – written & directed by Kshema B K
Jeevana Rekhe – written & directed by Savita Inamdar
Kaaji – written & directed by Aishani Shetty
Daali – directed by Medini Kelamane
Anala – directed by Sanjyothi V K
Silver Cup – by Mahima Gowda, Anushree Bharadwaj, Haripriya K Rao, Shraddha Suman

Launch of celebrations in Bengaluru

Avala Hejje celebrated ‘Female Gaze’ on it’s second year celebration of “Kannadati Utsava 2018” at Gandhi Bhavan, Bengaluru on Nov 3, 2018. Chief Guest, Kavitha Lankesh, renowned filmmaker, inaugurated the festival ceremonially and delivered keynote address.

Screening of several short films made by women filmmakers and two panel discussions around women in regional popular media were the highlights of the event.

Welcoming the guests, Shanthala Damle, founder of Avala Hejje, drew attention to the organisation’s vision of enabling female footprints in all walks of life, from playgrounds to boardrooms. “Our flagship program is its unique Campus Workshop designed for female college students to enable them to recognise biases, to overcome barriers, and to become confident go-getters in their chosen professions,” said Shanthala.

In a lively discussion on “Women in Popular Regional Media”, moderated by Shruti Sharada, a writer and RJ, Kavitha Lankesh, Mallika Prasad, actor and Jogi, the writer, participated and shared their opinions on how female gaze can impact popular culture.

Lekha Naidu, Creative Director of Avala Hejje, elaborated on the need for celebrating the ‘female gaze’. “Currently, media producers are overwhelmingly men. The films often serves a patriarchal imagination, which Laura Mulvey terms as, “the male gaze”, which represents the gaze of the male viewer, as well as the male character and the male creator of the film. In contrast, the female gaze refers to the gaze of the female viewer as well the perspective a female filmmaker brings to a film that would be different from a male view of the subject. If more and more women begin telling their stories in popular cinema and media, we can hope to reshape our imagination, as a culture.” Lekha said.

In the second panel moderated by Lekha Naidu, ‘The Brass Tacks: Making a story possible from the ground up’, the filmmakers Ananya Kasaravalli, Roopa Rao, Sanjyothi VK and Padmalatha Ravi, shared the challenges that are unique for a woman in a technicality and equipment heavy venture like filmmaking. Celebrations at Infosys, Mysuru

Infosys Mysuru invited Avalahejje team to conduct Kannadati Utsava on Nov 27, 2018, as part of their Karnataka Rajyotsava celebrations. Along with the screening of the films, a panel discussion about the impact and importance of female gaze in popular media was conducted. The panelists were Aruna Newton, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion, Infosys, Anitha Srinivasaiah, Delivery Manager, Infosys, Musuru, Dr. B.R.Geethanjali, a Mysuru based sculptor and filmmaker. Journalist and social media influencer, Preethi Nagaraj, moderated the panel.

Celebrations at Sahyadri College, Shimoga

The Kannadati Utsava 2018 was conducted at Sahyadri College, Shimoga, on Dec 1, 2018. Pathways Director, Meti Mallikarjuna, and Dr.Sabita Bannadi participated in an engaging discussion about Female Gaze following the screening of films. Filmmaker Rashmi delivered keynote address.

Celebrations at Akka Mahadevi Karnataka State Women’s University, Vijayapura

The fourth leg of Kannadati Utsava 2018 took place at the Akkamahadevi Women’s University, Vijayapura on Dec 4 2018. The Vice Chancellor of the University, Dr. Sabiha Bhoomigowda inaugurated the festival and addressed the audience.

A vibrant and enthusiastic discussion on the films took place post the screening. The panelists included Prof. Omkar Kakade, HOD, Journalism and Communication Dept and Prof. S.A. Khaji, HOD, Social work Dept and Prof.Dr.R. Sunandamma, HOD, Ahalayabayi Post Graduate Women’s Studies Research and Development’ of Karnataka State Women’s University, and Du.Saraswati. Keynote address was by Shruti Kulkarni, filmmaker & entrepreneur from Kalburgi.

Celebrations at Jnanabharati, Bengaluru University

The last leg of Kannadati Utsava 2018 took place on Dec 20, 2018, at the Centre for Women’s Studies, Jnanabharati, Bengaluru University. Dr. Sudeshna Mukherjee and the students participated in an engaging discussion following the screening of the films.

Avala Hejje’s Kannadati Utsava was covered by various media including Prajavani, Kannada Prabha and Vishawani.