BHUBANESWAR: Odia producer and promoter Jitendra Mishra’s latest feature film production ‘The Last Color’ directed by celebrity chef Vikas Khanna, starring veteran actress Neena Gupta, has had its world premiere at the prestigious 30th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival 2019 recently.
The film was screened twice at Regal Cinema and Mary Pickford D’place, Palm Springs with a packed hall. The movie received a standing ovation at the end of the screening. The film, which also marks Khanna’s debut as a director and screenwriter, is based on his bestselling book by the same name.
The Palm Springs International Film Festival is one of the largest film festivals in the world, welcoming over 1,35,000 attendees each year for its line-up of new and celebrated international features and documentaries. This year, the festival was studded with Hollywood starts Jim Carrey, Bradley Cooper (A star is born), Spike Lee (Black Klansman), Glen Close, Alfonso Cuaron (Roma), Melissa McCarthy, Rami Malek , Emma Stone and many others.
The festival opened with multiple oscars and Golden globe nominated Kenneth Branagh’s ‘All is true’. The last film to be screened was oscar-nominated writer/director Bruce Beresford’s ‘Ladies in Black’.
‘The Last Color’ is the story of Chhoti, a nine-year-old flower seller and tightrope walker who befriends Noor, a 70-year-old widow living a life of complete abstinence. Chhoti promises to bring a ray of hope in the life of Noor. The film has been produced by Bindu Khanna, Poonam Kaul and Jitendra Mishra under the banner of House of Omkar. The cast comprises of Aqsa Siddiqui and transgender activist Rudrani Chettri apart from Neena Gupta.
Interestingly, some of the pivotal roles in the film have been played by first time actors based in Varanasi. The captivating theme music with Indian musical undertones as well as the background score has been created by a team of musicians led by Elliot Middleton, renowned for instrumental and cinematic theme creations. Elliot is based in LA. The teaser of the film was unveiled at the Cannes Film Festival 2018 earlier this year.
Jitendra Mishra, the producer of ‘The Last Color’ who was present during the premiere says, “We are privileged to get official selection in one of the biggest and most credible festival but I think we achieved our goal when the hall were packed with right kind of audience and the film got standing ovation at the end. We have already got invitations from many other festivals. The credit goes to Vikas Khanna who is the creator of this great piece of art. His creativity, dedication and hard work made it possible. I am fortunate enough to get associated with such a fantastic film.”