Session 69, Illegal_Cinema

Siddheshwari (Mani Kaul, 1989, 92 min.)
Screening proposed by Héctor Rey, followed by discussion. 

Mani Kaul (1944 – 2011) was an Indian film director and musician who strongly influenced the Paralleo Cinema movement, and a pioneer in the Indian New Wave.

I first encountered his work in Berlin through a friend, the American composer Cat Lamb, who had been a student of his. Although he only wanted to be known as a film director, Mani was a devoted dhrupadi who rose at five every day to sing. His master, the great dhrupadi Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar, from the line of the Dagar, considered him one of the few people worthy of continuing the dhrupad tradition.

Siddheshwari is a poetical documentary from 1989 on the life of Hindustani thumri singer Siddheshwari Devi.

Héctor Rey (1986) is a composer, improviser and player who lives and works in Bilbao.