A still from Satyajit Ray’s Agantuk, which will kick off the retrospective of NFDC films

A six-day retrospective of films financed by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) begins at Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute on May 24.

Twelve films made in Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati and several South Indian languages have been picked by NFDC and the Bypass film school to showcase the government agency’s contribution to Indian cinema. NFDC has produced around 300 films in various regional languages since it came into being in 1980.

“The initiative for the retrospective came from the Union information and broadcasting ministry. NFDC is the pioneer of the new film movement in India and has provided a platform for young filmmakers. Most of the films chosen for the retrospective have generated debates and discussions,” said Swapan Mullick, the director of the institute.

The retrospective, to be inaugurated by information and broadcasting minister Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, will start with Satyajit Ray’s Agantuk. Mrinal Sen’s Century of Cinema, Basu Chatterjee’s Kamla Ki Maut, Buddhadeb Dasgupta’s Tahader Katha, T.V. Chandran’s Mangamma, Venu’s Parinamam, K.S. Setumadhavan’s Marupakkam, Pervez Merwanji’s Percy, Mani Kaul’s Nazar, K.T.N. Sastry’s Tiladanam, Kumar Shahani’s Char Adhyay and Jabbar Patel’s Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar will be shown over the next five days. Screenings will be held at 3pm and 5.30pm daily.

A seminar on the “government’s film policy” is scheduled for May 25. The speakers are Goutam Ghose, Rituparno Ghosh, Kumar Shahani, Jabbar Patel, K.T.N. Sastry and Satarupa Sanyal.

“We will also have a comprehensive exhibition on the 30 years of NFDC. Pictures and documents of what NFDC has done and its objectives will be on display. It will be a opportunity for our students to interact with filmmakers,” said Mullick.

Talks are on with actress-turned-director Revathy to attend the festival, said Amaresh Chakraburtty, the head of the department (direction).