One of the films screening at the 4th Dubai International Film Festival's Celebration of Indian Cinema sidebar is Shivajee Chandrabhushan's feature-film debut, Frozen, set in the Kashmiri Himalayas.
Written by Shanker Raman (from a story by Chandrabhushan), Frozen follows a teenage girl living with her father and younger brother in a remote mountain village. The family's harsh but peaceful existence is drastically disrupted after the army settles at a nearby camp.
Spoken in Hindi and Ladakhi, and shot in black and white (by screenwriter Raman) in order to better convey the region's starkness, Frozen was filmed at freezing temperatures at 12,000-foot altitudes (approx. 3,600 meters above sea level) . Earlier this year, the film won the Special Jury Award at the Osian-Cinefan Film Festival in Delhi.
In the cast are veteran action hero Danny Denzongpa, Gauri, and Skalzang Angchuk.
Dubai Film Festival seems to be getting better and better each year. I really enjoyed Bee Movie with my kids, though it released a day later throughout the cinemas in the Dubai.