By Gurmukh Singh
TORONTO: Director Jitank Singh Gurjar’s In Search of The Sky (Vimukt), in which faith, poverty and deeply ingrained societal norms intersect, has won the NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asian Pacific Cinema) Award at the just concluded Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Calling it “an indelible tale of tolerance, desperation and faith, conveyed through a unique lens of realism and poetics, elevated by striking performances,” the NETPAC jury said, “In Search of The Sky (Vimukt) is a truly independent achievement by Indian filmmaker Jitank Singh Gurjar. The film transports the audience to rural central India, where an impoverished elderly couple contends with their cognitively challenged adult son and the villagers who threaten their existence. A beacon of hope comes in the form of the Maha Kumbh Mela, a pilgrimage to the world’s largest spiritual gathering where they seek renewal and new possibilities of life.”
Reacting to the honour, director Jitank Singh Gurjar said, the award “is not just personal milestone, but a recognition of the countless unheard voices that inspired this film. I am humbled and grateful to the jury for believing in our story and to my writer and producer Pooja (Sharma) for believing in me. Also my cinematographer Shelly Sharma who contributed significantly in bringing this film to life.”
Producer Pooja Vishal Sharma said the film is “a labour of love,” adding that the NETPAC Award “reaffirms my belief of backing stories that are raw, real and transformative.”
In 2023, Jayesh Digambar Somalkar’s Marathi feature film A Match (Sthal) had also won the NETPAC Award.
