Sona Mohapatra's 'Shut Up Sona' to be screened at Rotterdam film fest

Singer Sona Mohapatra-starrer documentary, "Shut Up Sona", has been selected in the official line-up of International Film Festival of Rotterdam (IFFR).

The documentary, directed by Deepti Gupta, will be screened in the Voices section of the ongoing film gala.

It follows Sona's journey as a rock star, her brand of music, love for her country's roots and culture and how she has become symbol of hope of a larger movement.

"Our film is irreverently brave and unapologetically takes on structural misogyny of the industry and society I belong to. This is a film about music, art, social change and a clashing of the ancient and the modern, every civilisation needs to go through these clashes to evolve and become a better place.

"That it also made everyone laugh during the screenings we've had here is an added bonus. I am elated about the film's international premiere. The start of 2020 has been crackling I must add," Sona said in a statement.

Deepti said she has always been inspired by the singer's "journey, her voice in her mesmerising songs, and also her unrelenting protest".

"Through Sona, I tried to explore the prismatic reality of women using their art and everything in their power to ask for equality, and the price they pay for it. The film is made with much love and passion and without any conventional backing, so the fact that we are invited to premiere at the prestigious IFFR Rotterdam is not only exciting for us, it's also a validation that the story of 'Shut Up Sona' as a universal narrative.

"For me the film is in an expression in a cinematic realm what Sona expresses in the aural, so it is doubly exciting that IFFR has invited Sona to perform at the closing ceremony, a first in their history of 28 years," she said.

"Shut Up Sona" had its India premiere at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival last year where it received the special jury mention in the Film Critics Guild Award section.