Scorsese, Lucas-Backed ‘Ghatashraddha’ Venice Restoration Unpacked

The restored version of Indian auteur Girish Kasaravalli‘s 1977 Kannada-language debut feature “Ghatashraddha” (“The Ritual”) is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival.

This restoration, a collaboration between Martin Scorsese’s the Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s Film Heritage Foundation (FHF), with funding from George Lucas and Mellody Hobson’s Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation, brings the Indian classic back to international audiences 47 years after its initial release.

Based on a novella by U.R. Ananthamurthy, “Ghatashraddha” tells the story of Yamuna, a child widow living in her father’s religious school in southern India. After becoming pregnant by a local teacher, she faces ostracism and undergoes a ritual where her father symbolically breaks an earthen pot, representing her outcast status.

The source element for the restoration is the original camera negative preserved at the National Film Development Corporation-National Film Archive of India. “‘Ghatashraddha’ had always been on Film Heritage Foundation‘s restoration wishlist,” Dungarpur told Variety. “I was aware that the negative was not in great condition and I was concerned that it would deteriorate further if we did not restore the film soon.”

The restoration faced numerous technical challenges. “The original camera negative was affected by mold and was damaged with broken and fragile splices, tears, broken perforations, old tape residues and scratches,” Dungarpur explained. L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna tackled the extensive repair work.

“Ghatashraddha” features cinematography by S. Ramachandra and a score by B.V. Karanth. The film stars Meena Kuttappa and Narayana Bhat.

“We involved Girish Kasaravalli right through the process especially with the grading of the black and white film, the subtitling and the sound as the sound design of the film is so layered and nuanced, not to mention the compelling score by the legendary B.V. Karanth,” Dungarpur said.

“I have been working closely with Film Heritage Foundation on the restoration of ‘Ghatashraddha’ for several months now. Shivendra and I have been speaking nearly every day about the grading, the density of the blacks, the sound and the subtitling,” Kasaravalli told Variety. “When we began the process, I knew the original camera negative was not in the best of condition and I was very worried about the sound as there was a disturbing hiss all through the film.”

When the 35mm dupe sound negative proved unsuitable due to distortion issues, the team sourced a 35mm print from the Library of Congress with higher quality audio.

“I was so overwhelmed to see the restored ‘Ghatashraddha’ when Shivendra sent me the final version. It has been a revelation to see the film come back to life again with such astonishing beauty after almost 50 years,” Kasaravalli said.

“I’m delighted that the restoration of my debut feature ‘Ghatashraddha’ will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival this year, 47 years after its release,” Kasaravalli added. “It will be a matter of great pride for me to be in Venice to present the film.”

The restored “Ghatashraddha” plays at the Venice Classics strand.

Looking ahead, FHF is set to restore Pradip Krishen’s 1989 cult film “In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones,” written by and starring Arundhati Roy, and Mani Ratnam’s 1997 masterpiece “Iruvar.”