Multimedia Centre – Cinema Paradiso (MMC–CP)

On Saturday, 1 March, the community was invited to come to Cinema Paradiso to hear community members telling short stories; transformative memories of the past or hopeful dreams about the future of Auroville.

Krishna Devanandan has a background as a dancer, cultural event organiser and teacher of Tai Chi. She helped organise the Auroville Film Festivals and managed the Auroville Art Service from its inception in 2012 until 2023, when the Auroville Foundation appointed new executives.

Marco Feira passed away in his house in Sharnga community on 26 December at the age of 74. He had been suffering from cancer. Marco joined Auroville almost 30 years ago.

As befits chroniclers of our real lives, the organisers of the 8thAuroville Film Festival acknowledged in their address on the essence of the festival, the unique times Auroville is experiencing: ‘In the midst of the challenges we currently face, the Auroville Film Festival 2024 stands not as a conventional celebration but as a contemplative and reflective gathering.

Auroville recently hosted its sixth film festival, which included a heady mix of local and international films. Over five nights, the Town Hall area was abuzz with indoor and outdoor screenings, food stalls and live music, as people imbibed the opportunity to soak up films and to participate in film-related discussions.

From September 30th to October 7th, a course on Film Appreciation – History and Aesthetics was conducted by the Film and Television Institute of India at Auroville’s Cinema Paradiso.

On 10th August, in Cinema Paradiso there was the premiere of a documentary, The Saints of Pondicherry, on an old people’s home for the destitute and homeless in Pondicherry, which was founded by Aurovilian Albert Zwaan who passed away some years ago.

Marco joined Auroville 22 years ago. He reflects here on his many and varied activities, most of which are shaped by a love of the arts.

In October, there was a film festival in Cinema Paradiso and dialogue sessions on the theme of ‘Restoring Connection’ as related to the restorative justice movement.

On the evening of 29th February, Deepti Tiwari gave a much appreciated talk, the fourth and last in a series, organised by Cinema Paradiso, on the theme of consciousness which have been given by different Aurovilians.