Venice Film Festival 2020: Indian filmmaker Chaitanya Tamhane's The Disciple wins Best Screenplay award

Director Chaitanya Tamhane, left, and actor Aditya Modak pose for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film 'The Disciple' during the 77th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Friday, Sept. 4, 2020. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Mumbai-based filmmaker Chaitanya Tamhane's Marathi language feature film The Disciple has bagged the prestigious award for Best Screenplay at the 2020 Venice Film Festival. The film, which looks at the world of classical musicians on the fringes of success, had premiered at the Biennale last week and received glowing reviews from the critics.

#BiennaleCinema2020 #Venezia77
Premio per la migliore sceneggiatura / Award for Best Screenplay:
Chaitanya Tamhane per/for THE DISCIPLE pic.twitter.com/txufdufybI

— La Biennale di Venezia (@la_Biennale) September 12, 2020

Tamhane's The Disciple stars Aditya Modak, Arun Dravid, Sumitra Bhave, and Kiran Yadnyopavit. It has been produced by actor Vivek Gomber (Sir) through his Zoo Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

"I want to thank the FIPRESCI and its jury members from the bottom of my heart for their continued support for our work. This is a very special honour for us given that the jury for this award comprises of film critics and journalists from around the world. We are all quite thrilled and excited with this fantastic start to the journey of The Disciple," Tamhane said in a statement.

The last Indian film to be awarded the FIPRESCI Award at the annual film gala was "Mathilukal", directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan in 1990.

Producer Vivek Gomber said, "It's an incredible honour to be the first Indian film after thirty years to win this prestigious award at Venice. FIPRESCI's faith in our work has been a great source of encouragement over the years."

The Disciple is Tamhane's follow-up to his debut feature Court which was screened in the Orizzonti (Horizons) category at Venice in 2016.

The 77th Venice Film Festival, which concluded on September 12, is the first major international film event to take place physically since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

(With inputs from PTI)