Non-Fiction | 70min | Digital | 16:9 | 2017
Lured by the chance of being the protagonist of a documentary film, Buddha Dev, a 27 year old flamboyant cricketer from Goa, starts authorising unrestricted access into the most private parts of his life.
WATCH
FESTIVALS
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 2017- First Features Competition
Ann Arbor Film Festival 2018- Features Competition
Mumbai Film Festival 2018 – Spotlight
Documenta Madrid 2018- Fugas Feature Film Competition
Mammoth Lakes Film Festival, USA – International Competition
New Cinema/ New Talents
AWARDS
Jury Special Mention- Mammoth Lakes FF, California
NFDC Film Bazaar Award- Film Bazaar, India
PRESS
Reviews
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
Review: BUDDHA.mov | Mumbai Film Festival 2018
FILM THREAT
Review: BUDDHA.mov at 57th Ann Arbor Film Festival | 9/10
FIRSTPOST
Review: Kabir Mehta’s shifting authorship makes film unexpected & riveting
FILM COMPANION
Review: An Oddly Captivating Deconstruction Of Social Currency
ASIAN MOVIE PULSE
Review: A mockumentary, where “mock” seems to be the main ingredient
Interviews
PLATFROM
Interview: Kabir Mehta on Sadhu in Bombay and BUDDHA.mov
FESTIVALISTS
Interview: Kabir Mehta talks with Yoana Pavlova about his much awaited feature..
FIRSTPOST
Interview: Kabir Mehta talks of treading the fine line of docu-fiction
HOMEGROWN
Interview: Kabir Mehta discusses his first feature BUDDHA.mov
FILM COMPANION
25 Prime Innovators in Indian Entertainment 2019 – Kabir Mehta | BUDDHA.mov
LITTLE WHITE LIES
10 highlights from the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | BUDDHA.mov
CINEVUE
Tallinn 2017: Our favorite picks of the Black Nights festival | BUDDHA.mov
VARIETY
Mammoth Lakes Film Festival Award Winners: BUDDHA.mov
VARIETY
Facebook Launches Film Bazaar Awards- Buddha.gram scoops Facebook awards
SCREENDAILY
Cricketer hits Film Bazaar for six- Film Bazaar’s buzz titles include cricketer doc..
FESTIVAL CITATIONS
“Indian auteur Ashim Ahluwalia’s protégée and frontrunner of a new wave of Indian filmmakers, Kabir Mehta moves into long-form storytelling after the international success of his short film “Sadhu in Bombay”, which had its North American premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival. The Mumbai based director impresses with his vanguardism in a debut that is hard to label or classify.
Documentary turned fiction turned cross media project turned social experiment, ‘BUDDHA.mov’ follows the life of Buddhadev Mangaldas, a cocksure 29 years old cricketer who plays for Goa. What initially seems to be a classical unidirectional observational documentary of a successful sportsman, quickly shifts into a more interactive piece when the cheerful and at times gullible protagonist of the film begins to linger with the camera, increasingly giving in to his hedonistic ego and in doing so unveiling the most private parts of his eccentric life and multi-layered personality. Nevertheless the film never takes a critical stand as the director is more interested in studying how the subject interacts with the perception of his own identity and the actions and measures the cricketer takes to match his imagery.” Giampietro Balia (Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival)
“In Buddha.mov Kabir Mehta’s direction breaks boundaries that test our emotions about hypermasculinity centered on a cricket baller from Goa. Kabir, you’re a creative risk taker, clearly a bit mad and definitely someone to watch”Mammoth Lakes Film Festival 2018 Jury: Allison Amon, Lindsey Bahr and Peter Baxter