‘Something Like an Autobiography’ by Bangladeshi filmmakers Mostofa Sarwar Farooki and Nusrat Imrose Tisha has been acquired for British broadcast by Channel 4.
The film had its world premiere at the 2023 Busan International Film Festival, where it competed in the prestigious Jiseok Competition. It was also part of the South Asian Icons series at the 2023 Mumbai Film Festival. The film follows the Dhaka-based couple, filmmaker Farhan (Farooki) and actor Tithi (Tisha), who are under societal pressure to to have a baby. Tithi becomes pregnant and towards the end of her pregnancy period an incident occurs that brings into sharp relief some of the realities of contemporary Bengali society.
The title, a nod to Kurosawa Akira’s celebrated memoir, also reflects the real lives of Farooki and Tisha, a celebrity couple who are the most recognized filmmaker and actor in Bangladesh, respectively.
“This is a special film for me and Tisha. Personal, embarrassing and enriching at the same time. I’m glad the film will be seen by Channel 4 audiences. I hope they can connect with the universal theme even if it is expressed through local details,” Farooki shared Variety.
The film is produced by Redoan Rony for Bangladeshi streaming platform Chorki and co-produced by Nina Lath, Anna Katchko and Tisha. It is part of Chorki’s twelve-film project ‘Ministry of Love’.
Chorki CEO Rony said: “Channel 4 is a valued broadcaster. We are happy that they chose our film to show to their audiences. Chorki always wants to make quality films and series. This is a clear sign that we are on the right track.”
‘Something Like an Autobiography’ next plays at the Sydney Film Festival.
Farooki’s ‘Last Defenders of Monogamy’ is also part of the anthology ‘Ministry of Love’.
Next up for Farooki is the British Hindi and English romance ‘To Hell With Love’, which recently took part in the first edition of the Indian Cinevesture International Film Festival’s project market.
