Anant Mahadevan's 'Staying Alive' for Stuttgart film fest

Mumbai, July 3 (IANS) Director Anant Mahadevan's 'Staying Alive', based on a true story of a journalist and an underworld kingpin, has been selected for a screening at the 5th Stuttgart Bollywood and Beyond film festival starting July 16 in Germany.

Produced by Shemaroo Entertainment, 'Staying Alive' is based on the true experience of the late writer Sujit Sen, who had scripted films like 'Arth', 'Saaransh' and 'Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke'. It will be screened on the closing day of the festival -- July 20.

'Presence at the festival gives the film a lot of exposure and it is a great joy to see your film amidst world cinema. The journey of 'Staying Alive' to the Stuttgart festival will pave the way for the film to reach out to international audiences,' said Mahadevan.

Mahadevan has directed films like 'Dil Vil Pyar Vyar', 'Dil Maange More' and 'Aksar'.

'Staying Alive' stars Saurabh Shukla and also features Mahadevan. In the film, both of them share a room in the intensive cardiac care unit at a hospital owing to heart attack. While one scoffs at death because he is seasoned as it is his third attack, the other is totally petrified on suffering his first. The film is about being grateful at the joy of just staying alive.

'The growing interest for 'Staying Alive' - a Hindi film with an original offbeat subject - proves that our audiences have certainly matured and that concept films are here to stay. We are all now looking forward to the formal release of 'Staying Alive',' said Raman Maroo, managing director Shemaroo Entertainment.

The five-day long festival will showcase 60 Hindi films including Ashutosh Gowariker's 'Jodhaa Akbar', Kunal Kohli's 'Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic', Shemaroo's 'Manorama Six Feet Under', and Aamir Khan's 'Taare Zameen Par', among others. Various documentaries, short films and public service films would also be showcased.

The festival is also organising a special section to screen AIDS awareness movies and it will include Mira Nair's AIDS Jago series - 'Prarambha' by Santosh Sivan, 'Positive' by Farhan Akhtar, 'Blood Brothers' by Vishal Bharadwaj and 'Migration' by Nair.

Indian filmmaker of international repute Jagmohan Mundhra's 'Shoot on Sight', on 2005 London bombings, will be premiered here.

Bollywood and Beyond, is one of the largest Indian film festival in the world for productions, from and about India. It offers an overview of the latest productions and also the milestones of Indian film history.