Film Screenings
Nostalgia for the Future
Ashish Rajadhyaksha, Avijit Mukul Kishore and Rohan Shivkumar
Join us for a compelling screening and discussion that delves into the utopian ideals shaping post-independence India.
Nostalgia for the Future (2017) by Avijit Mukul Kishore and Rohan Shivkumar is a film essay exploring Indian modernity, citizenship, and the architecture of homes over a century. Weaving together 16mm and digital footage, archival propaganda films, and mainstream cinema, the film examines four iconic spaces—the royal palace in Baroda, Le Corbusier’s Villa Shodhan, Sabarmati Ashram, and Delhi’s public housing—reflecting on the aspirations and contradictions of a nation.
Acclaimed at Documenta 14, Sharjah Architecture Triennial, and the Chicago Architecture Biennial, the film won Best Documentary (IDSFFK, 2017) and Best Experimental Documentary (Signs Festival, 2018).
Following the screening, the filmmakers will be in conversation with Ashish Rajadhyaksha, discussing the intersections of cinema, memory, and built environments.
This film is part of the Eckart Muthesius and Manik Bagh exhibition programming.
Bookings
Ashish Rajadhyaksha
Ashish Rajadhyaksha is a film historian, and an occasional art curator. He is the author of the Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema (with Paul Willemen, 1994/1999), Indian Cinema from the Time of Celluolid: From Bollywood to the Emergency (2009) and John-Ghatak-Tarkovsky: Citizens, Filmmakers, Hackers (2023).
Avijit Mukul Kishore
Avijit Mukul Kishore, a Mumbai-based filmmaker, studied cinematography at the Film and Television Institute of India and history at Delhi University. He works primarily in documentary and interdisciplinary moving-image practices, often in collaboration with visual artists, architects, and academics. Active in cinema pedagogy, he lectures, writes, and curates. His works have been showcased at Documenta 14, Chicago Architecture Biennial, Kochi-Muziris Biennale and major film festivals like International Film Festival of Rotterdam, CPH Dox and Sheffield Docfest.
Rohan Shivkumar
Rohan Shivkumar is a Mumbai-based architect, urban designer, and filmmaker, currently the Dean of Architecture at Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute for Architecture. His interdisciplinary work encompasses architecture, urban research, film, and visual arts, focusing on space, image, and representation. He engages in academia through publications, lectures, and exhibitions, exploring themes like cinema and the city. His films include ‘Nostalgia for the Future’ and ‘Lovely Villa’ and have been featured at Chicago Architecture Biennale and Documenta.
