World's largest film restoration project commences in India for Rs 363 cr!
Under the NFHM, approximately 2,200 films will undergo restoration.
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New Delhi, May 6: Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur announced that India is embarking on the world’s largest film restoration project under the National Film Heritage Mission (NFHM) with a budget of Rs 363 crore. The restoration project, awarded on May 4, is set to begin in full swing at the NFAI.
In the interim, NFAI undertook restoration of 10 prestigious Satyajit Ray films which will be subsequently showcased at various International Film Festivals.
Beyond Satyajit Ray films, feature films as diverse as “Neelakuyil” (Malayalam) and “Do Aakhein Barah Haath” (Hindi) will also be covered. Extremely important shorts and documentaries from the collection of the NFAI, Films Division and other rare materials, including pre independence, will also be restored as they capture the growth of India like no other.
The damages including scratches, dirt and abrasions in every frame of the picture negative will be cleaned during the restoration process. The sound was also restored in a process similar to the picture restoration procedure. After restoration, the digital picture files will be colour graded (DI process) and balanced to achieve the look of the film at the time of the original release.
Under the NFHM, approximately 2,200 films will undergo restoration. The titles have been shortlisted by language wise committees consisting of filmmakers, documentary filmmakers, film historians and producers, with members comprising eminent film personalities such as Aparna Sen, Shriram Raghavan, Anjali Menon and Vetrimaaran.
“The NFHM in addition to restoration also involves the on-going preservation processes of film condition assessment, preventive conservation and digitisation, with the total allocated budget of Rs 597 crore, which is one of the world’s largest film preservation missions,” Thakur said.
In the interim, NFAI undertook restoration of 10 prestigious Satyajit Ray films which will be subsequently showcased at various International Film Festivals.
Beyond Satyajit Ray films, feature films as diverse as “Neelakuyil” (Malayalam) and “Do Aakhein Barah Haath” (Hindi) will also be covered. Extremely important shorts and documentaries from the collection of the NFAI, Films Division and other rare materials, including pre independence, will also be restored as they capture the growth of India like no other.
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The process involves frame-to-frame digital and semi-automated manual picture and sound restoration from the best surviving source material. The source negative/print will be scanned at 4K to dpx files, which will be then digitally restored.
The damages including scratches, dirt and abrasions in every frame of the picture negative will be cleaned during the restoration process. The sound was also restored in a process similar to the picture restoration procedure. After restoration, the digital picture files will be colour graded (DI process) and balanced to achieve the look of the film at the time of the original release.
