'The Last Lear' well received at Toronto film fest

Rituparno Ghosh’s Amitabh Bachchan THE LAST LEAR had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday, 9th September. The premiere, held at Roy Thomson Hall, was packed to capacity, with close to two thousand people attending the gala event.

Writes Shubho Shekhar Bhattacharjee, CEO - Planman Motion Pictures from Canada, “At the red carpet, hundreds of fans were screaming when we got down from our cars. Mr. Bachchan, Preity, Arjun, Jisshu, Prosenjit Chatterjee came along with Rituparno Ghosh, producer Arindam Chaudhuri and myself.

“We also wanted to make a statement that it’s not just Hollywood that can make a big presence at these international festivals. Given the kind of fan following we have around the world, we can also make as much of presence felt with our films. So we had actually gone to the red carpet with four stretch limos with all the glitz and glamour that usually happens at a world premiere of a big film.

“The response was overwhelming! There was a brief presentation on stage before the screening where Cameron Bailey, the programmer of the Festival, invited Rituparno, Prof. Chaudhuri and myself on stage and then the stars came to the stage, starting with Jisshu and finally Mr. Bachchan.

“The show was received too well. The audience just loved the film. There was a ten-minute standing ovation after the screening got over and most people were seen coming out of the theatre with moist eyes. People were stunned with the performances of Mr. Bachchan, Preity, Arjun, Shefali Shah and Divya Dutta.

“This was followed by a grand luncheon party and then a gala dinner organized by the Toronto Festival in honor of THE LAST LEAR team. In fact, at all the parties in Toronto, THE LAST LEAR seems to be the topic of discussion.”