The premiere screening of Oscar Award Nominee Deepa Mehta’s ‘Midnight’s Children’ was held on the 23rd of March 2013 at the National Film Corporation Theater.

The movie, based on the novel by Salman Rushdie, is a story consisting of a series of events taking place in India both before and after the independence and partition of India.

Saleem Sinai, a boy born at the exact moment when India was blessed with independence. He had abilities of using telepathic powers along with a constantly dripping nose with an insightful sense of smell.

Sadly I have not read this novel but I observed the film from the start and I must say it was a well balanced movie which was filmed in Sri Lanka.

All credit goes to ‘The Film Team’ which comprises of Ravindra Randeniya, Errol Kelly, Ainsley de Silva and Gopi Darmaratnam who has made it all possible for us to witness the beautiful scenes in Sri Lanka transformed into India.

The camera-work is breathtaking; the music is absolutely authentic, acting was good and it was really hard to realize how the locations in Sri Lanka were transformed into India. Overall it was good movie and I enjoyed it.

 Comments from the audience

Mr. Dinuk Hettiarachchi: Fantastic! It’s great to see a film of the magnitude done in Sri Lanka. 

Mrs. Shehara Mudumali: It’s beautiful; I just cannot believe that it was filmed in Sri Lanka. 

Yashoda Wimaladharma: I’m so happy to see that India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are made here and all credit thoroughly goes to one of the best Art Directors in the world – Mr. Errol Kelly. I like to thank Mr. Ravindra Randeniya and his team for making this happen and I’m very honoured to watch this movie because it was our people in Sri Lanka who made this become true.

Lalani Uduawela: It was really good, and we’re proud that it was filmed in Sri Lanka, especially the beautiful locations that were captured.

Sangeetha Weeraratne: I couldn’t watch the entire movie but the part I did see, it was very moving and it was the insightful things we didn’t know said in the most beautiful cinematic way possible. I’m definitely looking forward to watch the whole movie.

For more pictures visit: http://life.dailymirror.lk/gallery/46/premiere-of-midnights-children

By Sandharu Ferdinando

Pics by Waruna Wanniarachchi