International
US Library to archive 25 films
MUMBAI: As part of its National Film Registry, the US Library of Congress will preserve twenty five films with artistic, cultural or historical significance.
Films selected to be part of the library include Saturday Night Fever, McCabe and Mrs Miller, horror classic The Exorcist, All the President‘s Men and Grey Gardens, a documentary about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis‘ eccentric relatives. Another film is 1913‘s Preservation of the Sign Language, a two-minute film of George Veditz, one-time president of the National Association of the Deaf of the United States.
Culling them from suggestions by the National Film Preservation Board and the public James H Billington, the librarian of Congress, chose the films in the registry.
The collection also includes films noted films like The Pink Panther and the 1980 disaster-film spoof titled Flying High – Airplane!, The Bargain, Cry of Jazz, Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB, The Empire Strikes Back, The Front Page, It‘s a Gift, Let There Be Light, Lonesome, Make Way For Tomorrow, Newark Athlete, Our Lady of the Sphere, Study of a River, Tarantella, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and A Trip Down Market Street.
The library preserves copies in its cold-storage vaults among millions of other recordings at the Packard Campus of the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Virginia.
International
Russia-India cinematic spectacle Persimmon of My Love set for grand Moscow debut
Hindi cinema style musical revives Indo-Soviet cinema ties for today
MUMBAI: A new chapter in cross-border storytelling is set to unfold as Persimmon of My Love gears up for its premiere in Moscow on 1 April 2026, marking the first large-scale cinematic collaboration between Russia and India in decades.
Positioned as a modern nod to the cultural exchange that once brought Indian classics to Soviet audiences, the film blends Hindi cinema flair with Russian storytelling, aiming to rekindle a long-standing cinematic friendship.
Directed by Marius Weisberg, the musical comedy follows two brothers navigating a lively world of music, family and romance. The lead roles are played by Demis Karibidis and Mikhail Galustyan, with Karibidis also contributing as a screenwriter.
Shot entirely in India, the production leans heavily into Hindi cinema style spectacle. Filming took place across Mumbai studios and the cities of Udaipur and Jodhpur, whose architecture was used to create the fictional setting of Khurmada. A crew of over 350 worked on the project, with large-scale sequences featuring up to 1,000 extras.
The film also brings Indian creative talent into the mix. Dance sequences are choreographed by Jay Kumar, while music by Zurab Matua features songs in both Hindi and Russian, adding to its cross-cultural appeal.
Backed by TNT channel, MyWayStudio and the Russian Cinema Fund, the project reflects a broader push to strengthen cultural ties between the two countries.
With its mix of colour, comedy and cross-border collaboration, Persimmon of My Love is not just a film release but a reminder that cinema, much like music, travels well across borders.
