Dev Anand Centenary Celebrations begin early at NFDC-National Film Archive of India

Pune, September 23 : The National Film Development Corporation – National Film Archive of India, Pune will present a retrospective on Dev Anand and seven of his films in celebration of the illustrious screen icon’s 100th birthday on September 26.

As part of NFDC-NFAI’s laborious effort to pay true tribute to Dev Anand and commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth, four of his classic films were restored in 4K resolution. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has funded the restoration of these movies as part of the National Film Heritage Mission. Before initiating restoration, 35mm Release Prints of Guide, Jewel Thief and Johny Mera Naam and 35mm Dupe Negative of C.I.D. have been scanned on state-of-the-art archival film scanners in 4K resolution. The aforementioned film elements have been preserved in NFDC – NFAI’s vaults for several decades in temperature and relative humidity controlled environments. It is this long term preservation of the landmark films that has made the new 4K restorations possible, said release of PIB.

Through these, NFDC-NFAI intends to introduce Dev Anand’s appeal to a new generation and revive the memories of those who have cherished his work.

The films have been available in poor quality for years, and as of now are also not available on any OTT platforms in high resolution, let alone in 4K restored format. Keeping the centenary of Dev Anand in mind, NFDC-NFAI has been working on the restorations for the past several months where each and every frame is being restored meticulously where time induced artifacts are digitally removed such as dust, dirt, splices, pinholes, tear and scratches. A 3 hour long movie has more than 2.5 lakh frames, which need to be worked upon. This is followed by color grading, where concentrated efforts are put to tackle the issue of color fading and make the film appear as vibrant looking as it was at the time of the release. Simultaneously the audio of the film is also being digitally restored. The final restoration would give the feeling to the audience as if the print is freshly processed and printed in a photochemical film lab.

This four day festival at the NFDC-NFAI Main theater will screen a thoughtfully chosen selection of movies by NFDC-NFAI, allowing viewers to spend the weekend with Dev Anand in his many iconic roles from “Baazi”(1951), “C. I. D.” (1956), “Asli-Naqli”(1962), “Tere Ghar Ke Samne”(1963), “Guide” (1965), “Jewel Thief” (1967), and “Johny Mera Naam” (1970). The screenings will be a mix of 35mm prints and 4K restorations, in their original aspect ratios, with “Baazi”, “Asli-Naqli”, “Tere Ghar Ke Samne” in 35 mm prints and “C. I. D.”, “Guide”, “Jewel Thief”, and “Johny Mera Naam” in 4k resolution, release added.