Aruna Vasudev | |
|---|---|
 Vasudev in 2010 | |
| Born | 1 November 1936 |
| Died | 5 September 2024 (aged 87) |
| Spouse(s) | Sunil Roy (died 1993) |
| Children | One |
Aruna Vasudev (1 November 1936[1] – 5 September 2024) was an Indian critic, author, editor, painter, and maker of documentaries who was considered an eminent scholar on Asian cinema,[2][3] and was described as the "mother of Asian Cinema".[4]
Early life and education[edit | edit source]
A younger sister of Uma Vasudeva, she was born in 1936. After marrying Sunil Kumar Roy, an Indian diplomat, she chose to retain her maiden name.[5]
His Excellency Sunil Roy died in New York from cancer in 1993, having previously served as Indian Ambassador to Poland, then Mexico, and High Commissioner to Nigeria.[6]
In the early 1960s, she attended film classes in New York where her father was working and created a number of short documentaries after her return to India. She received a doctorate from the University of Paris on cinema and censorship.[7] Her PhD thesis was published as a book titled Liberty and Licence in the Indian Cinema in 1979.[2]
Career[edit | edit source]
Vasudev recently served as director of Osian's-Connoisseurs of Art Private Limited.[3][8] She was also one of the Trustees of the Public Service Broadcasting Trust in India.[9]
She started as a greenhorn helping in the makeup rooms of Doordarsan in 1960.[10]
She launched Cinemaya in 1988 as a publication that showcases filmmakers from Asia. In 1991, she founded the internationally renowned NETPAC as an organisation to forward the cause of Asian films.[5]
From 1990, she was the President or Jury Member of international film festivals including Karlovy Vary, Locarno, Cannes (Camera d'Or), Las Palmas, Pusan, Singapore, Fajr (Tehran), and Antalya.
Death[edit | edit source]
On 5 September 2024, it was announced that Vasudev had died at the age of 87.[11]
Honours and awards[edit | edit source]
Honours[edit | edit source]
Appointed Cavaliere della Stella della Solidarietà Italiana in 2004,[12] in 2019 Vasudev was honoured by the French Government as Officier des Arts et des Lettres,[13] the highest accolades from two major film-producing countries, Italy and France.[5]
Awards[edit | edit source]
In 1997, Vasudev won the Korean Cinema Award at the Pusan International Film Festival.
In 2006, Vasudev received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Cinemanila International Film Festival.
In 2015, Vasudev was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2nd edition of the International Film Festival of Colombo[14] for her contributions towards putting Asian cinema on the international map.[15] At the Hawaii International Film Festival the same year, Vasudev won a Vision in Film Award.
The Tripoli Film Festival[16] has named its prize for Best Writing on Cinema as the “Aruna Vasudev Award”.[4]
Media[edit | edit source]
Film[edit | edit source]
In 2021, a documentary titled Aruna Vasudev: Mother of Asian Cinema was released by filmmaker Supriya Suri. The film explores the legacy created by Vasudev's work and the impact it made on Asian cinema [17][18]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Aruna Vasudev, 1936 – 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Lifetime Achievement Awards - Aruna Vasudev and Adoor Gopalakrishnan". IFFCOLOMBO 2015 - International Film Festival of Colombo 2015. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Aruna Vasudev: Executive Profile & Biography - Bloomberg". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Aruna Vasudev gets 4 lifetime awards in 1 year". asianage.com/. 22 January 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Power Moment: Aruna Vasudev". Verve Magazine. 7 July 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ↑ www.nytimes.com
- ↑ www.in.ambafrance.org
- ↑ "www.osians.co.in". Archived from the original on 30 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ↑ www.psbt.org
- ↑ "The Telegraph - Calcutta : Weekend". www.telegraphindia.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2007. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ↑ "Film scholar Aruna Vasudev, 'Mother of Asian Cinema', passes away at 88". The Hindu. 5 September 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
- ↑ www.presidenti.quirinale.it
- ↑ www.tribuneindia.com
- ↑ www.ceyiff.com
- ↑ Ramakrishnan, T. (27 October 2015). "Adoor, Aruna Vasudev to be honoured at Colombo Film festival". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ↑ www.tripoli-filmfestival.org
- ↑ "Aruna Vasudev: Mother of Asian Cinema (Supriya Suri) India". Imagine India International Film Festival. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
- ↑ "Aruna Vasudev: Mother of Asian Cinema". IMDb. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
External links[edit | edit source]
- Aruna Vasudev on IMDb
- Cinemaya official website Archived 6 March 2019 at the Wayback Machine
- 25 years of NETPAC