Preserving the magic

Before applauding Martin Scorsese Scorsese for his dazzling array of cinematic masterpieces, punctuated with captivating storytelling, stellar performances, and mindbending music, the ardent film buff would do well to doff her hat to the auteur for being a passionate champion in film preservation.

- VISHAL MENON

Over the years, Mr Scorsese, 81, has assiduously preserved world cinema's heritage like a precious family treasure. Last month, he teamed up with dear friend George Lucas (who created the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises) to restore Ghatashraddha, a seminal film on social dogmas and religious orthodoxy helmed by the doyen of Kannada cinema, Girish Kasaravalli.

The timeless classic that intrigued audiences and critics in equal measure upon its release in 1977 has quietly faded away in the sands of time. Now, Messrs Scorsese and Lucas and the Film Heritage Foundation are working to restore the film to its old, pristine grandeur.

In 2022, the director of cinematic gems like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, and Raging Bull, restored noted Malayalam director G Aravindan's 1979 film Kummatty, hailing it as a tour de force in filmmaking. Mr Scorsese's film restoration crusade began in the 1980s after he attended the screening of Billy Wilder's runaway hit The Seven Year Itch, which featured the ravishing Marilyn Monroe. In his essay titled, Film Preservation: A Dire Need, Mr Scorsese recounted the ordeal of sitting through the screening of the 1955 film.