Manthan: Shyam Benegal's Film to Screen at Academy Museum

New Delhi, Feb 22 (PTI) Shyam Benegal's award-wining film Manthan has been selected for screening at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles.

In a statement on Saturday, Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which markets dairy products under the Amul brand, announced this development.

"Manthan, the award-winning 1976 feature film produced by 5 lakh dairy farmers of GCMMF (Amul), has been selected for screening at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, as part of the "Emotion in Colour: A Kaleidoscope of Indian Cinema," a curated selection of 12 iconic films from India, on 10th March 2025.".

GCMMF joined hands with the Film Heritage Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation, to restore Manthan in 4K.

The 4K restoration of Manthan was selected for the official red-carpet world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2024.

Manthan was the only Indian film to be selected under the Cannes Classic section of the festival, the GCMMF said.

The groundbreaking series of 12 Iconic films including Manthan for screening at Academy Museum, Los Angeles, has been curated by Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, the founding director of Film Heritage Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving India's cinematic legacy.

"Manthan is inspired by the pioneering milk cooperative movement of Dr Verghese Kurien, the father of the White Revolution of India. The film has had a huge impact on the dairy cooperative movement. It inspired millions of farmers across the nation to come together to form local dairy cooperatives and has contributed immensely towards India's journey to self-sufficiency in milk production. India became the world's largest milk producer in 1998 and has retained the position since then," said Jayen Mehta, Managing Director, GCMMF.

"Manthan was India's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (Oscars) in 1976 and we are very honoured to have film being screened in 2025, the International Year of Cooperation, declared by the United Nations," Mehta added.

Starring actors like Smita Patil, Naseeruddin Shah, Girish Karnad and Amrish Puri, Manthan's story revolves around the struggles and triumphs of a small set of poor farmers, who come together to form a dairy cooperative to improve their economic conditions.