The Habitat International Film Festival is set to host a comprehensive retrospective of Hungarian cinema, offering Indian audiences a rare and profound journey through one of Europe’s most powerful film traditions. Titled Hungarian Cinema: History, Conscience & Contemporary Voices, the festival will run from 13th March to 22nd March, at India Habitat Centre Delhi, presenting a curated selection of classic masterpieces, contemporary dramas, animations, and documentaries.The festival opened with the documentary MANCH, a moving account of a unique theatre workshop conducted by the Liszt Institute Hungarian Cultural Centre, Delhi.The whole Idea of the Theatre workshop was conceived by Mariann Erdo the Director of the Liszt Cultural Centre Delhi and subsequently developed by eminent Theatre-In-Education expert Vikrant Singh.
The programme places a special focus on two towering giants of Hungarian filmmaking: Zoltán Fábri and István Szabó. Fábri’s work, celebrated for its moral seriousness, is represented by timeless classics such as the lyrical Merry-Go-Round (1955), the beloved coming-of-age story The Boys of Paul Street (1968), and the philosophical wartime drama The Fifth Seal (1976). In contrast, Szabó’s introspective exploration of memory and power will be showcased through his Academy Award-winning Mephisto (1981), alongside other key works like Father (1966) and Confidence (1979).
The festival also highlights the vitality of contemporary Hungarian cinema. Acclaimed directors László Nemes (Son of Saul) and Ildikó Enyedi (On Body and Soul) will present their latest works, Orphan and The Silent Friend, respectively.
The programme includes Marcell Jankovics’ visually stunning epic Toldi and the inventive animated documentary Pelikan Blue, which tells the story of young Hungarians forging train tickets after the fall of communism.
