Wild Strawberries (2025)

One Love Manchester

Live coverage of the concert set up by Ariana Grande at Old Trafford cricket ground to benefit those affected by the May 2017 Manchester bomb attack. Performers include Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Coldplay, Katy Perry, Take That, Pharrell Williams, Niall Horan, Miley Cyrus, Usher, Robbie Williams, Little Mix and The Black Eyed Peas.

Purpose of Reunion 3

Sung-hyeon reunites with first love, Jin-hye at a class reunion.

Going for Gold

Seventeen year old, Emma joins a high school cheerleading team when she moves to Australia with her dad who is a former Air Force Officer.

High School Musical: The Musical: The Holiday Special

The cast of “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” delivers an abundance of feel-good holiday cheer as they perform their favorite Christmas, Hanukkah and New Year’s songs and share their fondest holiday memories.

Hatching Pete

Pete is very inconspicuous at school, unlike his extrovert mate Cleatis who's happy to don a chicken suit and be the school mascot, but unfortunately, Cleatis is allergic to the suit. When there's an uproar at the chicken's disappearance, Pete is forced into the limelight as the school's basketball reputation is at stake.

Dilwale

Raj is a Mafia member. One day he meet a girl (Meera) while chasing by his rival gang and falls in love with her. Later he finds out that this girl is the daughter of the leader of his rival gang. Yet their love story continues until he was shot by his girlfriend upon a deep misunderstanding. After that incident these two lovers lives separate until their siblings fallen in love. With this new love story their paths intertwines again.

Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow

Elina goes to a fairy school to learn dancing and fairy magic. The spring of the fairy land is soon threatened by evil Laverna who intends to prevent fairies from performing the annual vital rainbow dance. Elina must stop quarreling with her fellow students and unite them to save the first bud of the spring.

Afterburn/Aftershock

Businesswoman Gia Rossi is determined to be successful in her new job, but when her ex lover Jax Rutledge waltzes back into her life, their passionate connection ignites not only in the boardroom, but the bedroom.

Bakery in Brooklyn

Brooklyn, New York. After the sudden death of their aunt Isabelle, Vivien and Chloe inherit her historic bakery. Vivien wants to keep up the tradition; Chloe feels that the business needs to be modernized. But when notified that they are about to be evicted, the two do not hesitate to work together to preserve the family legacy.

Bitter Harvest

Set between the two World Wars and based on true historical events, Bitter Harvest conveys the untold story of the Holodomor, the genocidal famine engineered by the tyrant Joseph Stalin. The film displays a powerful tale of love, honour, rebellion and survival at a time when Ukraine was forced to adjust to the horrifying territorial ambitions of the burgeoning Soviet Union.

Thani Oruvan

An idealistic cop and an ambitious scientist-businessman indulge in a high-stake battle of wits.

The Prince & Me: A Royal Honeymoon

At last! The newly crowned King of Denmark, Edward, and his wife and Queen, Dr. Paige Morgan, find time to fly to Belavia for their secret honeymoon. What better way to spend the Christmas holidays than at a fabulous ski resort? But as they take a tour of Belavia's natural beauty, Eddie and Paige discover that the evil Prime Minister Polonius has given orders to bulldoze the precious forests - to drill for oil. Then, the couple bump into Paige's ex-boyfriend, Scott. Eddie immediately becomes jealous - furthermore he suspects Scott cannot be trusted. Paige and Eddie must do everything they can to save the forest, even if it means putting aside their honeymoon.

Loue-moi !

Lea opens an agency where anybody can rent her to play the part the clients need: a daughter, a girlfriend, a customer, you name it...

Honey: Rise Up and Dance

Street dancer Skyler comes out of the shadow of her trained dancer sister, Tosha, & joins a dance competition with the Honey dance studio; the prize is a college scholarship.

Bravetown

After an accidental drug overdose, a talented teenage DJ goes to live with his estranged father in a small Army town, where he gets to the bottom of his own pain and learns empathy for others.

A Second Chance

A young girl and her coach overcome adversity to make their way into the National Australian Gymnastics Squad.

Emerald Green

Emerald Green is the stunning conclusion to Kerstin Gier's Ruby Red Trilogy, picking up where Sapphire Blue left off, reaching new heights of intrigue and romance as Gwen finally uncovers the secrets of the time-traveling society and learns her fate.

Elena and the Secret of Avalor

In the Kingdom of Avalor, Elena takes Naomi up a mountain to show her favorite view of the kingdom. Elena laments to Naomi how she was trapped in the Amulet of Avalor for forty-one years, and then presents to her a broken wand. She tells her that it was Shuriki's wand and how she would still be trapped in the Amulet if it was not for a brave young Princess: Sofia. Elena then proceeds to tell Naomi the whole story ...

The Invisible Boy: Second Generation

Three years later Michele (The Invisible boy) meets his mother and his twin sister. Both have stories and superpowers but their intentions may not be what Michele thinks.

The Perfect Wave

The true story of Ian McCormack who grew up surfing the waters of New Zealand. Wanting to dive deeper, Ian sets out on a journey with his best friend that will change his life as they chase the perfect wave.

Thi Mai

After losing her daughter in an accident, Carmen loses all incentive to keep going, until she receives an unexpected letter from the adoption agency: her daughter was finally granted the Vietnamese girl she had asked for adoption and whose name is Thi Mai.

Fan

A man who bears a striking resemblance to a renowned movie star becomes an obsessive fan, but when his fierce love is spurned by the star, he decides to destroy the star's life and reputation.

Hero

Prosecutor Kohei Kuryu takes charge of a case with a foreign embassy possessing the key to solve the case. Due to the extraterritoriality involving the case, the investigation has not gone anywhere. A crisis then ensues. Kohei Kuryu and his office attempt to extract the truth behind the wall of the Neustrian Embassy.

Raising the Bar

16-year-old Kelly quits an elite gymnastics program and moves to Australia. To help out a new friend and show up an old rival she re-enters competitive gymnastics, she'll have to find a way to move forward while making amends with her past.

(re)kindle

Ana and Helen, two divorced women, were close friends as teenagers. Today, amidst the corona virus pandemic and in quarantine, they get in touch after 20 years via internet. Through video conference calls, memories, sensations and emotions reflourishes.

Six A.M.

After drinking all night, Monty and his friend try to get home, but it turns out to be not easy. The next day, Monty tries to win the heart of a theater actress.

How to Build a Better Boy

After inadvertently inputting the qualities of the ideal boyfriend into a high-tech government computer, two social outcasts named Mae and Gabby must contend with Albert, a cybernetic sweetheart with only one directive: to treat Mae to the perfect highschool romance.

Ozzy

Ozzy, a friendly, peaceful beagle has his idyllic life turned upside down when the Martins leave on a long and distant trip. There's only one problem: no dogs allowed! Unable to bring their beloved Ozzy along for the ride, they settle on the next best thing, a top-of-the-line canine spa called Blue Creek.

Air Strike

An American pilot is sent to a Chinese province to teach a crew of would-be pilots how to fly war planes against the Japanese during World War II.

Mean Girls 2

Confident senior Jo begins the new school year by breaking her own cardinal rule: don't get involved in girl drama. but when she sees timid Abby preyed upon by Queen Bee Mandi and her minions, she takes sides in a viciously funny girl-world-war that turns North Shore High School upside down.

The Last Summer

Standing on the precipice of adulthood, a group of friends navigate new relationships, while reexamining others, during their final summer before college.

A Dream of Christmas

When a restless young married woman is granted a wish by a Christmas Angel to be single again, she soon discovers her new life isn't what she bargained for, and embarks on a quest to win her husband back.

LEGO Frozen Northern Lights

Elsa, Anna and friends search for the Northern Lights.

As Needed

A 40-year-old world-famous chef with anger management issues is assigned to run a cooking class at a centre for young people with autism.

Bend It Like Beckham

Jess Bhamra, the daughter of a strict Indian couple in London, is not permitted to play organized soccer, even though she is 18. When Jess is playing for fun one day, her impressive skills are seen by Jules Paxton, who then convinces Jess to play for her semi-pro team. Jess uses elaborate excuses to hide her matches from her family while also dealing with her romantic feelings for her coach, Joe.

Once Were Warriors

A drama about a Maori family living in Auckland, New Zealand. Lee Tamahori tells the story of Beth Heke’s strong will to keep her family together during times of unemployment and abuse from her violent and alcoholic husband.

Bollywood/Hollywood

Rahul Seth is a dashing young millionaire who believes he is "western" enough to rebel against his mother and grandmother. They are not too keen about his Caucasian girlfriend Kimberly who, to make matters worse, is a pop star. Before you can say "karmic intervention," Kimberly dies in a freak accident and Rahul is devastated. Instead of allowing him to mourn in peace, Rahul's mother sees the opportunity she's been waiting for. She threatens to call off his sister's wedding unless he finds himself a "nice Indian girl." Rahul enlists the services of Sue, a fiercely independent escort whom he believes to be Hispanic, and therefore not "married" to the conventions taught to young Indian women. With a wink in her eye, Sue accepts the deal to pose as his Indian bride-to-be. She needs the money and having never been a fan of the typical Indian male, she feels her heart is safe. The charade begins....

Chocolat

A mother and daughter move to a small French town where they open a chocolate shop. The town, religious and morally strict, is against them, as they represent free-thinking and indulgence. When a group of gypsies arrive by riverboat, the Mayor's prejudices lead to a crisis.

Breaking the Waves

In a small and conservative Scottish village, a woman's paralytic husband convinces her to have extramarital intercourse so she can tell him about it and give him a reason for living.

Fiddler on the Roof

In a pre-revolutionary Russia, a poor Jewish milkman struggles with the challenges of a changing world as his daughters fall in love and antisemitism grows.

East Is East

In 1971 Salford fish-and-chip shop owner George Khan expects his family to follow his strict Pakistani Muslim ways. But his children, with an English mother and having been born and brought up in Britain, increasingly see themselves as British and start to reject their father's rules on dress, food, religion, and living in general.

War of the Buttons

For generations, two rival French villages, Longueverne and Velrans, have been at war. But this is no ordinary conflict, for the on-going hostilities are between two armies of young schoolboys. When he is beaten by his father for having lost his buttons, the leader of the Longueverne army, Lebrac, has an idea which will give his side the advantage: next time, he and his brave soldiers will go in battle without their clothes...

The Devil's Arithmetic

An American-born Jewish adolescent, Hannah Stern, is uninterested in the culture, faith and customs of her relatives. However, she begins to revaluate her heritage when she has a supernatural experience that transports her back to a Nazi death camp in 1941. There she meets a young girl named Rivkah, a fellow captive in the camp. As Rivkah and Hannah struggle to survive in the face of daily atrocities, they form an unbreakable bond.

Rikyu

Late in the 1500s, an aging tea master teaches the way of tea to a headstrong Shogun. Through force of will and courageous fighting, Hideyoshi becomes Japan’s most powerful warlord, unifying the country.

The Jazz Singer

A young Jewish man is torn between tradition and individuality when his old-fashioned family objects to his career as a jazz singer.

L'Héritière

After the death of her father, whom she never knew, a young woman finds herself at the head of a large company.

Mohabbatein

At a prestigious all-male university, three friends seek love outside of the school grounds; at the same time, a newly-hired music teacher seeks to befriend and loosen up the militantly strict headmaster.

Golden Door

The story is set at the beginning of the 20th century in Sicily. Salvatore, a very poor farmer, and a widower, decides to emigrate to the US with all his family, including his old mother. Before they embark, they meet Lucy. She is supposed to be a British lady and wants to come back to the States. Lucy, or Luce as Salvatore calls her, for unknown reasons wants to marry someone before to arrive to Ellis Island in New York. Salvatore accepts the proposal. Once they arrive in Ellis Island they spend the quarantine period trying to pass the examinations to be admitted to the States. Tests are not so simple for poor farmers coming from Sicily. Their destiny is in the hands of the custom officers.

Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam

A newly-wed man discovers that his wife is in love with another man and decides to unite them. Ignoring the ridicule he might have to face for this, he takes his wife to Italy in search of her love.

Shower

An aged father and his younger, mentally challenged son have been working hard every day to keep the bathhouse running for a motley group of regular customers. When his elder son, who left years ago to seek his fortune in the southern city of Shenzhen, abruptly returns one day, it once again puts under stress the long-broken father-son ties. Presented as a light-hearted comedy, Shower explores the value of family, friendship, and tradition.

Whale Rider

On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, Whangara chiefs, always the first-born, always male, have been considered Paikea's direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal New Zealand tribe, believes she is destined to be the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must fight him and a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny.

The Story of the Weeping Camel

When a Mongolian nomadic family's newest camel colt is rejected by its mother, a musician is needed for a ritual to change her mind.

Tulang Belulang Tulang

A Batak family plans to perform Mangokal Holi — a ceremony to honor ancestors. However, chaos erupts when their great grandfather's skeleton is suddenly lost.

The Cave of the Yellow Dog

The little nomad girl, Nansal, finds a baby dog in the Mongolian veld, who becomes her best friend - against all rejections of her parents. A story about a Mongolian family of nomads - their traditional way of life and the rising call of the City.

Tempting the Devil

Two themes arise from the story, themes that are interlocked: the theme of love and of man's eternal submission to traditional symbols. The director Živko Nikolić continues his movie saga of human nature. Both themes develop the mythical idea of temptation. It is basic human relation: from the intimate to the families' vying with each other.

The Long Gray Line

The life story of a salt-of-the-earth Irish immigrant, who becomes an Army Noncommissioned Officer and spends his 50 year career at the United States Military Academy at West Point. This includes his job-related experiences as well as his family life and the relationships he develops with young cadets with whom he befriends. Based on the life of a real person.

Late Marriage

Zaza is a 31-year old Israeli bachelor, handsome and intelligent, and his family wants to see him married. But tradition dictates that Zaza has to choose a young virgin. She must be beautiful and from a good family, preferably rich. Zaza's parents, Yasha and Lily drag Zaza to meet potential brides and their families. Zaza has no choice. He plays along with his family, advocates of the suffocating traditions of their Georgian Jewish heritage. But Zaza always manages to somehow get out of being engaged. What his parents don't know is that Zaza is already in love. Judith is sensuous, strong and intriguing. She's also a divorcée with a 6-year-old daughter. So Zaza has kept Judith a secret from his family. He will have to choose between respect of the strict confines of family and tradition, or the love of his life.

Anushan

Plot unavailable

Zvenygora

The momentous film stars Mykola Nademskyi as the grandfather of Tymish (Semen Svashenko), whom he alerts to secret treasure buried in the mountains of Zvenygora – Treasure that rightfully belongs to his homeland. The film wonderfully blends both lyricism and politics and uses its central construct to build a montage praising Ukrainian industrialization, attacking the bourgeoisie, celebrating the beauty of the Ukrainian steppe and retelling ancient folklore. Said Sergei Eisenstein of the film, "As the lights went on, we felt that we had just witnessed a memorable event in the development of the cinema".

The Butterfly House

Salim and Tasya decided to move the location of their pre-wedding photo session to the Salim Family's house. But they were disturbed by a series of terrors by Salim's ancestors. Tasya believed that the terror had a dark story.

Kryptonite!

Set in 1970s Naples, bullied nine year-old Peppino is watching the world around him as his extended dysfunctional family change. Psychedelic flower power and hippie love is threatening the old traditional southern Italian family. Dad is having an affair and Mom has taken to her bed with depression. Super-mod brother and sister Titina and Salvatore take the boy under their wings, introducing him to demonstrations and love-ins, whilst caped superhero Gennaro visits Peppino even after being knocked down and killed by the number 12 bus. It is the imaginary appearances of this older superman cousin that help the nine-year-old navigate the complicated adult world.

Stolen

A young woman struggles to defend her Sámi heritage in a world where xenophobia is on the rise, climate change is threatening reindeer herding, and young people choose suicide in the face of collective desperation.

Yellow Earth

A communist soldier is sent to a remote region of China in order to collect folk songs. Staying with a peasant family (a widower with two small children), he discovers a community whose way of life is completely alien to him, but he gradually wins their trust…

The Portrait

A musical tale about two impoverished sisters' anguish over whether or not to sell the final masterpiece of their recluse father days before the second world war, in Manila.

A Real Pain

Mismatched cousins David and Benji reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the pair's old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history.

Tanna

In a traditional tribal society in the South Pacific, a young girl, Wawa, falls in love with her chief’s grandson, Dain. When an inter-tribal war escalates, Wawa is unknowingly betrothed as part of a peace deal. The young lovers run away, refusing her arranged fate. They must choose between their hearts and the future of the tribe, while the villagers must wrestle with preserving their traditional culture and adapting it to the increasing outside demands for individual freedom.

Parched

In the arid landscape of Rajasthan, four women navigate their way through personal and cultural difficulties.

Fill the Void

Eighteen-year-old Shira is the youngest daughter of the Mendelman family. She is about to be married off to a promising young man of the same age and background. It is a dream come true, and Shira feels prepared and excited. On Purim, her twenty-eight-year-old sister, Esther, dies while giving birth to her first child, Mordechay. The pain and grief that overwhelm the family postpone Shira's promised match. Everything changes when a match is proposed to Yochay-Esther's late husband-to a widow from Belgium. Yochay feels it's too early, although he realizes that sooner or later he must seriously consider getting married again. When the girls' mother finds out that Yochay may marry the widow and move to Belgium with her only grandchild, she proposes a match between Shira and the widower. Shira will have to choose between her heart's wish and her family duty. She will find out that the void which she must choose exists only within her heart.

The Line

Tom, a passionate ‘brother’ of his fraternity, is charmed by the promises of high social status and alumni connections that open doors. But as Annabelle, a classmate outside his social circle, enters his life, his devotion begins to falter. Once the scheduled hazing of new fraternity members comes to a disturbing head, Tom faces the decision of a lifetime.

Every Day a Good Day

A university student attends a Japanese tea ceremony near her house with her cousin. There she has the Japanese tea ceremony in her life and it's there for her during moments when she is sad or happy.

Merz gegen Merz - Geheimnisse

Anne Merz wants to start an event agency with Jonas, the new man at her side. Unfortunately, she doesn't have the money, so her premature inheritance is to be decided at a notary appointment with her father Ludwig, who suffers from dementia. To the horror of Anne's unsuspecting mother Maria, Ludwig drops a bombshell at the appointment: There is an illegitimate daughter who is also entitled to the inheritance. Of course Anne is not going to take this lying down. She steps into the ring - for her money and for her father's love. While ex-husband Erik and his parents Renate and Günter get heavily involved in the family quarrel, son Leon is in trouble with his wife Soraya and her ex Rico.

Aloha

In the South Seas, a half-caste island girl refuses to follow tradition and marry a fellow islander, instead falling in love with a white man and heir to an American fortune.

Buladó

Headstrong girl Kenza lives with her father Ouira and grandfather Weljo on a car wrecking yard in the countryside of Curaçao. The two men are opposites that don't particularly attract: Ouira is a determined and rational police officer, while Weljo identifies with the original inhabitants and spirituality of the island. As Weljo wishes to prepare his passing to the world of spirits, the relationship between Ouira en Weljo starts to escalate and the eleven-year-old Kenza searches for her own path in-between the two extremes. The down-to-earth and avoidant mentality of Ouira no longer offers her all that she needs and slowly she opens up to the more mystical and comforting traditions of her grandfather.

The Stepdad

This year's story follows Nicole, the granddaughter from last year's ad, who is now all grown up with a family to make Christmas traditions with. We follow her and her two adorable children, Max and Ella, as their new stepdad Mike moves into their family home. At the heart of the story is a very special storybook – a precious item belonging to Max from his birth father. The book celebrates the power of storytelling and how it can deepen family bonds; as the family are shown delighting in the magic of Disney storytelling, beautiful animation springs off the pages, igniting the true spirit of Christmas. Follow their emotional journey as we see them combine existing festive traditions with wonderful new ones. In partnership with Make-A-Wish. Featuring "Love Runs Deeper" by Gregory Porter.

Doña Perfecta

Liberal farmer Pepe has arrived in Santa Fe to visit his aunt, Dona Perfecta. While he's there, Pepe is eager to teach the traditional-minded townspeople a new way of living. Unfortunately for Pepe the people of Santa Fe aren't eager to embrace change, and when the citizens begin to voice resentment Pepe is forced to seek refuge with his sympathetic aunt. Dona Perfecta is just as traditional as any of the other townspeople though, and only suffers Pepe due to the fact that he is family. When Pepe and his cousin Rosario fall deeply in love, the situation quickly comes to a head.

From Our Family to Yours

A granddaughter brings joy on Christmas morning by mending her Filipina grandmother’s beloved Mickey plush and decorating her house with Filipino Christmas lanterns ‘parols’; reviving a family tradition and evoking memories of Christmas past. In partnership with Make-A-Wish. Featuring "Love Is A Compass" by Griff.

Mixed Kebab

Ibrahim chooses to fall for young and handsome Kevin over marrying his cute but expensive cousin Elif while kid brother Furkan converts to Islamic fundamentalism.

Rahasia Rasa

Ressa, a successful chef renowned for his ability to identify flavors with just one taste, finds his life falling apart when he loses his sense of taste. In his despair, he reunites with Tika, a childhood friend who helps him rediscover flavors and passion through the legendary recipes of Mustikarasa. However, the secrets behind the book lead Ressa to a major dilemma: to rise again as a chef or risk his relationship with Tika.

The Lamb

In a small village, young Mert is about to get traditionally circumcised, but the family does not have the money to follow up with the circumcision celebration. The family wants to be able to serve lamb meat to the guests at the celebration. Mert’s older sister scares him that if they cannot afford a lamb the father will slaughter him instead.

The Clay Bird

A family must come to grips with its culture, its faith, and the brutal political changes entering its small-town world.

Moolaadé

When a woman shelters a group of girls from suffering female genital mutilation, she starts a conflict that tears her village apart.

Long Long Time Ago

The story spans from 1965 to the early 1970s. Heavily pregnant Zhao Di, the unwanted second wife of an older man, was chased out by her husband's family and forced to return to her own family. She gave birth to a pair of twins, Shun Fatt and Su-mei. As Su-mei had two moles on her face, which was said to be bad luck, she decided to give her up due to the pressure of wanting to build a better life for the rest of her family.

Omo Child: The River and the Bush

For many generations people in the Omo Valley (tribal southwest Ethiopia) believed some children are cursed and that these 'cursed' children bring disease, drought and death to the tribe. The curse is called 'mingi' and mingi children are killed. Lale Labuko, a young educated man from the Kara tribe was 15 years old when he saw a child in his village killed and also learned that he had 2 older sisters he never knew who had been killed. He decided one day he would stop this horrific practice. Filmed over a five year period we follow Lale's journey along with the people of his tribe as they attempt to change an ancient practice.

Cave

Santi, a 17-year-old boy, plays football with his friends at the entrance of the village while Marco, his childhood friend, returns after a two year absence. The last summer Marco was in town, Santi began to feel something towards him. But while living in that cave, the best thing for him to do was to forget about it and focus on building his life based on tradition. The return of Marco throws Santi off, who had finally managed to forget him. Under the conservative gaze of all the people, he will have to fight against his feelings as he considers his identity for the first time.

The Desert Ark

The Desert Ark (L'Arche du Desert), a variation on Romeo and Juliet set in the Algerian desert. A young couple must face inevitable conflict when their rival families discover their secret love. Taking refuge in a cave, they listen to the sounds of a senseless campaign of violence and murder, which is the culmination of the extremism that has long divided their two communities. Nominated for the Golden Leopard at the 1997 Locarno Film Festival.

Honey and Ashes

Set against the vibrant backdrop of contemporary North Africa, this drama follows three women as they navigate the complex interplay between tradition and modernity. Each woman, driven by her own desires for success and meaningful relationships, faces societal pressures and cultural constraints that test their resolve. As their lives unexpectedly intersect, they reveal the shared struggles and resilience needed to overcome the obstacles placed in their path.

A Girl from Hunan

Xiao Xiao is sold into arranged marriage with a 2 year old boy, who she must raise as his nanny until he is old enough to marry her. She is expected to honour tradition and to toe the line so far as social proprieties are concerned, but the young girl rebels against the edicts of her elders until at 16, she falls in love with another man.

In Custody

Ismail Merchant's feature directorial debut addresses a subject close to his heart: the expressive Urdu language of Northern India, in danger of extinction as political trends and modernization obscure its contributions to Indian culture. Merchant 's treatment is wry and good humored , as his characters - an aging Urdu poet (Shashi Kapoor) and a worshipful young college lecturer - clash despite their shared passion for the beauty of words.