''Kalo Pothi: The Black Hen'' ( ne, Kalo Pothi) is a 2015

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Min Bahadur Bham Min Bahadur Bham is a Nepalese film director. He has won various awards including the National Film Awards (Nepal), National Film Award for Best Writer, the Norwegian Sorfond Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and the Fedeora Award at the Venice Fi ...

and produced by Anna Katchko, Tsering Rhitar Sherpa,

, Debaki Rai, Catherine Dussart and Anup Thapa. The story takes place in Mugu, a district in north-west

Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...

in 2001 during the

Nepalese civil war The Nepalese Civil War was a protracted armed conflict that took place in the former Kingdom of Nepal from 1996 to 2006. It saw fighting between the Nepalese royal government and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) throughout the country ...

(1996–2006). It is the first Nepali film to be screened at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...

. It was selected as the Nepalese entry for the

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the 89th Academy Awards but it was not nominated. It is also the highest grossing Nepali film in overseas and one of the highest-grossing films in Nepal.

Plot

The film is based on a journey embarked by two friends, Prakash and Kiran, belonging to different castes in search of a missing hen, unaware of the tyranny brought by the fragile ceasefire during the Nepalese civil war.

Cast

* Khadka Raj Nepali as Prakash * Sukraj Rokaya as Kiran * Jit Bahadur Malla as Prakash's father *

Benisha Hamal Benisha Hamal ( ne, बेनिशा हमाल; born ) is a Nepalese radio jockey, model, and actress known for her work in Cinema of Nepal, Nepali cinema. She has worked on over a dozen films and more than one hundred music videos. She won ...

as Kiran's sister * Hansa Khadka as Prakash's sister * Nanda Prashad Khatri *

Bipin Karki Bipin Karki ( ne, बिपिन कार्की, born 21 August 1982 in Bahuni, Nepal) is a Nepalese film and theatre actor known for his work in Nepali cinema. Karki began his career at a young age by appearing in stage plays with his bro ...

* Praween Khatiwada

Reception

The film opened to generally positive reviews. Sophia Pande of ''

Nepali Times ''Nepali Times'' (stylized as NEPALI Times) is an English weekly newspaper that provides reporting and commentary on Nepali politics, business, culture, travel and society in 16 pages. The weekly is aimed at the expatriate, diplomatic and busine ...

'' wrote that the film is "an example of the transformation of Nepali cinema, the kind that chooses to portray stories with truth and heart, over melodrama and action". ''

The Himalayan Times ''The Himalayan Times'' is an English-language broadsheet newspaper published and distributed daily in Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकता� ...

'' wrote in its review: "A mixture of tragedy and comedy, while portraying the brother-sister bond, friendship, caste-based discrimination and the then time of Maoist insurgency in the country, Kalo Pothi has been made with finesse". Clarence Tsui of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...

'' wrote "Bolstered by stirring performances from his cast, Bham and his crew have produced an evocative piece about harsh lives unraveling in a war-torn, rustic land. Mixing moments of humor and tragedy, along with realism and the ethereal — the latter embodied in fantastic dream sequences illustrating Prakash’s suppressed feelings of grief and loss — Black Hen is an effective showcase of a promising filmmaker in flight".

Awards

* Best Film at Venice International Film Festival, Critics Week, 2015

References

External links