Being the doppelganger of a film star isn’t the same as being a star. The lookalike carries the “Urf” or the “also known as” as a stamp forever. In the alleys of the Hindi film and television industry, they are typically known as duplicates, juniors, body-doubles – the monikers are endless. Urf explores the meaning behind these labels to find out who the dopplegangers truly are – actors, mimics, fans or more? The stories of these lookalikes put into perspective our understanding of stardom and cinema, mimicry and acting, while also highlighting their dreams and struggles.
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Festival Appearances
International Film Festival Rotterdam 2022
London Indian Film Festival 2022
Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2022
International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala 2022 – Winner Best Long Documentary
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Geetika Narang Abbasi
Geetika Narang Abbasi is an independent filmmaker based in Gurgaon, India. Her first fiction short, Good Night (2008), received awards and critical acclaim at film festivals across the world. Subsequently, she has edited and directed several documentaries and created media content across a range of subjects. She currently works under the banner of Also Ran Films. Climate change, society and culture have been some of the recurrent themes in her works. Her last documentary, Much Ado About Knotting (2012), is about matchmaking – arguably India’s favourite pastime that borders on a national obsession. The film enjoyed a successful run at film festivals worldwide.
Sun, 6 Nov | 10:00 am | Picture Time 1
