Nitin Chandrakant Desai

Adil Shah, the ruler of Konkan and Maharashtra, waged a war against Shivaji Maharaj after he successfully established Swaraj in the parts falling under his reign. Owing to his big army and cunning mind, Adil Shah captured Panhala Fort and dismissed every effort of Shivaji Maharaj in recapturing the fort. Now a matter of prestige, Shivaji Maharaj's army had to recapture the fort in any way possible. Farzand is the tale of Kondaji Farzand and how he led Shivaji Maharaj's greatest 60 warriors to victory in capturing Panhala Fort.

Nitin Chandrakant Desai comes up with another Brit-Marathi love story called Ajintha which is supposed to be based on Major Robert Gill and a local tribal girl`s love story, when he was commissioned to make copies of the frescoes at Ajanta Caves in the 19th century! Sonali Kulkarni essays the role of the tribal girl with Philip Scotm opposite her.

Bal Gandharva is a richly mounted, Indian musical, period film on the incredible actor-singer-female impersonator Bal Gandharva (1888-1967), set in the early years of Indian theatre. The film has historic resonances and gives remarkable insights into how today`s Indian cinema and Bollywood musicals derived their song routines, lavish spectacles and melodrama from Indian musical theatre and epics-entirely independent of Hollywood. It is an inspiring portrait of Bal Gandharva, a cross-dressing, singing icon of the sangeet natak (musical theatre) tradition. Women were not allowed to perform onstage then, and Bal Gandharva`s singing and female impersonations in beautiful saris, jewellery and mannerisms were all the rage, and his songs are sung in India even today.

Director Vitaly Manskiy sets off on the trail of the Trans-Siberian gas pipeline to find out what it's like for ordinary people living in its vicinity.