The Ritual

Ghatashraddha is a 1977 Indian Kannada language film directed by Girish Kasaravalli starring Meena Kuttappa, Naraya Bhat and Ajith Kumar in lead roles. It is based on a novella by eminent Kannada writer U. R. Ananthamurthy. The film was Girish Kasaravalli's first feature film as a director, and marked not only the arrival of a promising new filmmaker but also that of Kannada cinema in the India's 'New Cinema' horizon. The film won three awards at the 25th National Film Awards, awarded for films of 1977. It won the award for Best Feature Film, Best Music Direction and Best Child Artist. In 2002, Ghatashraddha became the only Indian film to be chosen by the National Archive of Paris among 100 others, during the centenary celebrations of cinema. At the 2009 International Film Festival of India, it was announced one of the 20 best films in Indian cinema, having received 1.6 million votes.