At the ANN Awards ceremony during the Animation and More (AM) Summit 2024, the organisers of the 26th DigiCon6 Asia Awards announced that the Indian film Phool Dei has been nominated for the prestigious short film contest. Out of the top four shortlisted projects from India competing alongside other Asian creators, Phool Dei, a 2D animated short film by Kartik Mahajan, cleared the first round and will represent India at the DigiCon6 Asia main award ceremony in October 2024 in Tokyo, Japan.
DigiCon6 Asia international alliance officer Takafumi Yuki expressed his gratitude to the talented Indian artists and the AnimationXpress team, acknowledging their long-standing support. “I would like to thank all the incredibly talented Indian artists who put their soul and effort into creating their massive pieces of art and participating in our competition. Special thanks to Anil Wanwari, Neha Mehta, and Animation Xpress for their friendship and continued support of our work in India,” Yuki said while announcing the Indian winner.
Yuki emphasised DigiCon6 Asia’s commitment to identifying and fostering innovative creators who will lead the next generation of content in Asia. He also shared his hope that the competition would continue to serve as a platform for creators to learn from each other through shared creative experiences. “In a rapidly diversifying media environment, visual storytelling allows us to communicate, connect, and understand differences between cultures,” he added.
India has participated in the DigiCon6 Asia Awards since 2006, and according to Yuki, both the number of submissions and the diversity of visual expression have grown impressively over the years. This year, Mahajan will compete against participants from countries like South Korea, Hong Kong, China, Iran, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and Japan.
Here is a synopsis of his film Phool Dei: Located in the fictional realm of Dev Bhoomi and nestled among majestic mountains, the narrative of the story is about the festival of flowers that celebrates the culture and togetherness of Uttarakhand, seen from the perspective of a small girl Medha as she goes on a magical and an adventurous journey to collect flowers for her village before it turns into a ghost village. The film focuses on the impact of migration in Uttarakhand, India in the last five years and shows the helplessness of the change through the journey of the main character.
Mahajan is a recent graduate of the National Institute of Design, Madhya Pradesh (NID MP). The short film is a self-funded and self-driven student project that took nearly three years to complete. The young fellow is very grateful to his family, guide, friends, and the entire NID MP family for their support throughout this journey.
Organised by Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. (TBS Japan), the DigiCon6 ASIA Awards is a celebrated digital content competition that highlights the creativity of talented creators across Asia, with regional contests determining the finalists who compete for the GRAND Awards.