Split Wide Open
Split Wide Open is a 1999 Indian film directed by Dev Benegal. It is his second feature film after English, August (1994). The film primarily deals with the Water conflicts in the slums of Bombay, and paedophilia, and also looks at the subversive sexuality in modern India and how the notions of morality are challenged when sex and poverty collide. The film came under harsh criticism when released in India and has been one of the most controversial Indian films.
| Split Wide Open | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster for Split Wide Open | |
| Directed by | Dev Benegal |
| Produced by | Anuradha Parikh |
| Written by | Farrukh Dhondy (screenplay) Dev Benegal (story) Upamanyu Chatterjee (story) Sudhir Mishra (Hindi dialogues) Shozo Ichiyama (Japanese dialogues) |
| Starring | Rahul Bose Laila Rouass Ayesha Dharkar Shivaji Satham |
| Music by | Nitin Sawhney |
| Cinematography | Sukumar Jatania |
| Edited by | Renu Saluja |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
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Running time | 107 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi, English |
Cast and characters
- Rahul Bose as KP (Kut-Price)
- Laila Rouass as Nandita
- Abhimanyu Sharma as Shiv
- Farida Haider Mulla as Didi
- Kiran Nagarkar as Brother Bono
- Rajika Puri as Auntie
- Ayesha Dharkar as Leela
- Virendra Saxena as Altaf
- Aadya Bedi
Awards and recognition
- The official selection at the 1999 Venice Film Festival.
- Awarded a Special Jury Award to the film and the Best Actor award (Rahul Bose) at the 2000 Singapore International Film Festival.
- Won the Grand Prix at the 2000 Belgium International Film Festival.
- Nominated for the Grand Prix at the 2000 Bratislava International Film Festival.
Soundtrack
The original soundtrack of the film consists of 5 instrumental tracks composed by Nitin Sawhney.[1]
- "Welcome to Bombay" – 5:15
- "Yo KP!" (Trailer Theme) – 2:16
- "For Didi" – 1:39
- "Television Sting" – 1:15
- "A Golden Tap" (End Titles) – 4:19
The soundtrack also features:
- "You Are The Reason" by Australian soft rock band Air Supply & Indian singer Mehnaz Hoosein
- "Dooba Dooba" by Indian band Silk Route
The film also credits Massive Attack, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Bob Dylan, Mark Knopfler, Pink Floyd, Krome Assassins, Touch and Go, Purvi Parikh, the Dagar Brothers and Kishori Amonkar for their music used in the production of the film.
Notes
- http://www.tropicfilm.com/ Split Wide Open audio-video goodies page
Poster Art & Design and Title Images by Artist Jaideep Mehrotra