The Seventh Walk (Saatvin Sair), 2013, 72 minutes
Synopsis:
A painter’s journey into the source of his inspiration in the landscape surrounding him and within him. Shot on super-16mm film, this is an abstract exploration of the creative process.
On the Film:
“Meditation on art and interpretation”.
— The Museum of Modern Art, New York
“A true tour de force of color, structure, and rhythm”.
— Film Comment
“The Seventh Walk is simply magnetic and mysterious in its dream quality, like a song with its tonal highs and lows, and resists easy categorisation of documentary or fiction. It more than expresses why Dutta is considered one of the foremost filmmakers working in experimental cinema today; it convinces us.”
— Next projection, Rowena Santos Aquino
“Dutta’s associative narrative and innovative cinematic approach opens up an intriguing space for viewers to contemplate and find their own interpretations.”
— International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR)
“In Saatvin Sair, the Indian director continues to explore a theme that has distinguished his production since the very beginning, the relationship between film, painting and music.”
— Rome Film Festival
“I dislike using the much-used “innovative” and “avant-garde” to describe the latest by Amit Dutta, but in this case, it is appropriate, particularly the latter. An oblique meditation (also overused, but in this instance absolutely true) on the painter Paramjit Singh and the bucolic Kangra Valley, this film takes us into the heart of the creative spirit and into the of mysterious workings and sources of inspiration and of nature on an artistic (sub)conscious. The Seventh Walk is absolutely filmed from the inside—the subject is the object of the gaze and his objects frequently become subjects… it is as though we are behind the painter’s eyes and in his memories. The camera, the sound design, and the poetry titles guide us through the textures of bark, the movement of leaves, the passage of water, the soft murmur of farmers gossiping, shadows in a cool home; in some surreal tableaux, where he/us imagine(s) a house in the crook of a tree, or a rock levitating, we can begin to grasp the inner workings of our collective, creative, mind. We can even imagine the levity inherent in a dense rock. To convey the utterly complex world of sensory reception, inspiration, and art is an interesting challenge which the filmmaker takes on successfully. What was also striking is the film’s strong aural component, which is almost a sly counterpoint to a very visual medium (despite its elegance).”
— Catherine Nueva Espana, Leonine Films
“Dutta masterfully weaves these iconic passages together with Singh’s painterly technique, merging the still and moving image into an impressionistic assemblage that pays homage to the legends, folk traditions and artistry of this unique corner of India.”
— Paul Meyers, San Franscisco Film Festival
“Starting with ‘Nainsukh’, his 2010 film on the eponymous 17th century master-painter, Amit Dutta started making a series of films located in the Kangra Valley of the Lower Western Himalayas. This film approaches another shade of the same landscape through the modernist paintings of Paramjit Singh, whose mud home-studio in the hills sets the stage in the film. The film’s musical score is notable for Amit Dutta’s collaboration with Rudra Veena maestro Bahauddin Dagar. Through an abstract portrait of landscape artist Paramjit Singh, Amit Dutta presents a personal ode to the relationship between nature and art. His playful use of the camera, quirky overlapping shots and rhythmic editing create a captivating, kaleidoscopic view of the wilderness.”
– MUBI