‘Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota’ wins big at TIFF

Vasan Bala’s ‘Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota‘ (The Man Who Feels No Pain) has outdone several Hollywood heavyweights to claim the People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award at 43rd edition of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). The Ronnie Screwvala production was in contention with ‘Iron Man 3’ director Shane Black’s ‘The Predator’, David Gordon Green’s ‘Halloween’ featuring BAFTA-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis and Sam Levinson’s Assassination Nation, among others.

‘Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota‘ marks the film debut of Bhagyashree’s son Abhimanyu Dassani and Radhika Madan. It stars him as a man who suffers from a rare condition called congenital insensitivity to pain. Using it to his advantage, he wants to rid his city of petty thieves.

The award, which was instated in 2009, is presented to the film that is rated as the most popular among the underground and cult titles in contention. At each screening, attendees are invited to vote for the film by leaving their ticket stubs in voting boxes outside the theatre post the show.

An elated Vasan Bala said, “The standing ovation his film received on September 14 will forever remain etched in his memory. The section had some great genre filmmakers from around the world who have been making the best films for years. Just being among them was amazing, so this outcome has come out of the blue. From being a fan-boy of these filmmakers to contending with them, it has been an incredible journey.”