MUMBAI: With a clutch of prize NFDC-produced feature films in its kitty, Alpha Marathi is set to launch a six month long film festival in Mumbai theatres.
The films, which include the Jabbar Patel directed Ek Hota Vidushak, the critically acclaimed Doghi directed by Sumitra Bhave, Not Only Mrs Raut, Mukta and Amol Palekar's Bangarwadi, will be telecast on the channel after a few screenings at the Essel promoted Fun Republic. The theatre screenings will be attended by the producers, directors and artistes of the films as well as by film critics, and the resultant discussions over the film will be aired on the channel later. According to Alpha Marathi head Nitin Vaidya, the films will be run in the theatre for some days, depending on viewer response.
Alpha Marathi has initially received favourable response with its innovative Nakshatranche Dene, a regular ground event showcasing literary talent, which is subsequently aired on the channel. The film festival of acclaimed new Marathi films follows the same strategy, with the intention of exciting viewer curiosity with the theatre screenings. The festival will kick off with EK Hota Vidushak, the last film to be scripted by noted literateur P L Deshpande before his death, and directed by eminenet filmmaker Jabbar Patel. 
While the cost of acquiring this valuable cache from the NFDC library is not known, the films are targeted at the SEC A and B demographic, which rates these thought provoking films highly, but is unable to watch them in theatres, which are finding Marathi films an increasinly unviable proposition. 
Among the films acquired by Alpha in the first phase are Mukta, the Jayoo and Nachiket Patwardhan directed  and Limited Manuski as well as and Atyachar.