Filmmaker PS Vinothraj’s debut feature ‘Koozhangal’ aka ‘Pebbles’ has won the prestigious Tiger Award, the top honour at the recently-concluded 50th edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2021. Competing against 16 films that included Landscapes of Resistance, Looking for Verena, Black Medusa and The Edge of Daybreak to name a few, Koozhangal eventually bagged the top honour, making it the first Tamil film and second Indian film after Sanal Kumar Sasidharan’s S Durga.
The international edition of Koozhangal is titled Pebbles and depicts the story of a poverty-stricken father and son. Presented by Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan’s Rowdy Pictures, Koozhangal is about the journey of an alcoholic father Ganapathy and his son Velu who are on their way to bring back their wife-mother, who has left the home. Through their eyes, we get an unflinching look at life in a drought-hit village in Madurai. The film’s premise is as simple as the title but created an exquisitely loveable impact within.
Sharing the news, Vignesh Shivan took it to Instagram, writing, “Winning moment ! #TigerAward 2021 @iffr #blessed First production of @therowdypictures wins this honour 🙂 Can’t get happier 🙂 Proud #elated blessed @psvinothraj @itsyuvan #nayanthara @therowdypictures”. The film’s director Vinothraj also took to Twitter to thank the jury for selecting his feature for the award.
