Rima Das's evocative Assamese film Bulbul Can Sing won the Generation 14plus Special Mention award at the Berlin Film Festival on Friday night. The section is for a range of audiences, including young adults. Das's mother and co-producer Jaya Das and actress Arnali Das were also present. The film has already played at the Toronto and Mumbai film festivals. In Berlin, it played both in the Generation 14plus section for young adults, as well as the Native section for indigenous cinema.

The Berlinale takes children very seriously: they are our future audience. So, exceptionally for an A-list festival, the Generation section for children (Kplus) and young adults (14plus) is part of the official selection. India has a remarkable, recent history of shining in the Generation section: Avinash Arun's Killa (The Fort, Marathi) won the Crystal Bear given by the Children's Jury in 2014; Nagesh Kukunoor's Dhanak (Rainbow, Hindi) won a Crystal Bear Special Mention in the Generation Kplus for children in 2015; Jayaraj's Ottaal (The Trap, Malayalam) won the Crystal Bear in 2016. Nagraj Manjule's Sairat (Wild, Marathi) got a rousing reception at its world premiere here in 2016. And now Rima Das's Bulbul Can Sing takes the torch forward brightly.