Mumbai, Feb 21 (IANS): National Award-winning actor Manoj Bajpayee’s new film 'The Fable', which is directed by Raam Reddy, was screened at the Zoo Palast theatre during the ongoing edition of the Berlin Film Festival (Berlinale).

The film was screened to a packed house of 800 audiences.

‘The Fable’ selected for the Encounters Competition is the second Indian film to be selected in the section at the Berlinale. The last Indian film in the Encounters Competition was 'The Shepherdess and The Seven Songs' in 2020. There has been no Indian film in the Main Competition at Berlinale since 'Shelter of the Wings' directed by late Buddhadeb Dasgupta in 1994.

Manoj Bajpayee along with Deepak Dobriyal and Priyanka Bose attended the premiere in Berlin.

Shot in Uttarakhand and set in 1989, ‘The Fable’ follows the journey of Dev (Manoj Bajpayee) who discovers mysteriously burnt trees in his estate of fruit orchards situated in the Himalayas.

As more fires break out, he gets to see his true self and his family for who they truly are.

The film also stars Hiral Sidhu, child actor Awan Pookot and Tillotama Shome in a special appearance.

Raam Reddy, who has directed the film, had earlier helmed the critically-acclaimed Kannada black comedy 'Thithi', which clinched a National Award.

Manoj Bajpayee said, "Stepping onto the red carpet at the Berlin International Film Festival filled me with pride and joy. Our film ‘The Fable’ has entered the prestigious Encounters segment, showcasing the dedication and passion of our amazing team."

Talking about the audience response, Raam Reddy said, “The premiere of ‘The Fable’ at Berlinale was incredible. The premiere sold out in less than an hour and our second screening today with almost 1,000 seats is also sold out. But most importantly, it felt like a celebration. After all our hard work, the excitement and intrigue felt by the audience was beautiful for me to experience first hand."

He added, “The Q&A post screening started with a lady, who attends festivals regularly, saying that it's the best film she's ever seen at Berlinale. A top French producer, who produced 'Annette' (opening film at Cannes in 2021), called the film ‘Gigantic', and 'Truly brilliant’. Hearing these things brought tears to my eyes."

The film is a Prspctvs production in collaboration with MaxMedia, and is produced by Pratap Reddy and Sunmin Park. Written and directed by Raam Reddy, the film is shot by Sunil Ramkrishna Borkar, while Juhi Agarwal has done the production design. The Hindi dialogues are by Varun Grover.