Beijing, Apr 20: Malayalam film "Bhayanakam" (Fear) directed by Jayaraj won the best cinematography award at the Beijing International Film Festival on Saturday.

The cinematography was done by Nikihil S Praveen.

The film had also won the best cinematography award at the 65th National Film Awards.

Both Jayaraj and lead actor, writer and journalist Renji Panicker who attended the festival received the award.

The film portrays the visits of first World War veteran to a small village in the backwaters of Kerala's Kuttanand as a postman during the World War-II. He shares with the families the good and bad news of the soldiers who took part in the war.

According to Jayaraj, about 600 soldiers from Kerala died during the World War-II.

Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan-starrer "Zero" was screened at the end of the festival.

Shah Rukh, who made his maiden visit to China on April 17, took part in the festival, specially in the "China-India Film Cooperation Dialogue" along with film director Kabir Khan.

The festival also screened five Indian films, including Satyajit Ray's "Pather Panchali", "Apur Sansar", "Aparajito", the romantic comedy "Love Per Square Foot", the 2018 Indian romantic comedy and the thriller "Ittefaq".

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



ISLAMABAD: At least two more cases of poliovirus were reported in Pakistan, taking the number of infections to 52 so far this year, a report said on Friday.

“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed the detection of two more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Pakistan," an official statement said.

The fresh infections — a boy and a girl — were reported from the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.

“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the children is underway," the statement read. Dera Ismail Khan, one of the seven polio-endemic districts of southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has reported five polio cases so far this year.

Of the 52 cases in the country this year, 24 are from Balochistan, 13 from Sindh, 13 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.

There is no cure for polio. Only multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five can keep them protected.