MUMBAI, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- A digital film library to enable film researcher access the rich film database of archives was inaugurated at Pune, 150 km from Mumbai in India's western state of Maharashtra on Sunday.
The digital library, housed in a newly restored iconic heritage structure, will also have personalised viewing spaces for watching a movie from collections of National Film Archive of India (NFAI), a statement from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said.
Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar also launched a mobile app for booking the slot for viewing films at NFAI.
The heritage structure built in 1940 in Tudor style of architecture mostly found in Britain is one of its kind in Pune, with wooden flooring, a narrow wooden staircase, typical of British architecture and massive bookshelves that stretch on almost to the roof, the statement said.
"We want this place to be a hub of cultural activities where film lovers can come and engage into meaningful conversations", said Prakash Magdum, Director NFAI.
Established in 1964, NFAI houses 19 state-of-the-art film preservation facilities or vaults with the capacity of storing nearly 200,000 film reels.
The two-storied bungalow is built in a load-bearing system with the use of coursed stone ashlars masonry with lime mortar, serene Interiors, complete with ceramic tiles and wooden ceiling, the statement said.
