71st National Film Awards: Himansu Sekhar Khatua’s ‘The Sea And Seven Villages’ wins in Non-Feature category

01 Aug 2025, 18:16 by Subadh Nayak · KalingaTV

New Delhi: It is a matter of great pride and joy for the people of entire Odisha that Odia film ‘The Sea And Seven Villages’ directed by noted director Himansu Sekhar Khatua has won an award in the 71st National Film Awards for the year 2023.

‘The Sea And Seven Villages,’ which is produced by the Kadambini Media Pvt. Ltd, won the coveted award in the Non-Feature category (Special Mention) along with ‘Nekal Chronicle Of The Paddy Man,’ a Malayalam film produced and Directed by MK Ramadas.

‘The Sea And Seven Villages,’ a documentary film is based on climate change and Satabhaya under Rajnagar Tehsil of Kendrapara district of Odisha. This film, which has already won several national and international awards, is the result of research by Himanshu Khatua. It depicts the lives and struggles of the residents of Satabhaya village.

‘The Sea And Seven Villages,’ is produced by Dr. Iti Samanta, the Editor of Kadambini, and presented by Dr. Achyuta Samanta, the founder of KIIT-KISS-KIMS under the banner of Kadambini Media, shows a realistic picture of how the impact of climate change has affected Satabhaya .

Satabhaya village was once a conglomerate of seven villages but due to climate change, five of them have been submerged in the sea, says report.

Meanwhile, congratulatory wishes poured-in for Himansu Sekhar Khatua, who also is the Managing Director of Kalinga TV and had won the National Awards earlier. He directed the national film award winning movies Sunya Swaroop and Kathantara in 1996 and 2005 respectively.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi also congratulated Khatua for his achievement.

Here is the list of Film Fests where ‘The Sea And Seven Villages’ was screened:

International Panaroma Film Fest of Bangalore
25th Madurai International Documentary and Short Film Fest
12th CMS VATAVARAN – Environment and Wildlife Film Festival and Forum
18th Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF)
7th South Asian Short Film Festival (SASFF)
16th International Documentary &Short Film Festival, Kerala, 2023
Lane Doc Fest
10th Siligudi Short &Documentry Film Festival

71st National Film Awards: Himansu Sekhar Khatua’s ‘The Sea And Seven Villages’ wins in Non-Feature category

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