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Tag: Indian Film Festival

  • Indian Film Festival 2025 to honour Raj Kapoor’s centenary year

    Indian Film Festival 2025 to honour Raj Kapoor’s centenary year

    MUMBAI: The Embassy of India in Yerevan is rolling out the red carpet for cinephiles with the Indian Film Festival 2025, a three-day celebration of India’s rich cinematic legacy. Organised in collaboration with the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), the festival will take place from 7-9 February at Kino Moscow Theatre, showcasing the timeless brilliance of Raj Kapoor alongside contemporary Indian classics.

    This grand cinematic affair will commemorate the 100 birth anniversary of Kapoor, a name synonymous with Indian cinema’s golden era. With a mix of old-world charm and modern storytelling, the festival aims to strengthen cultural bonds between India and Armenia through the universal language of film.

    The festival will open on 7 February at 6:00 pm with an exhibition, “Life and Times of Raj Kapoor”, at the Big Red Hall of Kino Moscow Theatre. Following this, at 6:30 pm, Kapoor’s visually stunning and philosophically profound film Satyam Shivam Sundaram (with English subtitles) will take centre stage.

    On 8 February, the Small Red Hall will play host to two of Kapoor’s most beloved works. Anari will screen at 1:30 pm, a heartwarming tale that still resonates with audiences. Later, the festival will present Awaara, a globally revered film that cemented Kapoor’s reputation as India’s answer to Charlie Chaplin. Both films will be screened with Russian subtitles, making them accessible to a wider audience.

    On 9 February, the festival takes a poetic turn with Teesri Kasam at 2:00 pm, a lyrical masterpiece known for its evocative storytelling. Wrapping up the festival with a contemporary touch is English Vinglish at 7:00 pm, featuring the legendary Sridevi in one of her most memorable performances. Both films will also be presented with Russian subtitles.

    All screenings are free of charge, inviting cinema lovers to immerse themselves in India’s cinematic magic. The festival will be held at 50, 2 Dzorapi St, Yerevan 0019, Armenia, promising a delightful mix of nostalgia and modern storytelling.

    Whether you’re a die-hard Kapoor fan or simply someone who loves a good film, the Indian Film Festival 2025 is set to be a celebration of artistry, culture, and timeless storytelling.

  • Jeffrey D. Brown’s ‘Sold’ to open Indian Film Fest of LA

    Jeffrey D. Brown’s ‘Sold’ to open Indian Film Fest of LA

    MUMBAI: The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) announced on 6 March that its Opening Night Gala film would be Sold, a harrowing and inspiring story of child trafficking directed by Jeffrey D. Brown (Molly’s Pilgrim), executive produced by Emma Thompson (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban), and starring Gillian Anderson (The X-Files), David Arquette (Scream), and Seema Biswas (Bandit Queen).

     

    The full line-up of screenings and events will be announced in mid-March. The festival is widely recognised as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema. Celebrating its 12th year, IFFLA will run from 8 to 13 April at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception.

     

    Through one extraordinary girl’s journey, Sold illustrates the brutality of child trafficking, a crime experienced by millions of girls every year around the globe. Sold is a clarion call to action and a testament to the resilience of the human spirit.

     

    “Because of Sold’s marvelous script and courageous and brilliant cast,” said Emma Thompson in a press statement, “It is a story that we can all watch, so that we may understand the processes of slavery in modern India and feel able to act without feeling the kind of rage and hopelessness that gets in the way of doing anything.”

     

    Sold is an adaptation of the National Book Award-Finalist novel by Patricia McCormick, based on true accounts. The book has been translated into 32 languages and is a powerful entry point to introduce young people to the issue of modern day slavery.

     

    Director Jeffery D. Brown and select A-list cast and supporters will be in attendance at the Opening Night Gala.

  • Indian Film Festival of Melbourne next month to feature gems of Indian cinema

    Indian Film Festival of Melbourne next month to feature gems of Indian cinema

    MUMBAI: The 2013 Festival programme of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne has been launched here by Australian Minister for Innovation, Services and Small Business Louise Asher and actor Vidya Balan, ambassador of the Festival.

    “The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne is a wonderful demonstration of our growing cultural links and shows the creativity and innovations that Melbourne and Mumbai are both famous for.” Ms Asher said.

    Speaking at the event, Balan said she was delighted to be the ambassador for such a vibrant and exciting festival showcasing the best that Indian Cinema has to offer. “Kolkata is my first home and Melbourne is like a second home to me and I look forward to being back, and watch some interesting cinema. I certainly do not want to miss Raja Harishchandra (1913) on the big screen.”

    On a lighter note, she pointed out that she would be more than willing to accept if she were to be made lifetime Ambassador for the festival in Melbourne. “This would provide me even more opportunities to visit Melbourne,” the actress quipped.

    To be held in April 2013, the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne will showcase the diversity of Indian film culture to Victorian audiences through some choice films.

    The industry event also remembered legendary filmmaker Yash Chopra, with the Minister announcing that the Festival will pay a rich tribute to the veteran filmmaker next year.

    “Mr Chopra had a deep relationship with Victoria as he was a Patron of the Festival and he shot two of his blockbusters — Salaam Namaste and Chak De India – in Victoria. The Festival is honoured to be showcasing Mr Chopra’s masterpieces,” Ms Asher added.

  • Rajan Khosa’s Gattu wins best film award at NYIFF

    Rajan Khosa’s Gattu wins best film award at NYIFF

    MUMBAI: Rajan Khosa’s Gattu has won the ‘Best Film’ award at the 12th New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) that concluded on 27 May.

    While Mohd. Samad won the ‘Best Young Actor’ award for essaying the role of Gattu in the film, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Tannishtha Chatterjee were declared best actors for Dekh Indian Circus. Sujay Dahake won both the ‘Best Director’ and ‘Best Script’ awards for the Marathi film Shala.

    Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy and Daniel Junge’s Saving Face was declared the Best Documentary while the award for the best short film went to Chinmay Dalvi’s Bombay Snow.

    The festival, running from 23 to 27 May, showcased more than 50 features, documentaries and short films.

  • Warne joins Vidya Balan to launch Indian Film Festival, Melbourne

    Warne joins Vidya Balan to launch Indian Film Festival, Melbourne

    MUMBAI: Cricketer Shane Warne joined Vidya Balan at yesterday‘s launch of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), a state government-funded event.

    The event is said to be more about spinning Victoria‘s business relations with the subcontinent to showcase the world‘s largest movie industry, Bollywood.

    ‘‘The world is interested in India because of its burgeoning middle class and its capacity to buy,‘‘ Tourism Minister Louise Asher has reportedly said. ‘‘We want to ensure [Victoria is] at the forefront of positioning our businesses to do well in India. It‘s in that context, given that Bollywood is so big, that we‘re not only looking to develop business ties but cultural ties with India.‘‘

    Asher said that it was hoped that the upcoming festival might attract tourism from India and conceded that the government hoped it might play a part in repairing the damage to Victoria‘s education industry. ‘‘Education is Victoria‘s number one export and Indian students are a substantial part of that,‘‘ she said.

    Victorian premier Ted Baillieu has been a staunch advocate of the festival. Incidentally, Balan is the event‘s ambassador.

  • Fatso to screen on 4 May

    Fatso to screen on 4 May

    MUMBAI: Pritish Nandy Communications (PNC) and Daily Multimedia Ltd have come together to release the Rajat Kapoor-directed film Fatso on 4 May.

    Starring Ranvir Shorey, Gul Panag, Purab Kohli, Neil Bhoopalam and Gunjan Bakshi, the film takes audiences through an accidental incident that leads to Purab Kohli and the 300 pound protagonist, played by Ranvir Shorey, into exchanging lives between heaven and earth. In short, Fatso is all about love packaged with a calorie count.

    The out and out comedy is already a subject of heated discussion overseas, the film having traveled to several international festivals including the South Asian International Film Festival in New York, Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles and Shanghai International Film Festival amongst many others.

    Said PNC producer Pritish Nandy, “Fatso is funny, romantic, magical. Rajat Kapoor is at his finest as a director in the charming tradition of Raghu Romeo, Mixed Doubles and Mithya. Comedies rarely make it to top rung international film festivals.”

    The film was chosen as recipient of the prestigious Golden Palm Award at the Mexico International Film Festival.

  • World premiere of Chittagong at IFFLA

    World premiere of Chittagong at IFFLA

    MUMBAI: Bedabrata Pain‘s film Chittagong will have its world premiere at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) on 10 April.

    The film gets to open on the silver screen after a two-year-long arduous journey. The Manoj Bajpai-starrer was supposed to release way back in 2010, but since Ashutosh Gowariker‘s Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey (2010) also revolved around the Chittagong revolution of 1930, the film was delayed.

    Said Pain, “Emotionally, both me and Shonali (Shonali Bose co-writer and wife) were in a sad state. Despite having lost our teenage son in an accident, we completed the film before its then-release date. Yet we have had to wait for two years.”

    Pain, who is one of the inventors of the active pixel sensor technology that produced the world‘s smallest camera which has been inducted to the US Space Technology Hall of Fame, is now waiting to release his film in India.

    Other films that will also be screened at the festival are Abhinay Deo‘s Delhi Belly and Sriram Raghavan‘s Agent Vinod, besides critically acclaimed films like Salim Ahmed‘s Abu Son of Adam (2011), Rajan Khosa‘s Gattu, Karan Gour‘s Kshay and Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni‘s Deool.

  • New York Indian film fest calls for entries

    New York Indian film fest calls for entries

    NEW DELHI: The New York Indian Film Festival has invited entries from Indian filmmakers for features and short films for the 12th Festival to be held from 23 to 27 May.

    The entries for the festival, organised annually by the Indo-American Arts Council, will close on 15 February.

    NYIFF is an opportunity to experience five days of the rich and diverse film cultures of the Indian subcontinent through a mix of premiere film screenings, discussions, industry panels, script workshops, red carpet galas, special events, nightly networking parties and an award ceremony.

    Meanwhile, the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT) has invited proposals for documentary films from independent filmmakers for their project with the Public Diplomacy Division of the External Affairs Ministry.

    PSBT will commission around seven films under this project. The Films will need to be 26 or 52 minutes duration, shot and post-produced on Full High Definition (1920×1080, 50 mbps).

    The average budget for a 26-minute film will be between Rs One Million to Rs 1.2 million and for a 52-minute film between Rs 1.4 million and Rs 1.6 million.

    The films are intended to project India’s image to overseas audiences and will, therefore, be approved by the Public Diplomacy Division.

    The last date to submit Proposals is 24 February and can be submitted to proposals@psbt.org .