The 48th edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI 2017) has a star-studded line-up for the event, which will be inaugurated by superstar Shah Rukh Khan, while Salman Khan will be present at the closing ceremony.
Bollywood actors Katrina Kaif and Shahid Kapoor will also be present at the inauguration, which will be held on 20 November at the Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee stadium in Bambolim, near Panaji, the capital of the western Indian state of India.
Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Smriti Irani and Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar among others, would be present at the event.
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan will be honoured with the Indian Film Personality of the Year Award at the event, while Canadian director Atom Egoyan will receive Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Directorate of Film Festival (DFF) and Goa government’s Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG) are jointly organising the festival, which will be held at two venues Kala Academy and Macquiniz Palace. The organisers said 195 films from across 82 countries would be screened, including 10 world premiers, 10 Asian and international premiers and over 64 Indian premiers will be presented during the festival.
Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi’s new film Beyond The Clouds will open the IFFI. The event would conclude on November 28 with the world premiere of Indo-Argentinian co-production Thinking of Him, directed by Pablo Cesar.
“The closing ceremony will be graced by noted actor Salman Khan. This in addition to a galaxy of noted industry professionals, international guests, dignitaries and film celebrities who will attend the festival,” the organisers said in a release.
Noted actress Sridevi will inaugurate the Indian Panorama section of the festival on 21 November. On the same day, IFFI 2017 Country Focus on Canada will be celebrated with a grand red carpet opening and amidst the presence of noted Canadian actors and celebrities. The segment has been organised in association with the government of Canada in collaboration with Telefilm Canada, curated by the Toronto International Film Festival.
In the international competition section of IFFI 2017, which carries a cumulative cash prize of over Rs 1 crore, 15 finest films of the year will be showcased. The international competition jury will be headed by renowned filmmaker-poet Muzaffar Ali. The other jury members are director Maxine Williamson from Australia, actor-director Tzahi Grad from Isreal, Russian cinematographer Vladislav Opelyants, director and production designer Roger Christian from the United Kingdom.
“This edition of the festival will also be presenting films from a record number of women filmmakers in addition to a carefully curated section of restored classics from across the globe, which include the recently completed restorations of Fritz Lang’s ‘Metropolis’ and Tarkovsky s ‘Sacrifice’, among some other notable films,” the organisers said.
The IFFI 2017 will also present a specially curated section celebrating the most loved spy in films — James Bond. The segment will showcase nine films featuring various leading actors, who have essayed the iconic character.
Additionally, the festival will present four movies from young filmmakers.
