The film festival that helps turns indie kids into Indians.
Everybody get ready to heckle the candy-bar staff until they swap buckets of popcorn with buckets of curry, because the 2011 Indian Film Festival will be commencing at Hoyts Melbourne Central from Friday March 11 until Sunday March 20.
This won’t be just your average film festival, as the organisers have arranged gargantuan amounts of outer cinema activities such as a Bollywood dance competition, a Bollywood dance Guinness Book of World Records attempt, a gala and a few free screenings of films at Federation Square. Following the incredible success of last year’s inaugural festival, Indian Film Festival: Bollywood & Beyond will be presenting the best Indian cinema has to offer. Over 30 films will be shown this year, including 15 Australian premieres which celebrate both traditional and contemporary Indian film. There will be a diverse amount of genres, from thrillers to comedies, including one tongue-in-cheek comedy called Tere Bin Laden, and West is West, the sequel to the indie Indian smash hit East is East.
A number of special guests will be present throughout the festival, including multi-award winning actress Vidya Balan, actor/producer Juhi Chawla, TV presenter/pop star/supermodel/actor Malaika Arora Khan as well as Pakistani pop talent Ali Zafar. Filmmakers will include directors Kabir Khan and Raj Kumar Gupta amongst many more, all of whom will present their films and discuss their careers.
Opening night audiences will have the opportunity to experience two of the most successful films of the previous year’s screening. No One Killed Jessica is political thriller based on a true story of a murder by the son of a prominent politician and subsequent crusade for justice by the victim’s sister. Dabanng, the highest grossing film in India in 2010, will also be shown.
Many actors and directors will be in attendance, as well as a performance by the Shiamak Daver Dance Academy so make sure you don’t miss out. Head to www.indianfilmfestival.com.au for more info.
