The opening ceremony of the 55th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa on Wednesday crammed in several Bollywood-style performances. But it also took some time to deal with the business of cinema, as well.
The spectacle came from “The Perfect Couple” breakout star Ishaan Khatter dancing to a medley of Bollywood hits and Manushi Chhillar to hit film songs from India’s various creative industries. Sanya Malhotra and Sunny Kaushal enacted a musical tableau chronicling the journey of Indian cinema from 1913 to the present day.
Australia is IFFI’s Country of Focus this year and there was a performance from Australian dancers as well.
On the business front, on the back of the India-Colombia audiovisual coproduction agreement that was signed in October, the first look at a film examining the role of guru and spiritual leader Sri Ravi Shankar in bringing peace to Colombia was unveiled.
Veteran filmmaker Subhash Ghai presented a look at a docu-drama short on the legacy of Gandhi. And Indian state-owed public broadcaster Prasar Bharati launched streaming app Waves.
There were plenty of celebrations and congratulatory moments as well. The centenaries of Indian cinema icons Raj Kapoor, Tapan Sinha, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Mohammed Rafi were marked with their families in attendance. Postage stamps were released in their honor.
The blockbuster success of Bollywood horror-comedy “Stree 2” was celebrated on stage with director Amar Kaushik and stars Rajkummar Rai and Abhishek Banerjee, who hosted the ceremony alongside actor Bhumi Pednekar.
Also on stage was the cast of series “Fauji 2,” the next instalment of the show that catapulted Shah Rukh Khan to stardom decades ago. A new series adaptation of ancient Indian epic “The Ramayana” was presented on stage with cast and crew present. Both series are on state broadcaster Doordarshan.
Actors felicitated on stage included Jayam Ravi, Jaideep Ahlawat, R. Sarathkumar, Randeep Hooda, whose directorial debut “Veer Savarkar” opens IFFI’s Indian Panorama strand, Nagarjuna, Amala and Nithya Menen. Filmmakers honored include R.K. Selvamani and Chidananda S. Naik, who won the Cinefondation prize at Cannes this year for his short “Sunflowers Were the First to Know.”
The international competition jury, including chair Ashutosh Gowarikar, Jill Billcock, Anthony Chen and Elizabeth Karlsen, were also welcomed on stage.
Presiding over proceedings at Goa’s Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee indoor stadium were Chief Minister of Goa Pramod Sawant, Sanjay Jaju, secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and IFFI festival director Shekhar Kapur along with a host of other dignitaries.
