Cinema buffs and aficionados in the country can look forward to exciting and enjoyable fare in the forthcoming 52nd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) to be held in Goa from November 20 to 28.
The Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur has announced that well known directors, Istevan Szabo and Martin Scorsese will be conferred the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award at the Festival.
While Szabo is a critically acclaimed Hungarian film director known for his masterpieces like “Mephisto” (1981) and “Father” (1966) among his other movies, Scorsese is a major influential filmmaker from Hollywood whose “Raging Bull”, “Taxi Driver”, “The Departed”, and “The Wolf of Wall Street” enjoy an iconic status.
To celebrate the 75 years of Independence, Azaadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Minister said that IFFI will provide a platform to young budding talent from across India to connect with mainstream cinema filmmakers and the industry. A total of 75 filmmakers, actors, singers, scriptwriters and others, below 35 years, will be invited to interact with industry leaders and attend Masterclasses at the Festival. These participants will be selected through a competition for young filmmakers from around the country.
The Festival will also witness for the very first time participation by major over the top platforms. Thakur informed that IFFI has invited major OTT players like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Zee5, Voot and Sony Liv to take part through exclusive Masterclasses, content launches and previews, curated film package screenings, and various other on-ground and virtual events.
Another novel event that will be held in Goa, according to the Minister, will be the BRICS Film Festival which will take place simultaneously along with the IFFI. Films from five BRICS nations Brazil, Russia, South Africa, China and India will be screened.
IFFI will also pay homage to Dilip Kumar, Sumitra Bhave, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Sanchari Vijay,. Surekha Sikri, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bertrand Tavenier, Christopher Plummer and Jean-Claude Carrière.
The Retrospective section will feature renowned Hungarian filmmaker Bela Tarr, Andrei Konchalovskywill and Rajinikanth. A Special Tribute will be paid to Sir Sean Connery, the first actor to play James Bond.
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