Cinestar Akshay Kumar will inaugurate the 43rd International Film Festival of India(IFFI) on Tuesday evening here in the presence of Minister for Information & Broadcasting(I&B) Manish Tewari along with the Minister of Culture for Republic of Poland and Chief Minister of Goa Manohar Parrikar.
Rightwing Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, Goa has announced protests "within the legal framework" against Akshay Kumar for production and acting in controversial film " O My God " for allegedly hurting the sentiments of the Hindus as the State government has banned protests anywhere in the city during the course of the IFFI.
The film festival to be held from Tuesday to November 30 involves a total screening of more than two hundred movies over the ten day duration. It will open with Oscar Award winner Ang Lee’s ‘ Life of Pi ’ as its opening movie, and will screen Mira Nair’s ‘ The Reluctant Fundamentalist ’ as the closing movie of the festival, Festival Director Shankar Mohan said on the eve of the festival on Tuesday.
With the people from mining belt of the coastal tourist State under economic stress owing to closure of mining operations, the IFFI this year has been understandably coming across as a low-key affair, film festival observers opined here on the eve of the film festival. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Sunday while overseeing the preparations of the IFFI admitted that there was no festive mood among people.
Bringing to the audience a selection of hand-picked cinema, the ten-day extravaganza will include sections like Indian Panorama which includes Feature and Non-Feature cinema selections, Indian Retrospectives, Homage, Their Firsts, Master-classes, Student Films, etc. There will also be special segments such as Festival Kaleidoscope, Cinema of the World, Foreign Retrospectives, Homage, Country Focus, Sketches on Screen (Animation & 3D cinema),Masterstrokes, Documentaries which form a part of International screening of the 43rd IFFI section.
Celebrating the hundred years of Indian cinema, the 43rd IFFI will showcase a special section – ‘Centenary Celebrations’, which will screen a selection of the best movies from Indian Cinema’s glorious hundred year history. The centenary year of Indian Cinema will also be celebrated by bestowing the ‘Centenary Film Award’ to a competition film selected by a special jury panel which deftly showcases the glory of cinema as a medium.
Providing an opportunity to cine lovers to experience the best of Indian and world cinema, the marquee event of the Indian cinema industry will pay a special tribute to the completion of a hundred years of Indian cinema, where a jury choice of cinema will be cited with a special ‘Centenary Award’ comprising a Silver Peacock, Certificate and a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh, which is to be given to a feature film that reflects a new paradigm in motion pictures in terms of aesthetics, technique or technological innovation.
The recipients of the marquee awards will be announced on the closing ceremony on November30, which will be attended by the who’s who of the cinematic world and luminaries from the creative fields which include Mira Nair, Kim Ki-duk, Ashok Amritraj, Tabu, Kailash Kher, Saroj Khan, etc.
One of the key highlights of this year’s IFFI will be honouring of the eminent Polish film Director Krzystof Zanussi with the Life Time Achievement Award.
The 43rd IFFI will also give away popular jury awards which recognize the best of cinematic creativity on display at the festival. The awards will be given away by a selected panel of jury who will confer awards in different categories, namely, Best Film Golden Peacock, Certificate and a cash prize of Rs.40 lakh to be shared equally between the Director and Producer, Best Director Silver Peacock, and cash prize of Rs.15 lakh, Best Actor (Male)Silver Peacock and a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh, Best Actor (Female) Silver Peacock and a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh, Special Jury Award Silver Peacock and a cash prize of Rs. 15,lakh, Lifetime Achievement Award given to an individual for his/her outstanding contribution to World Cinema with a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh and Centenary Award Silver Peacock and a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh for a feature film that reflects a new paradigm in motion pictures in terms of aesthetics, technique or technological innovation.
The film festival has been going high tech with over 60 per cent of the films to be screened at the film festival would have digital technology.
A record 10,000 delegates have been registered with 8400 confirmations having received till Monday, said organizers here on the eve of the film festival.
