About 60 films, features and documentaries will be showcased at the 2022 edition of the New York Indian Film Festival that aims to highlight the impact of Indian culture on the world and celebrate the country's acclaimed cinematic traditions as India marks 75 years of its independence.
The New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), considered one of North America's oldest and most prestigious festivals, will run from May 7 to 14 and feature cinema from India and the Indian diaspora.
Being held virtually for the third year in a row, the festival, presented by the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC), will feature 60 screenings including 18 feature narratives, six documentaries and 36 short films.
"We look forward to sparking a resonating dialogue about the ongoing impact of Indian culture on the world on the 75th Anniversary of Indian Independence,” IAAC Chairman Dr. Nirmal Mattoo said.
IAAC Executive Director Suman Gollamudi said in a statement that for two years now, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, "we have offered virtual streaming of films, providing filmmakers with even more outlets to showcase their work. We emerged stronger with a larger footprint as global audiences engaged with the films."
NYIFF celebrates alternative, independent cinema from the global Indian community and brings this collection of films to the New York audience.
On the occasion of 75th year of India's independence, which is being celebrated as “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav” across the globe, NYIFF will celebrate the country's acclaimed cinematic traditions in 13 languages.
“We aim to truly underscore the NYIFF commitment to diversity and cultural representation in film," NYIFF Festival Director Aseem Chhabra said.
"This year, we will feature films in 13 languages spoken in India: Assamese, Bengali, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. All films will have English subtitles."
The film festival will be streamed via video on demand (VOD) entertainment platform Shift72.
The closing film screening and the awards function will take place in-person in the city on May 14 that will honour the best film, director, screenplay, actor, actress, child actor, short (narrative), short (documentary) and documentary (feature).
The festival will showcase the documentary "Taangh/Longing", directed by Bani Singh, as the centerpiece film while "The Beatles and India: An Enduring Love Affair", a documentary directed by Ajoy Bose and Peter Compton, will be the closing night film at the festival.
The highlights of the festival include a second centerpiece film - Faraz Ali’s "Shoebox" (Hindi) that explores a young woman’s complex relationship with her father as the world around them changes drastically, the first NYIFF screening of a Sanskrit-language film "Bhagavadajjukam" and special children’s films screenings - "Boomba Ride" (Assamese) and "Gandhi & Co." (Gujarati).
The festival will also present unique documentary tributes to the late lyricist, poet and activist Kafi Azmi with "Kaifinama" and film critic Rashid Irani with "If Memory Serves Me Right", and screen a collection of shorts exploring LGBTQ stories set in India with "Dal Bhat", "Keep Punching", "Kiss, Man & Wife", "My Mother's Girlfriend", "Pariah" and "The Way We Are".
Chhabra added that NYIFF’s mission is to provide filmmakers, actors and industry professionals a platform to showcase their work, as well as foster an environment where filmmakers exchange ideas and interact with discerning and diverse audiences, journalists and aficionados.
