“Bajirao Mastani” and “Fan” and indie dramas like “Parched” and “Thithi” will vie for awards the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM).
At the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), to be held next month, Bollywood’s popular films like “Bajirao Mastani” and “Fan” and indie dramas like “Parched” and “Thithi” will vie for awards.
The 11-day festival, which will get underway on August 11, will have gala events and masterclasses with some of India’s notable talent. There will also be over 50 films screenings in 17 languages across four Melbourne venues at the fifth edition of the event.
In the Best Actor category, Ranveer Singh (“Bajirao Mastani”), Manoj Bajpayee (“Aligarh”), Shah Rukh Khan (“Fan) and Nawazuddin Siddiqui (“Raman Raghav 2.0”) are in competition, while Sonam Kapoor (“Neerja”), Deepika Padukone (“Bajirao Mastani”), Radhika Apte (“Parched”) and Rituparna Sengupta (“Rajkahani”) are locking horns for the Best Actress title at the gala.
Among those competing for the Best Film tag are “Neerja”, “Kapoor & Sons”, “Bajirao Mastani” and “Raman Raghav 2.0”, the nominees for the Best Indie Film are “Parched” (Leena Yadav), “Thithi” (Raam Reddy), “Ottaal” (Jayaraaj), “Kothanodi” (Bhaskar Hazarika) and “Angry Indian Goddesses” (Pan Nalin).
Competitors for the Best Director include Sanjay Leela Bhansali (“Bajirao Mastani”), Ram Madhvani (“Neerja”), Shakun Batra (“Kapoor & Sons”), Leena Yadav (“Parched”) and Raam Reddy (“Thithi”).
Mitu Bhowmick Lange, Festival Director, said in a statement: “With some of the most amazing works showcased, we have tough competition at the IFFM this year. From ‘Fan’ to Bajirao Mastani to the indie films, we have the best films in pipeline for this year.”
“It’s humbling to see Neerja, a story about an Indian heroic girl traveling across the world. Neerja has been a personal passion project and it’s always great to see a film you have been a part of it being recognised at various platforms. Proud that Neerja will now be screened at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. Hoping it gets as great a reception as it has had so far,” Sonam Kapoor said.
Additionally, Shakun Batra, director of Kapoor and Sons said, “It’s a matter of great pride for us to be nominated at The Melbourne Indian film festival and the fact that it will be the first major film festival to showcase the film, makes it even more special.
I’m extremely delighted, curious and surprisingly nervous at the thought of watching the film with an audience. Eagerly looking forward to our time at the festival.”
The central theme for this year’s IFFM, which has actress Vidya Balan as its ambassador, is women empowerment. Also, veteran actor Rishi Kapoor will be honoured with the Excellence in Cinema Award at the gala.
