Goa: In the luminous presence of much-admired film personalities and passionate cine-enthusiasts, the 55th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) was declared open on the scenic coasts of Goa on Thursday evening. Colourful cultural programmes showcasing the cultural synergy and diversity of India enthused all and made a grand start to nine days of celebrating creativity and cinematic brilliance. Ending the long wait of cinephiles across the world, the 55th version of IFFI commenced with the screening of renowned Australian filmmaker Michael Gracey’s feature film ‘Better Man’.
Some of the brightest stars of the cine world were felicitated in the presence of cinema-worshippers in the gala opening ceremony, which was hosted by popular film personalities Abhishek Banerjee and Bhumi Pednekar. Film stalwarts Subhash Ghai, Chidanand Naik, Boman Irani, R K Selvamani, Jaideep Ahlawat, Jayam Ravi, Ishari Ganesh, R. Sarath Kumar, Pranita Subhash, Jackky Bhagnani, Rakul Preet Singh, Randeep Hooda and Rajkummar Rao were felicitated for their immense contributions to cinema.
In a video message, Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw said that IFFI has become a significant milestone in developing the Indian film industry. I & B Minister stated that there is much focus on developing the content creators’ economy, which is vibrant and rapidly growing. “People are coming up with innovative content that showcases India’s diverse cultures, cuisines, rich heritage, and gems of Indian literature and languages in interesting and creative ways”, he said. He added that India can play a major role in shaping the creators’ economy by integrating technology and developing a robust curators’ ecosystem.
Spiritual Guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was also present amongst the dignitaries. Chief Minister of Goa Dr. Pramod Sawant and Festival Director Shekhar Kapoor felicitated 55th IFFI’s International Competition Jury members – Ashutosh Gowariker (Chairman), Anthony Chen, Elizabeth Karlsen, Fran Borgia, and Jill Bilcock.
