Chandigarh’s first International film fest opens with French movie ‘The Taste of Things’

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 27

“It’s better late than never,” said actor Boman Irani, who was the guest of honour alongside actresses Rasika Dugal and Rajshri Deshpande for the inaugural Cinevesture International Film Festival (CIFF) at Chandigarh. Kicked off in a grand style with a star-studded opening ceremony at Jagat Mall Cinepolis, Audi 1, Sector 17 Chandigarh, the film festival will conclude on March 31.

French historical romantic drama film ‘The Taste of Things’ (La Passion de Dodin Bouffant) was the opening film that had also won the Best Director award at Cannes Film Festival, 2023. Directed by Tran Anh Hung, and starting Juliette Binoche & Benoit Magimel, the film was the official entry to Academy Awards 2024 from France.

Irani said, “It’s a happy occasion, a celebration. It’s important for generations to come. You may wonder what I am doing here. I am making a debut. I debut everything very late in life. I became an actor at the age of 44. I made my first film at the age of 64. And here, I am a guest of honour for the first time at a festival. And, one must enjoy like a little child, because the little child in me loves what happens behind me. It doesn’t matter when you start as long as the start is beautiful.”

The five-day festival will showcase 25 award-winning international features in the World Cinema section, 16 indie gems in the India Unveiled, 30 shorts in Brief Encounters, a curated section of children’s films and timeless classics. Other films, Momo in Dubai, Where the Road Leads, Mithya were screened on Wednesday. Screenings of Children’s films are open to all children from the ages of 10-17 at 9 AM from 27-31 March at Cinepolis Jagat.

Bina Paul, artistic director, said: “We have lined up an array of films from across the world and India which will give a glimpse into the world of meaningful cinema. The best part of the event is that it not only looks at the cinema, but also at the commerce aspect of film industry.”

Festival director VS Kundu thanked the advisory board that includes Bahubali star and leading film producer Rana Daggubati, former head of Cannes Film Market Jerome Paillard, former co-director of Sundance Film Festival Nicole Guillemet, celebrated Indian filmmaker Ajitpal Singh (Fire in the Mountains and TABBAR), Bangladeshi filmmaker and screenwriter Nuhash Humayun (Moshari) and the co-owner of the Blake Friedmann Literary Agency Julian Friedmann.

Mirzapur actor Rasika Dugal recalled, “The first time, I watched a movie in theatre it was in Chandigarh when I was a child. My nana nani used to live here and I used to come for summer holidays. So it’s very fascinating for me to be back here for a film festival. I am very excited that the opening film has Juliette Binoche she has been a huge inspiration for me.”

The festival will host 20 masterclasses and panel discussions at The Grand Ballroom at Taj Chandigarh and features an impressive lineup of sessions with acclaimed film personalities such as Karan Johar, Tahira Kashyap, Abhay Deol, Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal, Roshan Mathew, Kohrra star Suvinder Vicky, Boman Irani, Rasika Dugal, Rajshri Deshpande, Randeep Jha, Anurag Singh, Shekhar Kapur, Sudhir Mishra and many more.

CIFF will present 20 projects under CIFF Market Projects on the sidelines of the festival which include three web series – Schooled Abroad, The Trials and Peach No. 15 and 17 feature projects.

Star-studded event

The five-day festival will host 20 masterclasses and panel discussions to be attended by acclaimed film personalities such as Karan Johar, Shekhar Kapur, Tahira Kashyap, Abhay Deol, Richa Chadha, Boman Irani and Anurag Singh.

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