DHARAMSHALA, November 2: The highly anticipated Dharamshala International Film Festival opened Thursday evening with Indian filmmaker Hansal Mehta’s award winning film ‘Shahid.’
An international ensemble of some of the leading independent filmmakers and film enthusiasts have gathered in the exile Tibetan headquarters to take part in the first edition of the festival from November 1-4.
Welcoming the audience to the opening show, Tenzing Sonam and Ritu Sarin, the festival directors, said the event was their way of giving back to their hometown of Dharamshala and to create a “truly international event” where all communities that live here could participate and be proud of.
The festival began on a melodious note with Jamyang, a Tibetan artist, performing a highland mountain song about the environment, sung by Tibetan nomads.
Mehta, who was present to introduce his film, said Shahid is a “small film with a big heart,” tracing the true story of slain human rights activist and lawyer Shahid Azmi. He also interacted with the audience and took questions on many aspects of the film.
The opening day of the festival also coincided with the conclusion of an international artists’ workshop, which began October 20. The workshop, an art and cultural interface between international and India-based artists with local artists, addressed issues of identity, culture and politics while promoting inter-cultural exchange.
Projects created during the workshop will be exhibited or performed in public during the festival.
In its first edition, the festival will showcase 26 feature films, documentaries, and shorts curated from the best of contemporary independent cinema. Filmmakers from India and abroad will be on hand to present their films and participate in a range of master classes and panel discussions.
Apart from the festival closing night film, Ashim Ahluwalia’s Miss Lovely, winner of Best Film Award at Mumbai Film Festival, Rajan Khosa’s Gattu, Umesh Kulkarni’s Deool and Ritu and Tenzing’s documentary film When Hari Got Married will also be featured at the festival.
Some of the international films that will be premiering in India at DIFF include ½ Revolution, the Malaysian feature Bunohan, and 5 Broken Cameras, which will be shown on the second day of the festival.
Also on November 2, internationally acclaimed documentary filmmaker Jennifer Fox will take a master class discussing her methodology – using “One Person, One Camera.”
Films themed on Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism that will be featured during the festival include, Summer Pasture by Lynn True, Nelson Walker and Tsering Perlo, Yangsi by Mark Elliot, and My Reincarnation by Jennifer Fox.
