Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Telugu film actor Nagarjuna and film producer Shekhar Kapur during the unveiling of commemorative stamps honoring Tapan Sinha, Mohammed Rafi, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Raj Kapoor for their significant contribution to Indian cinema at the 55th International Film Festival of India. With. Goa November 20, 2024). , Photo courtesy: PTI

The 55th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) began on Wednesday with a star-studded opening ceremony at the Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium in Panaji, Goa.

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Information and Broadcasting Secretary Sanjay Jaju inaugurated the nine-day festival in the presence of Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, festival director Shekhar Kapur and others.

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnav and Minister of State L Murugan sent video messages.

The celebration began with a dance that paid tribute to India’s pursuit of excellence in spirituality and being the spiritual leader of the world.

Many leading actors, producers and filmmakers, including Nagarjuna Akkineni, Amala Akkineni, Jaideep Ahlawat, Boman Irani, Rajkummar Rao, R. Sarathkumar, Subhash Ghai, Nithya Menen, Amar Kaushik, Jayam Ravi, Randeep Hooda, RK Selvamani, Chidanand S. Naik, Ishari K. Ganesh and Pranitha Subhash were honoured.

‘Power of stories’

Mr Kapoor talked about the power of stories as a language of unity in a polarized world.

“Within nations and communities, we speak to each other through stories. Stories are how we communicate with each other and understand each other,” he said.

At the event, Mr Irani took the stage to pay tribute to some of India’s greatest cinema legends – Mohammed Rafi, Tapan Sinha, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Raj Kapoor.

Special commemorative stamps introduced by the Government of India were unveiled to celebrate these legends.

Dr Sawant said, “Ever since former Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar brought IFFI to Goa, IFFI and Goa have become synonymous. I am grateful for all the developments that have happened in Goa since then.

Through a video message, Mr Vaishnav said IFFI has become an important milestone in the Indian film industry.

“We have a vibrant content economy, where people are coming up with some very innovative content showcasing India’s rich traditions, culture, heritage, language, literature and cuisine,” he said.

The 55th edition of IFFI, to be held across four venues, will run till November 28.

This year the festival received 1,676 entries from 101 countries. The nine-day festival will present over 180 international titles from 81 countries, including 16 premieres in the World, three in the International, 43 in the Asian and 109 premieres in the Indian categories.

Also Read: Boman Irani’s directorial debut ‘The Mehta Boys’ to premiere at Chicago South Asian Film Festival

Notably, the organizers have included a segment to celebrate Goan films this year, under which 14 films will be screened.

The festival has chosen Australia as the focus country this year to promote its collaboration with India through an MoU between Screen Australia and NFDC.

Also read: Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur appointed director of IFFI Festival

Renowned Australian director Philip Noyce, known for making iconic films like Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger, Salt and The Bone Collector, is to be honored with the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award.