The Delhi cine buffs are in for a treat with the five-day 6th Jagran Film Festival (JFF) bringing some of the best Indian and foreign films. Kicking off in the Capital the 17-city tour opens on July 1 with Masaan directed by Neeraj Ghaywan. A total of 105 films are to be screened under different categories.
Elaborating on fest theme, ‘happiness’ Manoj Srivastava, strategic consultant, JFF, remarks, “It is the spice of life pursued by one and all through different methods, material, spiritual, religious, etc. Films, like every other art work and form are about happiness for those creating them expressing an idea with audiences appreciating it, leading to happiness for both.” This will be explored through the curated slot Project Happiness which brings five Indian films –– Anand , Bawarchi , Mera Naam Joker , Guide and 3 Idiots and four foreign ones, Ikiru , Life is Beautiful , The Pursuit of Happiness and Gone with the Wind .
World Panorama showcases new movies from across the globe awarded in international film festivals, including Postman’s White Nights , Bridgend , The Golden Era , The Two Women among others, while the Indian Showcase is exclusively for Indian feature films across languages selected by a preview panel. Delhi will screen 20 with five more to be added in Mumbai leg of the fest where they will be judged for 16 awards in different categories.
For short film lovers there is Jagran Shorts and Top Shorts (nine films) with the former is competitive, comprising a mix of Indian and international films, selected by the empanelled preview panel while the latter presents a blend of films that have won awards and have been accredited in the festivals across the world.
The Retrospective Section is dedicated to Tarachand Barjatya and one gets to see 13 of his films. Homage Section brings one film each of actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar and noted filmmakers K. Balachander and Ravi Chopra.
Oscar enthusiasts can savour nine Academy Award winners all from the US focusing on the country and its culture, under the Country Focus category.
There will be workshops and Q&A sessions conducted by Subhash Ghai and Anjum Rajabali among others. Everyday there will be a discussion with a film personality too.
The other cities which will host the fest include Lucknow, Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi and Ludhiana among others. “International film festivals are restricted to metros and our intention is to take cinema to smaller centres in order to educate and make them aware of the opportunities,” explains Manoj.
