The 2006 IIFA Film Festival, which will run from June 15-17 at the Grand Cineplex in Dubai as part of the 7th Annual IIFA Awards Weekend, will screen the best of Indian commercial and critical films of 2005. It will showcase South Indian films for the first time alongside Hindi, Bengali and Marathi cinema, said Ramesh
Sippy, member of the IIFA Advisory Board, in Chennai on June 8, 2006.
The film festival will add to the excitement of the Idea IIFA Awards Weekend, the four-day extravaganza to be held in Dubai from June 14-17, organised by the International Indian Film Academy
(IIFA).
The IIFA Film Festival will open with the superhit Tamil film
'Chandramukhi'. It has been one of Indian cinema's best offerings to the world, said Sabbas Joseph, director,
Wizcraft, which is organising the event in Dubai.
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With a gross earning of over $ 2.5 million overseas, this film has broken all records of Indian cinema. Chandramukhi has been released in countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Australia, South Africa, Mauritius, Middle East, UK, France and the US, just to name a few. It will be released in Japan in August. In November, the film will be dubbed in German and Turkish and will be released in Germany, Switzerland, Turkey and Austria.
South Indian films lined up for the film festival are
'Kannathil Muthamittal', 'Nayakan', 'Pokiri', 'Autograph', 'Anniyan' and Mani Ratnam's
'Ayutha Ezhuthu', which was released at the IIFA Weekend in Singapore (in Hindi, as
'Yuva'). This is for the first time that South Indian films are being screened at any IIFA film festival; giving movie lovers a chance to watch their favourite South Indian superstars like
Mamooty, Mohanlal, Vikram, Jyothika and Simran in action.
The IIFA Film Festival will showcase 32 Indian feature films including 16 Hindi films, 14 South Indian, 1 Bengali, 1 Marathi and 6 short films. The films have been selected by IIFA based on their critical and commercial acclaim.
'Black', 'Bunty Aur
Babli', 'Iqbal', 'Page 3', 'Parineeta' and 'No Entry' are nominated for the best film category of the IIFA Awards, one of the major highlights of the IIFA Weekend.
'Black' was presented to a packed audience at a special screening in Amsterdam last year by the IIFA Film Festival.
'Parineeta' was the IIFA World Premiere Film at the IIFA Weekend in Amsterdam and later was on the UK Top Ten films for four weeks.
'Iqbal', a low budget film that tells the story of a mute boy's dream of playing professional cricket come true, has been a runaway success.
Also being screened is the Bengali film
'Antar Mahal'; a real-life picturisation of life in 19th century Bengal, and Marathi cinema's
'Dombivli Fast' which revolves around the life of a middle-class man struggling against a corrupt system. Apart from
mainstream cinema, the IIFA Film Festival will showcase the short films 'Horn Ok Please', 'Village Football',
'Raju and I', 'Cataract' and 'The Friend'.
Sabbas said IIFA will bring together the filmmakers of these exceptional movies and other stalwarts of Indian cinema during the IIFA Weekend in Dubai, as the world will watch the biggest showcase of Indian cinema. More than 450 delegates from India, including the creme de la creme of Indian cinema and international media, are expected in Dubai for the duration of the event which will be watched by a record global television audience of over 400 million people.
The 7th Annual IIFA Weekend is being hosted under the patronage of Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al
Maktoum, president of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, chairman of the Emirates Group and chairman of the Supreme Committee of Dubai Shopping Festival and Dubai Summer Surprises.
The IIFA Weekend will culminate with the glittering Idea IIFA Awards ceremony scheduled for June 16, 2006. The IIFA Weekend and Awards 2006 events will be broadcast by Star Network exclusively across the globe.
The producer of
Chandramukhi, Ramkumar of Sivaji Productions and its director P
Vasu, said it was good that IIFA would showcase South Indian films beginning this year.
Actor Madhavan said the IIFA Awards event is a global stage for the Indian film industry to discuss business prospects and also showcase its talent besides party and have fun.
Sanjay Wadhawa, director, AP International Films, said South Indian industry would at last get global recognition through such festivals.
IIFA to showcase South films in Dubai
The 2006 IIFA Film Festival, which will run from June 15-17 at the Grand Cineplex in Dubai as part of the 7th Annual IIFA Awards Weekend, will screen the best of Indian commercial and critical films of 2005. It will showcase South Indian films for the first time alongside Hindi, Bengali and Marathi cinema, said Ramesh
Sippy, member of the IIFA Advisory Board, in Chennai on June 8, 2006.
